Nowadays, our society is distinguished by debates about school and more particularly by the role of foreign language learning. A common opinion is that, foreign language classes provide many benefits to pupils, because they increase their skills and make younger people more open-minded. Nevertheless, other people think that foreign language lectures are useless due to the technical progress that brings many automatic translators. However, in my opinion learning a foreign language remains vital, despite the apparition of ChatGPT.
On the one hand, it is generally claimed that foreign language classes are useful and I support this idea. One key advantage of learning a foreign language is the abilities developed. Indeed, if French students learn English, they will improve their knowledge and skills to become more able to get various types of jobs. Furthermore, globalisation has crowned English as the most popular language of the world. Therefore, studying a foreign language, and more particularly English is essential to be valuable on the labour market. Another benefit brought by foreign language lectures is the capacity to be more open-minded to other cultures. For example, if I hadn’t learnt Italian when I was a teenager, I would not have been able to travel for 6 months, by myself, in Italy to discover Italian culture.
On the other hand, there is a tendency for some to believe that learning another language is not necessary. I must admit that there are arguments to back this view. Indeed, they consider that the most important skill remains the ability to speak their own language correctly. For instance, the last PISA’s ranking, organised by the OECD, attested that in many countries such as France, Finland or Germany, pupils’ language level has decreased sharply, since 2019. Consequently, it seems more logical to focus teaching on the national language than other foreign languages. Another reason that can be developed would be the impact of technical progress. Currently, the Internet has created a plethora of applications and websites to translate foreign languages. Moreover, AI might increase this dynamic in the future. As a result, in 2050, it may be useless to manage different languages.
To conclude, I believe that learning a foreign language at school remains essential. However it could be less vital in the future than in the past.