Reason: 40
The promotion of respect for diversity of languages and of learning more than one foreign language at school is significant..It is a matter of helping learners: to construct their linguistic and cultural identity through integrating it into a diversified experience of otherness; to develop their ability to learn through this same diversified experience of relating to several languages and cultures
Reference:
Council of Europe (2001) Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Identity, Intercultural competence, Learning, Multilingualism, Secondary sector, Values
Reason: 62
Linguistic and cultural diversity on the one hand and biodiversity on the other are correlated - where one type is high, the other one is usually too and vice-versa. New research suggests mounting evidence for the hypothesis that the relation might also be causal
Reference:
Skutnabb-Kangas, T. (2002) Why should linguistic diversity be maintained and supported in Europe? Some arguments (Strasbourg: Council of Europe)
Related Keywords:
Culture, Diversity, Sustainability
Reason: 63
Language and cultural diversity maximises chances of human success and adaptability
Reference:
Skutnabb-Kangas, T. (2002) Why should linguistic diversity be maintained and supported in Europe? Some arguments (Strasbourg: Council of Europe)
Related Keywords:
Culture, Diversity, Sustainability
Reason: 67
Knowledge in non-European languages will become an important economic and political asset. We need to be plurilingual and have English as only one of the languages
Reference:
Skutnabb-Kangas, T. (2002) Why should linguistic diversity be maintained and supported in Europe? Some arguments (Strasbourg: Council of Europe)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Economic, social and political dimension, Global English, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Multilingualism
Reason: 77
Of the 6,000 or so languages in the world, it seems probable that about half of these will disappear in the course of the present century - an average of one language dying out every fortnight
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2003) 'Taking account of the linguistic revolution' in Head, D., Jones, E., Kelly, M., Tinsley, T. (eds) Setting the Agenda for Languages in Higher Education (London: CILT), pp. 9-23
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Sustainability
Reason: 79
The number of languages now present on the Internet now must be in the region of 1,500
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2003) 'Taking account of the linguistic revolution' in Head, D., Jones, E., Kelly, M., Tinsley, T. (eds) Setting the Agenda for Languages in Higher Education (London: CILT), pp. 9-23
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Technology
Reason: 132
Citizenship education calls for the teaching of values, understanding and skills as well as knowledge about life in other communities to help pupils develop a respect for cultural diversity. Language teachers have particular experiences to draw on (many will have spent a year abroad) which give them a vital role to play in the teaching of citizenship in schools. Language teachers have much more personal experiences of the issues that lie at the heart of citizenship education
Reference:
Brown, K., Brown, M. (2003) ‘Introduction - opening the debate on citizenship and modern foreign languages in Brown, K., Brown, M. (eds) Reflections on Citizenship in a Multilingual World (London: CILT), pp. 1-14
Related Keywords:
Citizenship, Diversity, Secondary sector, Teaching, Understanding, Values
Reason: 135
At A-level [in a foreign language], one important contribution to antiracism is the inclusion of vocabulary that helps learners to talk about cultural diversity
Reference:
Starkey, H., Osler, A. (2003) ‘Language teaching for cosmopolitan citizenship’ in Brown, K., Brown, M. (eds) Reflections on Citizenship in a Multilingual World (London: CILT), pp. 25-35
Related Keywords:
Culture, Diversity, Equality (equal opportunities), Qualifications, Secondary sector, Values
Reason: 183
Each language manifests a fresh coming-together of sounds, grammar and vocabulary to form a system of communication, which while demonstrating certain universal principles of organisation and structure, is an unprecedented event and a unique encapsulation of a world view
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Knowledge, Linguistics, Uniqueness
Reason: 184
The more languages we study, the fuller our picture of the human linguistic options will be. Languages which are off the beaten track are especially important, as their isolation means they may have developed features which are not found in other languages
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Knowledge, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Linguistics, Uniqueness
Reason: 185
Differences in the way languages use grammar are always illuminating, especially those which help to quash the myth of primitiveness in indigenous languages. There are many languages which provide ways of expressing an area of experience that actually offer more points of contrastivity than are available in languages like English or French
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Linguistics, Uniqueness
Reason: 186
Several of the grammatical features found in indigenous languages present us with ways of talking about the world that have no counterpart in the well-known Western languages
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Knowledge, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Linguistics, Uniqueness
Reason: 189
