We all have that one friend who somehow seems to be taking AP Biology, AP Physics, and AP Chemistry all at once in this STEM-oriented generation of overachievers. Yet you rarely see anyone taking more than one world language at a time—or any other language besides Spanish, French, Chinese, and Japanese, for that matter. But rigorous academic requirements leave little space in students’ schedules, and the number of language courses our school offers depends on the level of student interest.

“There is no policy about students taking only one world language at a time,” said Assistant Principal DuBerke, who is in charge of World Language. “Colleges and universities, however, are looking for completion of two (or more) years of the same language…enrolling in a second world language would depend on a student having space in their schedule as well as space in the class.”

One could argue that, if truly motivated, students can take advantage of language-learning resources such as Duolingo and Rosetta Stone for enrichment in languages not offered by schools. But between the sheer quantity of homework doled out to sleep-deprived AP addicts in their junior year, the scramble to snatch up as many leadership positions as possible for college applications, and the prioritization of the sciences in Arcadia High School’s (AHS) student culture, it’s difficult to find the time and motivation to sit down for half an hour matching words like “pain” to an image of bread just to keep your daily streak going. 

And the prices aren’t anything to scoff at either—Duolingo’s premium plan, Super Duolingo, allows learners as many attempts (represented by in-game hearts) as they wish and the choice to opt out of ads for the price of $6.67 per month. That’s forty-two Costco hot dogs per year going to Duo’s multibillion-dollar language learning business. 

All jokes aside, while the price of learning a language outside of school isn’t ridiculously high, not all students have the financial freedom or time to invest in both pursuits they are personally interested in and pursuits that may be considered more valuable in the eyes of college admissions officers. So the reasonable alternative is to offer more language classes at schools, right? Arcadia High currently offers four: Chinese, Spanish, Japanese, and French. 

“Offering a foreign language requires us to have teachers who hold the appropriate credentials as well as an approved curriculum and student interest. Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, and French have been able to maintain these requirements and, as a result, we have taught them for many years,” said Assistant Principal DuBerke.

AHS’ curriculum is reflective of student demand. If there aren’t enough students interested in a class, it isn’t practical for the school to expend resources to offer it.

However, learning world languages has been proven to increase academic engagement and achievement, deepen English comprehension, and stimulate cross-cultural communication. So considering how instrumental proficiency in multiple world languages is in stimulating cultural equity, understanding, and academic enrichment, there should be measures AHS can take to remedy a lack of student participation and schedule space. For example, online alternatives similar to the Online Creative Writing elective taught by Mrs. Zaidi could accommodate students with full schedules, and a paradigm shift that places more importance on multilingual literacy may foster an environment that promotes student interaction with languages and cultures in the long term.

Admittedly, AHS’ current selection of four languages is reasonably diverse. Adding another world language to our curriculum isn’t something that can be done on a whim, especially considering the student body’s focus on STEM-related academic pursuits. This is why I believe it is in AHS students’ best interests to establish more language-centered interest groups and for teachers to consider implementing more interactive approaches to language learning (such as the foreign exchange program that French Club hosts every year where french students come to AHS and live with host families) as supplements to the main curriculum with the goal of deepening student understanding of the role of languages in our societies. 

Through our combined staff and student efforts, a new future becomes feasible—one where AHS’ world language classes are recognized for offering just as much value as its reputable STEM classes. So for the sake of facilitating cultural exchange and empathy on our campus, students should learn to understand the importance of learning another language even if their main interests lie elsewhere.

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