[phenolphthalein]

Hi,
I happened to come across this thread while researching for an essay on the pros and cons of globalization...allegedly americans are becoming aware of the opportunities they'll have if they start learning foreign languages, especially at a young age. I can only hope it's true!I don't intend to offend anyone but I have to admit that I'm frequently quite shocked at native English-speaking people's attitude towards foreign languages. There's no doubt that English is today's lingua franca but in my opinion you don't just learn a foreign language in order to pursue your career - it reflects interest in and respect to other cultures and their languages. Whenever I have been abroad I have attempted (not always successfully:))to speak the predominant language and I have rarely ever been confonted with anything other than appreciation for my attempts and understanding for my mistakes.
This summer however, my Kiwi (New Zealand) friend and I went to Italy. we both started off with no notion whatsoever of the Italian language and thus tried to see who would know the most Italian words by the end of our holiday. I can't deny that my friend did not make any efforts or that she made a lot of fun of the Italian's english, as she would also describe herself as very open-minded and tolerant towards people who don't speak English that well. Keeping in mind that she herself doesn't speak any foreign languages, I#d say that was normal. anyway, we soon had a mock fight when she accused me off having cheated because I already knew much more Italian than she did. I assume that i must have subconsciously picked up as much as I could but nevertheless, I don't actually think it has anything to do with me personally but rather the attitude that we are brought up and taught to in Germany. Everyone who has gone to school here can more or less speak a foreign language, which is in 90 percent of the cases I#d say, english.If you want to do your abitur, your A-Levels, you even have to learn at least two. The question of whether it's a must or not is clear but just to make it easier for oneself, it should also be a hobby