Northern Ireland

Adults regret not spending more time studying a modern language at school

More than half of those surveyed said they wished they had kept up their language skills
More than half of those surveyed said they wished they had kept up their language skills More than half of those surveyed said they wished they had kept up their language skills

NEARLY three quarters of adults did not fully appreciate the benefits of studying a modern language at school, a new survey has revealed.

According to the British Council, around six in 10 people expressed regret at not spending more time on languages when they had the chance.

More than half said they wished they had kept up their skills.

The survey was commissioned to mark International Education Week, as part of the British Council's work to advocate for the learning of modern foreign languages.

Although most Northern Ireland adults had some regrets about their own schooltime experiences, the majority thought children today should have the chance to master a modern language.

More than half said languages should be compulsory at primary school and 68 per cent said they should be mandatory at post-primary.

The survey also found that nearly two in five adults thought Spanish was the most important for young people to learn, followed by French and Mandarin Chinese.

"We've been encouraging pupils to study Mandarin through our annual Mandarin speaking competition, and speaking to teachers and school leaders about the perceived barriers to language learning for our biennial Language Trends Northern Ireland research," said Jonathan Stewart, British Council Northern Ireland director.

"It's important we highlight to Northern Ireland pupils the benefits of language learning, from boosting job prospects to connecting with different cultures, to ensure the next generation of learners doesn't end up with the same regrets as so many adults."