Faced with the likelihood of losing half of the world’s languages within the next century, and of the distinct possibility of a world with only one language in it a few hundred years hence, it is this generation which needs to make the decisions
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Sustainability, Values
Reason: 227
Europe's diversity is nowhere clearer than in its languages. But if it is to benefit from that diversity, its citizens have to be able to communicate with each other. Knowledge of languages is part of the basic skills that the Europe of the knowledge society requires; everyone should, as a general rule, be able to speak two foreign languages
Reference:
Council of the European Union (2002) Detailed work programme on the follow-up of the objectives of education and training systems in Europe (http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/pri/en/oj/dat/2002/c_142/c_14220020614en00010022.pdf)
Related Keywords:
Communication, Diversity, European Union (EU), Key skills, Knowledge
Reason: 232
Language learning is a key component of education for democratic citizenship; a participative process, which inter alia: equips mean and women to play an active part in public life and to shape in a responsible way their own destiny and that of their society; aims to instil a culture of human rights; prepares people to live in a multicultural society and to deal with difference knowledgeably, sensibly, tolerantly and morally; strengthens social cohesion, mutual understanding and solidarity
Reference:
Council of Europe (1999) cited in Starkey, H. (2002) 'Citizenship, human rights and intercultural education' in Swarbrick, A. (ed) Teaching Modern Foreign Languages in Secondary Schools (London: Routledge Falmer, The Open University), pp. 95-111
Related Keywords:
Citizenship, Democracy, Diversity, European Union (EU), Inclusion, Social cohesion, Understanding, Values
Reason: 263
There’s been a proliferation of non-English Internet sites in recent years, especially Spanish, German, French, Japanese
Reference:
Montgomery, S. cited by Schmid, R. (2004) 'Sun may set on English Language, experts say' in Los Angeles Daily News, Friday February 27, 2004
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Information acquisition, Technology
Reason: 273
Globalisation means that businesses and other employers increasingly need foreign language skills at all levels, in a range of languages broadly reflecting the spread of languages across the world
Reference:
Wicksteed, K. (2004) 'Languages and the Baccalaureate' in Languages, Mathematics and the Baccalaureate (London: The Nuffield Foundation), pp. 12-17
Related Keywords:
Business, Diversity, Employability, Globalisation
Reason: 284
The assumption is that increased foreign trade, closer European links, the effects of globalisation and even the war on terrorism will increase the demand for skilled linguists in an increasing range of languages
Reference:
Connell, T. (2002) Languages and Employability: A Question of Careers (www.cilt.org.uk/careers/pdf/reports/employability.pdf)
Related Keywords:
Business, Diversity, Employability, European Union (EU), Globalisation, International relations, National security
Reason: 285
An interesting phenomenon is the growth in jobs requiring multilingual staff such as regional airports and the emergence of new areas of activity calling on a whole variety of languages at different levels of skill
Reference:
Connell, T. (2002) Languages and Employability: A Question of Careers (www.cilt.org.uk/careers/pdf/reports/employability.pdf)
Related Keywords:
Business, Diversity, Employability, Multilingualism
Reason: 301
Perhaps a global language will hasten the disappearance of minority languages, or - the ultimate threat - make all other languages unnecessary... Linked with this is the unpalatable face of linguistic triumphalism - the danger that some people will celebrate one language's success at the expense of others
Reference:
Crystal, D. (1997) English as a Global Language (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Global English, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Values
Reason: 308
It is inevitable that, in a post-colonial era, there should be a strong reaction against continuing to use the language of the former colonial power, and in favour of promoting the indigenous languages
Reference:
Crystal, D. (1997) English as a Global Language (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Global English, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Values
Reason: 309
People have a natural wish to use their own mother-tongue, to see it survive and grow, and they do not take kindly when the language of another culture is imposed on them. Despite the acknowledged values which the language of that culture can bring, the fact remains that English has an unhappy colonial resonance in the minds of many, and a history where local languages could easily be treated with contempt
Reference:
Crystal, D. (1997) English as a Global Language (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Equality (equal opportunities), Global English, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Values
Reason: 312
Local languages are seen to be valuable because they promote community cohesion and vitality, foster pride in a culture and give a community (and thus a workforce) self-confidence
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Social cohesion, UK Community Languages, Values
Reason: 313
