The Economist – Staff Writer
“Those who become proficient in a second language typically produce higher scores and have greater cognitive development, a sense of cultural pluralism and an improved self-concept, according to The Global Language Project website. However, being bilingual and having language proficiency are different. Stephen Canfield, the chair of the foreign languages department, said those who are bilingual are usually comfortable and have an ease of switching back and forth between two languages, while having proficiency is being highly skilled in a language. Aside from English, Chinese is the most used language in 2015; English is also one of the primary languages for business and science…Canfield said having language proficiency is like having any other skill, and through learning a new language, it is possible to know about other cultures. He said it is also a primary skill to get certain jobs.”(more)