Some experts believe that 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?

Learning a
language
, especially a foreign
language
is a hard and long-term process. Some people would argue that learning a non-native
language
at primary
school
is better than learning it at secondary
school
. In my opinion, introducing a
second
language
to primary
school
children has both upsides and downsides, but the benefits outweigh the drawbacks a bit. There are some advantages to learning a foreign
language
at primary
school
. It is clear that learning a
second
language
is easier at an early age. Researches show that children learn languages faster and easier because they have more time to learn, less to learn, fewer inhibitions, and a brain designed for
language
learning.
Moreover
, learning languages is one way to help the parents to expand their children's interests, the same as studying piano or swimming. In fact, when your child has the opportunity to try different subjects, they would have more chances to find their strengths.
As a result
, strengths found at an early age could help children to be more successful when they grow up.
In contrast
, it could be problems if we introduce a
second
language
to children at primary
school
.
Firstly
, the native
language
is used to learn other subjects and primary
school
is where children need to focus on their mother tongue, trying to learn more than one
language
at a time can make it difficult for children to study other important fundamental subjects
such
as math or science. Their brain could be confused by having to learn more than one
language
at the moment as other subjects.
Consequently
, children's ability to absorb subjects will be reduced.
Secondly
, learning too much at an early age could put lots of stress and pressure on our children. They have to receive and process too much information when they need time to acquaint with the world.
For example
, in VietNam, statistics show that 60% of children had mental and behavioural problems after being forced by parents to learn many subjects.
However
, I think those problems could be prevented with some adjustments. To sum up,
although
some people are against teaching foreign languages to primary
school
children, I believe that it is beneficial for young children as it improves their abilities and
language
skills.
Submitted by Andy on

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Topic Vocabulary:
  • cognitive abilities
  • pronunciation
  • self-conscious
  • cultural awareness
  • global society
  • proficiency levels
  • competitive job market
  • foundational skills
  • qualified teachers
  • recreational activities
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