The illustrations depict data on the percentages of learners aged 14 to 16 in an English native-speaking country who were studying other languages (French, German, and Spanish) in 1984 and 2007.
Overall, the percentage of female students was higher than that of male students in both years. Additionally, French was the most studied language among the three throughout the entire period.
In 1984, the percentage of female students was just below 50%, while the percentage of male students was only 30%. By 2007, the percentage of female students had decreased to 40%, and the percentage of male students had dropped to approximately 25%.
In 1984, French was the most studied language, with 50% of students learning it, followed by German at 20%. Spanish was the least popular, with only around 5% of students studying it. By 2007, while the ranking of the languages remained the same, the percentage of students learning French had dramatically decreased to about 35%. In contrast, the percentage of students studying German had risen to just below 25%, and the proportion of students learning Spanish had increased to 10%.
