Some people believe that all the children in school are required to learn at least one foreign language. However, others say that those who are not talented do not have to learn. What is your opinion?

For

children

in school, learning a foreign

language

or not should be determined by the school curriculum. Provided that it is offered as a subject, all

students

– talented or

otherwise

- must

study

it as partial fulfilment of their academic achievement. The

study

of a foreign

language

– especially English for

children

in Grades is now a compulsory requirement at all primary schools in my country

although

it was not the case just a few years ago. With increased globalisation, comes increased cross-cultural contact and because of

this

, it is important for

children

to master at least one foreign

language

at an early age so as to prepare them for

this

global society. Understanding a foreign

language

is

also

an opportunity for

children

to learn about and understand a little about another culture or culture.

Also

, it is an opportunity to cultivate

students

’ talent, develop their ability in learning and boost their potential for

further

education. It is irresponsible, and indeed, even harmful, to separate and label

students

as talented or not in education at

such

a tender and vulnerable age. Why should the

study

of a foreign

language

alone be used as the only yardstick to label

students

as talented or not in education? It is advisable to help all

students

to understand that the

study

of a foreign

language

will bring benefit to their studies and, in the future, their careers.

Thus

, I feel that it is not healthy to advocate the labelling of

students

as talented or not in the

study

of languages.