Not too rarely, I’m asked the question, “What do you want to do with your degree?” As any humanities student at Oxford knows, there is never really an answer. I could decide to follow the linear career path for someone in my position and pursue translation or teaching, but I would rather not. Studying a modern language is often overlooked or disregarded in British society, and so, like many other humanities students, we are questioned on our motives for studying a topic that we are genuinely passionate about. In an ever-expanding multilingual global community, we exist in a monolingual society, one where younger generations of pupils are deciding not to study an additional language. However, studying a modern language is so much more than memorising vocabulary or grappling with complicated grammar (thank you, French subjunctive), it is about connecting with other communities across borders. It is about identifying and building relationships with other individuals who recognise their potential; more than anything, it is about understanding that we do not live in isolation. A global community should not be built around one widely spoken or accepted language; rather, we should treasure the connections we make with speakers of different languages.
I do not, and will not, regret studying a modern language at university. Research has shown that being bilingual comes with numerous cognitive benefits. The ability to complete executive functions at a faster rate, delayed rates of developing Alzheimer’s, and better performance in school exams have all been linked to bilingualism. Moreover, research has shown that speakers of another language are more likely to be hired and can even earn between 11% and 35% more than monolinguals, putting me at a slight advantage over other humanities students. However, I did not choose to study French in order to further a future career plan; my choice was selfish in an entirely different manner. I believe that studying another language has enriched my life experiences and shaped my personal development. It has taught me patience, respect and gratitude.
Growing up in a bilingual household, I was already exposed to Italian from birth. I went on to ‘study’ French at primary school, indeed memorising the colours and planets was the extent of that education, and then high school, where two languages were offered: French or Spanish. Since moving on from that school, I have learnt that they no longer teach students French, having dropped the subject entirely as fewer and fewer pupils would pick it as one of their GCSE subjects. This is not an isolated trend, only 2.97% of A-levels taken in 2024 were for a modern language, a statistic so shocking to me that it was put even more into perspective when I discovered physical education is a more popular option than French, German or the classical languages combined.
So why, with each generation, are modern languages becoming less and less appealing?
In part, this is because of the growing number of speakers of English as a second language. Over 1 billion people speak English as non-native speakers, meaning that we cannot ignore English’s importance in the global community. For British people today, that seems to be enough – students at school have explained their rationale to me, ‘Well, everyone speaks English now…when I go on holiday, they will speak English to me’ or simply ‘Google Translate it’ when asked what they will do when going abroad and interacting with non-English speakers. It is true that, with the advancement of online translators, it is much easier to travel and communicate important messages. However, in doing so, we miss out on core human interactions. To me, the acceptance of English as a dominant global mode of communication demonstrates wilful ignorance and an egocentric outlook. This forces other communities and speakers to learn your language in order to converse, without making any attempts to adapt or learn. By limiting ourselves to one language, we are limiting our interactions with the broader world and asserting an expectation to conform to Western, Anglo-centric standards of communication. While in the wider world 65% of people are bilingual, in the UK it is estimated that over 90% of people only speak English.
As my first-year sociolinguistics lecturers would remind us during each lecture, speaking a language is so much more than merely communicating; it is used to identify with social groups and communities. It is used to recognise shared qualities and characteristics among people and, whether the age-old debate has any scientific foundation or not, I believe that I see the world differently thanks to my multilingual abilities. The experiences I have had thanks to my knowledge of French and Italian, and the people I have been able to communicate with because of it, have shaped my outlook on the world. I do not take for granted my ability to communicate; I am grateful every single day to be able to draw on three different modes of communication in order to express myself, but also to interact with the external, physical world. Every conversation has enriched my life in some way and made me appreciate the wonderful linguistic capabilities of humans.
We have the potential to learn another language in all its complexities; language ability is shared between humans and is a foundational human quality that makes us distinct from the rest of the animal kingdom. We are given the opportunity and ability to learn languages, yet it takes bravery and strength to study a subject that our national society deems insignificant. I believe that more young people would be interested in modern languages, but our appetite for them has changed. Whilst European languages may have been considered the ‘safer’ option considering our proximity to the continent, statistics released by Duolingo demonstrate that the proportion of English under-22-year-olds who are learning another language ranks second in the world, but not for languages taught at schools. Instead, it is Korean, Chinese and Japanese that are most popular. And so why not foster this interest? Attitudes to language learning can be shaped by members of society but also by the government; introducing a wider range of language options to the curriculum, action for teacher recruitment, and funding to support language learning in schools are imperative. The desire to learn a language and engage with the global community should not be discouraged or shut down. However, at this moment in time, the state of language faculties in schools and attitudes towards bilingual children do nothing but discourage people from taking the plunge. By stepping out of the comfort zone and exploring options beyond the scope of the English-speaking world, we’re encouraging brave and adventurous young people to venture beyond what British society tells them they need to do.
I do not want to condemn those who chose not to study a language at school, nor criminalise the use of Google Translate on holiday, as I too would be guilty. Instead, I believe that we need to revisit and rethink the notion that English is spoken everywhere, hence there is no need to learn another language. We need to shift our generational ignorant perspective from ‘Oh, I am just not good at languages’ to considering what changes we can make in society in order to foster curiosity and a desire to explore. Because language learning is exploration, in its own way, you are exploring the culture of a country, the traditions of its people and its rich history.
Or perhaps I am simply trying to justify my degree to you, or even to myself…