American University Students : The Necessity of Foreign Languages

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This paper reports on a study of 481 American university students’ current and desired foreign language ability as well as their opinions about the necessity of foreign language fluency in the United States. The study found that although almost half of the American university students did not speak a foreign language, an overwhelming majority would like to be able to speak one or more foreign languages. Employment considerations, personal growth（for example, traveling, learning more about one’s heritage）, and economic and social opportunities（for example, greater chances for communication）were given as motivating factors for learning another language. The study also found that students were almost equally divided about the necessity of foreign language fluency for both the American public and American university graduates.