Essay by 謝振禮老師 Jeenn Lee Hsieh

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真題還原

"Teaching primary school students foreign languages has more advantages than disadvantages." Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your knowledge or experience.

范文:

Learning English as a foreign language early in life benefits students on a long-term basis. By beginning to study foreign languages at the age of seven, children can take advantage of educational programs at the primary schools they attend so as to get a head start for further studies in high school and college. However, two positive effects are particularly obvious: mental development and career preparation.

Studying foreign languages helps children to enhance overall intellectual growth. Experts say that learning other languages at a young age can improve math and critical thinking skills as well as strengthen the use and understanding of a child's native tongue. Their research even shows that students who continuously take foreign language courses score higher in standardized tests with each additional year of study. So, it is important children are exposed to other cultures--with different language patterns and different methods of expressing themselves--in a way they would not have experienced had they not studied the subject. Thus, by gaining the ability to communicate with people from other areas of the world at an early age, children become more interested in and accepting of cultures and values that differ from their own. Needless to say, this ability is especially useful in globalization.

Mastering a foreign language as universal as English also increases a candidate's chances of landing a desired job. Such is a professional benefit to learning a foreign language beginning at primary schools. It is that nowadays many high-paying job opportunities require foreign language skills, for good reasons. Children who are good at English, for example, have often been shown to think in a different or more complex manner than youths who only learn their native language. Further, they are also more open and willing to accept the ideas and customs of other cultures. Of course, these advantages are essential to helping children to be successful in their chosen careers later in life.

It goes without saying that foreign languages are difficult to learn, and this is exactly why children should study any foreign tongue at an early age, benefitting not only their mental development but also their career preparation. And this also justifies the policy of compulsory learning of English as a foreign language in many countries where that language is not spoken. Without any doubt, all the efforts made by young children to study foreign languages will pay off handsomely in the long run.