Scotland's stance on language policy is very welcome

Scotland's investigations into the possibilities for implementing language learning in schools that follow the European model of 1 + 2 languages is a very welcome development. Under this model, all primary school pupils would be learning two languages in addition to their mother tongue by the end of their fifth year. This is essential for the development of able and skilled pupils who live in diverse cultural communities as those that present themselves in our modern society, and for those who wish to be truly mobile in terms of their flexibility to take work overseas, or to contribute to developing overseas links in existing positions in the country.

Although learning only one extra language is undoubtedly beneficial, learning two extra languages is highly admirable, and this is the general standard set for jobs within the European Union or United Nations, with a few notable exceptions. If young people are to contribute to the colourful mosaic that is the European continent, and the world, then languages are going to be needed by everyone in every corner of it. Scotland is leading the way by promoting inclusiveness and offering young people the options they need to compete in today's world. The potential issues to overcome now are which languages to teach, and whether they are universally relevant or should be to some extent tailored to local needs.

What is praiseworthy is that targeting children so young embeds the language in their brains and develops cognitive learning abilities that will be particularly useful later on. They will remember the language more easily than older children (i.e. those in secondary school) and will have a much higher chance of being considered bilingual. Targeting older students with language classes generally leaves them cold and with a mixed ability to learn, as the age at which languages becomes firmly engendered in the brain has come and gone. If they have been learning since early childhood, the chances that they will use and continue to develop the language skills learnt are greatly increased. What remains to be seen now is whether this policy is actually implemented, and how the parents of young children will react to it's place on school curriculums.