Around the world, children learn English as a second language at school. However, in some places, they also learn at kindergarten (pre-school care, when children are aged two to five). Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of learning English at kindergarten.

As English has become the dominant

language

worldwide, vast numbers of people are learning it. The

age

of English-

language

acquisition is

also

lowering at the same time. Personally, I believe it is essential for a person from a non-English speaking community to learn English, but I think it is not necessary to do so until a

child

is around seven or eight. Supporters of teaching English

at

Suggestion

in

kindergarten

–

that is

, when a

child

is aged between two to five – believe that early exposure will produce more competent speakers. Parents who are keen to give their

child

a head start in an ever more competitive world are persuaded by

this

idea. They think that if English is combined with play, it will be easily absorbed, and not seem like study at all.

However

, there are strong arguments against teaching English

at

Suggestion

in

kindergarten

.

Firstly

, linguists claim that a

child

needs to be literate in his or her own

language

before another is begun unless that

child

is already living in a completely bilingual environment –

that is

: his or her parents are native speakers of both languages, and both languages are used around the

child

.

Secondly

,

kindergarten

teachers are less likely to be native English speakers themselves, or to be competent

language

teachers, which means that what children learn

at

Suggestion

in

kindergarten

could be no more than a smattering of words – ‘Hello’ ‘Goodbyes’, numbers, colours, and the names of animals. All of these could be learnt very quickly in a school classroom at the

age

of seven

in addition

to proper grammar and good pronunciation.

Then

there is the issue that kindergartens provide ‘English’ more as a marketing tool than an educational one, cashing in on concerned parents. It could

also

be a status symbol that a

child

is learning English at the

age

of three among the friends of his or her parents, meaning that the

child

’s learning experience is subordinated to the parents’ prestige. In my view,

kindergarten

is a time to acquire social skills, motor skills, and a deeper understanding of a

child

’s own

language

. English can come later when a

child

is more capable of focused learning, and when the teaching is likely to be better. In an

age

where the endless pursuit of qualifications and accomplishments seems the norm, why not let a

child

be a

child

at

Suggestion

in

kindergarten

?