I have read many articles on why a person should learn a second language, they all cover the same good reasons to do so. I have also met and taught people with different motivations to acquire a second language, be it English, Japanese, or any one of the other 7,000+ languages in the world. Below is a list of some generally good and personal reasons of why to learn a second language.
Statistically, slow the onset of dementia
Several comprehensive studies have found the same thing, adults who only speak one language show the first signs of dementia at the mean average, 71.4 years old. For adults who speak two or more languages, the mean average for the first signs of dementia is 75.5 years old.
Your first language is improved
I don’t recall learning sentence structure, grammar, and all its terminology for my first language, I mostly absorbed it intuitively. It wasn’t until I started learning how to teach English did I see the building blocks of my own language, even more so when I started learning Japanese. I hear my colloquial English with all its grammatical errors in a different way now. And, how confusing are phrasal verbs!?
A mental workout
A foreign language has rules, structures, and vocabulary. Learning a new language means your brain has to work out these things and make new patterns. I know when I use my limited Japanese, I need to do some mental gymnastics. Present tense or past tense? Polite or casual? Which particle!? Word order, word order!
Some personal reasons
Through people I have met socially and professionally, I have heard many reasons why people study a second language. It has been for work, for travel, for fun, to learn more, to live overseas, to communicate with a foreign in-law, to help foreign visitors, to improve communication with foreign friends, to challenge oneself, to prevent dementia, to broaden ones’ mind, a love of a foreign culture or a love of a foreign person.
I don’t know which is the best reason to learn a second language but, I can’t see any bad reason not to.
【あなたの心が伝わるあなただけの英語】
英語でのコミュニケーションをあなたらしい英語で。一人一人のレベル、能力、興味に合った教材や方法での英語レッスンプログラムをオンラインで学べます。
”あなたの英語”でコミュニケートしたい方は、まずは無料カウンセリングをご予約ください。
