Why Take a Foreign Language?
French, Spanish, Japanese, and American Sign Language — There are so many to choose from!
Moto Oishi, the Japanese teacher, and his class.
Oct 17 2017
Some people believe that they don’t really need to take a foreign language class and that they won’t ever have to use the language, but by taking a language class students are not just learning how to speak the language, they are learning about the culture as well. There are some people who only take a foreign language class because they need the high school credit, but even if you don’t need the credit you should still take a language class! What some people and students don’t realize is how beneficial it is to take a foreign language class!
Here at Central Kitsap High School, we have a wide variety of language courses for students to take, French, Spanish, Japanese, and American Sign Language. Students should definitely take advantage of these programs and learn another language and culture! Shannon Blanusa, Spanish teacher, says, “The great thing about any foreign language is it makes you more aware of other people and other countries, so then you’re more empathetic, you’re more understanding to other cultures.”
“I think that there is a lot of benefits! So, becoming more visual and being a better communicator in general, but being able to communicate with gestures can be helpful in many situations,” Andrea Romano, ASL teacher, explains some of the benefits of taking an ASL class.
Kimberly Yee, the French teacher, helping students with their class work.
The benefits Romano describes are true for many other languages as well. When traveling, being able to communicate with people who may not speak the language you speak is very important. Kimberly Yee described how beneficial it is for a person to know how to speak a language, such as French, so they are able to talk to tourists who may be traveling in their area.
It is definitely beneficial to take a foreign language class. The language teachers agree that students should take a foreign language class in high school because it will help them in the real world. Moto Oishi, the Japanese teacher, said that learning a language broadens the mind. A couple of the other language teachers, including Oishi, explained how doing something or finding a hobby that you would use the language for is helpful while you are learning it.