Arguments which support the need for biological diversity also apply to language... The whole concept of the ecosystem is based on the insight that living entities exist through a network of interrelationships. Diversity has a central place in evolutionary thought... In the language of ecology, the strongest ecosystems are those which are the most diverse... The point has often been made that our success in colonizing the planet has been due to our ability to develop diverse cultures which suit all kinds of environments. The need to maintain linguistic diversity stands squarely on the shoulders of such arguments. If diversity is a prerequisite for successful humanity, then the preservation of linguistic diversity is essential, for language lies at the heart of what it means to be human. If the development of multiple cultures is so important, then the role of languages becomes critical, for cultures are chiefly transmitted through spoken and written languages. Accordingly, when language transmission breaks down, through language death, there is a serious loss of inherited knowledge
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Culture, Diversity, Knowledge, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Networking, Sustainability, Values
Reason: 314
Any reduction of language diversity diminishes the adaptational strength of our species because it lowers the pool of knowledge from which we can draw
Reference:
Bernard (1992: 82) cited in Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Knowledge, Sustainability
Reason: 315
The loss of languages is tragic precisely because they are not interchangeable, precisely because they represent the distillation of the thoughts and communication of a people over their entire history
Reference:
Mithun (1998: 189) cited in Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Communication, Diversity, Historical dimension, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Uniqueness
Reason: 317
A language encapsulates its speakers’ history. It does this, most obviously, by expressing, through the grammar and lexicon of its texts, the events which form its past. Even the most casual glance at the reference section of any library conveys the extent to which people are reliant on written language for a full sense of their origins and development, as a nation
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Historical dimension, Identity
Reason: 318
The desire to know about our ancestry is a universal inclination - but it takes a language to satisfy it. And, once a language is lost, the links with our past are gone - we are, in effect, alone
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Historical dimension, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages
Reason: 325
In principle, each language provides a new slant on how the human mind works and how it expresses itself in linguistic categories
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Knowledge, Linguistics, Uniqueness
Reason: 326
The sum of human wisdom is not contained in any one language, and no single language is capable of expressing all forms and degrees of human comprehension
Reference:
Pound, E. (1960) cited in Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Knowledge, Uniqueness
Reason: 327
One way of increasing our stock of human wisdom is to learn more languages and to learn more about languages. And one way of ensuring that this sum of human wisdom is made available - if not for ourselves, then for the benefit of future generations - is to do as much as we can to preserve them now, at a time when they seem to be in most danger
Reference:
Crystal, D. (2000) Language Death (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Knowledge, Learning, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages
Reason: 336
The UK’s active membership of the EU argues for a sustained effort with European languages, but our wider global engagement also underlines the need to broaden the languages menu
Reference:
The Nuffield Languages Inquiry (2000) Languages: the next generation (London: The Nuffield Foundation)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, European Union (EU), Globalisation, Multilingualism, UK
Reason: 337
Our relationship with Europe needs more than English. Europe is emerging not only as a single market but also as a social and political forum in which English serves as a second language. There is a danger that European monolinguals will find themselves marginalised - unable to take a full part in the new institutions and opportunities in the economic, cultural and educational fields. For English monolinguals there is no single other language which will suffice: we need to explore the means of creating diversity of provision and language expertise in both the major and minor European languages
Reference:
The Nuffield Languages Inquiry (2000) Languages: the next generation (London: The Nuffield Foundation)
Related Keywords:
Culture, Diversity, Economic, social and political dimension, Education Studies, Equality (equal opportunities), European Union (EU), Global English, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Multilingualism, UK
Reason: 347
A wider range of languages is called for - The present range of languages spoken by the UK workforce and taught in the education system does not accurately reflect the current pattern of UK trade, nor the patterns that are predicted to emerge in the next generation
Reference:
The Nuffield Languages Inquiry (2000) Languages: the next generation (London: The Nuffield Foundation)
Related Keywords:
Business, Diversity, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, UK
Reason: 350
Languages support communities. Language marks out a community in a unique way and can help bind it together .. the next generation should be encouraged to view our society as richer and stronger because of its many language communities
