Some experts believe that it is better for children to begin learning a foreign language at primary school rather than secondary school. Do the advantages of this outweigh the disadvantages?

Although

some specialists believe that it is more beneficial for children to commence learning a foreign

language

at primary

school

, others believe it is more advantageous when these languages are taught in high schools. In my opinion, I strongly believe that the advantages of teaching kids a foreign

language

in primary

school

, far outweigh any drawbacks it may bring. Despite the disadvantages below, children learning a foreign

language

during the primary stage of their education have significant positive effects.

Firstly

, learning a foreign

language

at primary schools is extremely easy for children because they have not deeply imbibed the fixed grammatical structures of their native

language

yet.

This

makes it simpler to pick up the new framework of any foreign

language

. If they were to commence

this

learning at secondary

school

, it would take longer to learn and cause the child a great deal of mental stress.

Secondly

, due to the number of advanced subjects which are part of the high

school

curriculum, it is very advantageous that children complete foreign

language

studies in primary

school

.

This

would free up crucial time which would be needed in focusing, and excelling, in subjects like Physics,

for instance

, which are very useful for their future. Admittedly, there are issues to be considered. One problem which may arise from teaching young children a foreign

language

early on is that it might affect their conversational skills. To illustrate, a small number of children who are taught the Japanese

language

at elementary

school

, often mix words with their native

language

in day-to-day conversation.

However

,

this

is extremely rare. Another issue which may result from teaching primary aged children foreign languages

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is that other areas which are crucial to their mental and social development

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might be negatively impacted. To clarify, learning a foreign

language

may require extra hours.

This

might reduce the number of hours a child has to play and interact with his or her mates.

Consequently

, they may have stunted mental abilities. In conclusion, attaining early native-level proficiency in a foreign

language

and having amply time to study crucial subjects at secondary

school

far outweigh any disadvantages.