Reference:
The Nuffield Languages Inquiry (2000) Languages: the next generation (London: The Nuffield Foundation)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Inclusion, Social cohesion, UK, UK Community Languages
Reason: 378
Linguistic diversity is one of the European Union’s defining features. Respect for the diversity of the Union’s languages is a founding principle of the European Union
Reference:
Commission of the European Communities (2003) Promoting Language Learning and Linguistic Diversity: An Action Plan 2004-2006
Related Keywords:
Diversity, European Union (EU), Values
Reason: 387
What makes language learning essential to a child’s development and crucial to any young person’s personal and professional prospects lies first and foremost in what makes the world of today a place where political, economic and personal relations are ruled by global communication. Furthermore, plurilingualism and cultural diversity need to be safeguarded not only to protect individual identities but also to guarantee the opening of the mind to otherness
Reference:
Monsieur Daniel Bernard, S.E. l’Ambassadeur de France au Royaume-uni (record of the symposium, 'Why languages matter', held on 6 March 2002 (The English-Speaking Union, The Nuffield Foundation)
Related Keywords:
Communication, Diversity, Economic, social and political dimension, Employability, Globalisation, Identity, Intercultural competence, International relations, Multilingualism
Reason: 397
Children from heritage and community language backgrounds going through school will in many cases bring aspects of their culture with them, including their language. For them a modern language such as French, German, Spanish or Italian may be their third or fourth language, and English not necessarily their first. In line with current policies favouring respect for ethnic diversity and social justice, it will be important to provide opportunities for linguistic development and accreditation for those who wish to continue to develop their skills in a heritage or community language or who wish to develop a language which is a significant part of their cultural identity, including British Sign Language
Reference:
Scottish Executive, Ministerial Action Group on Languages (2000) Citizens of a Multilingual World: Key Issues (www.scotland.gov.uk-library3-education-mwki-07.asp)
Related Keywords:
Culture, Diversity, Equality (equal opportunities), Identity, Qualifications, Secondary sector, UK Community Languages
Reason: 398
Teaching a modern language then fits into a broader framework of 'languages and learning' at school. It has a central role to play in helping all students connect the notion of linguistic and cultural diversity here with the notion of linguistic and cultural diversity in the wider Europe where many millions of people speak a language (whether an indigenous language such as Breton, Catalan, Basque, Frisian, Friulian, Ladino, Sorbian or an indigenised language such as Turkish in Germany or Portuguese in Luxembourg) that is not the majority language of the country in which they live
Reference:
Scottish Executive, Ministerial Action Group on Languages (2000) Citizens of a Multilingual World: Key Issues (www.scotland.gov.uk-library3-education-mwki-07.asp)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Equality (equal opportunities), Intercultural competence, Less Widely Used and Lesser Taught (LWULT) Languages, Secondary sector, UK Community Languages
Reason: 410
As students progress through their education at school, a modern language will be of benefit to their personal and educational development in a variety of ways. It will allow them to establish contact with people of their own age who speak other languages and to access information from other cultures. It will help them thereby to understand that experience of the world through another language can be just as 'real' and 'valid' as experience of the world through English. It will offer them the positive experience of developing an entirely new mode of understanding and expression and an opportunity to acquire an explicit understanding of what the components of language are and how these may be manipulated for different purposes. It will allow them to derive cognitive benefits through problem-solving, memorisation, recall, making connections, attending to detail and pragmatic strategies. All of these are basic transferable skills that can be activated or enhanced through a modern language. Learning a modern language will help students to develop strategies for learning and using language that will assist them not only with their current modern language but with others also that they may subsequently learn. It will encourage them to appreciate and participate in cultural and linguistic diversity
Reference:
Scottish Executive, Ministerial Action Group on Languages (2000) Citizens of a Multilingual World: Key Issues (www.scotland.gov.uk-library3-education-mwki-07.asp)
Related Keywords:
Culture, Diversity, Intercultural competence, Key skills, Language awareness, Learning strategies, Networking, Personal and social development, Problem solving, Secondary sector, Understanding
Reason: 411
Just as in biology, diversity is the norm. So it is with language: multilingualism is the norm
Reference:
St Clair (2001) cited in Skutnabb-Kangas, T. (2002) Why should linguistic diversity be maintained and supported in Europe? Some arguments (Strasbourg: Council of Europe)
Related Keywords:
Diversity, Multilingualism, Sustainability

700 Reasons to study languages...