# Is English compulsory course in your  country?



## twinklestar

English is a compulsory course in China. I wonder whether it is a compulsory course in the courtries where English is not an official language, such as Germany, France. 

And is it ture that most Germans speak English? Thanks!


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## CoLd_GirL

Here in Chile... English is a compulsory course in Schools and at least since one year the Universities are making English as a compulsory course in their careers because they know that is very important to learn a new language…
And it depends of the Schools sometimes…for example I had Italian as a compulsory course in School because my school was founded by an Italian Priest…





Ps:sorry for my mistakes...=)


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## alexacohen

It is compulsory in Spain too almost from kindergarten.

Most of those teenagers who leave school at 18 can't speak a word of English, but that  is entirely another question.


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## Vampiro

Yes it is in Chile.
But level is so bad in most of the schools.
Well… at least you learn how to say “pencil”, and “window”.
All the best.
_


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## Katoussa

In France it is compulsory. Not necessarily as a first language, you usually can choose between German and English, but if German is our first language, you'll have to take English  as your Second language for, *at least*, two years.

Katoussa.


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## sokol

It is compulsory in Austria to learn "a" foreign language. This usually is English; and courses begin with primary school.

But even those schools who do not have English as first foreign language introduce English as a second foreign language later; there are only very few schools where English isn't first foreign language, and I guess none where it isn't at least second foreign language.


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## ernest_

alexacohen said:


> It is compulsory in Spain too almost from kindergarten.



I think it's more like in Austria. It is compulsory that schools teach a foreign language, which does not have to be specifically English, although in practice it is.


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## alexacohen

ernest_ said:


> I think it's more like in Austria. It is compulsory that schools teach a foreign language, which does not have to be specifically English, although in practice it is.


 I stand corrected.


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## trance0

In Slovenia the situation is similar to the situation in Austria. English is taught as a first foreign language in most schools, the exception being perhaps schools along the border, where Italian/Hungarian is taught first or alongside English. German is also taught as a first language instead of English in some primary schools(I have a co-worker whose first foreign language is German; he later underwent an English language course and learnt the basics there).


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## mirx

alexacohen said:


> It is compulsory in Spain too almost from kindergarten.
> 
> Most of those teenagers who leave school at 18 can't speak a word of English, but that is entirely another question.


 
This made  me laugh, is exaclty the same in México. After 12 years of studying English, you must consider yourself lucky if you find a highschool graduate that conjugates the verb _*to be *_and uses it correctly. A disgrace.


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## federicoft

It is compulsory in Italy as well (from grade 3 on, at least when I went to school). But as in other countries, it is taught in a very err... mild way.


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## trance0

According to my info, inhabitants of the so called "Latin countries" usually have very bad foreign language programs in public schools and the consequences of such policies are of course known. I can say this is certainly true for Italy, where it is almost impossible to find an Italian who speaks at least some basic English. If you go to Italy, you are dead in the water without some basic Italian and English doesn`t get you far, you can actually do better with Slovene, especially close to the borther in Friuli-Giulia.


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## federicoft

Yes, we don't put too much emphasis on foreign languages teaching, although I think the younger generation do have at least a very basic knowledge of English. As regards the pre-1950 generation, they probably have a better knowledge of French, since that was the first foreign language taught in schools back then.


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## Cabeza tuna

Vampiro said:


> Yes it is in Chile.
> But level is so bad in most of the schools.
> Well… at least you learn how to say “pencil”, and “window”.
> All the best.
> _


 
That it is public schools, in privates ones you can find a really good level of english, right now the government is working to give more and better english classes but is not a easy thing I have english teachers than doesn't speak english at all, but they have their degree and all....


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## Hermocrates

federicoft said:


> It is compulsory in Italy as well (from grade 3 on, at least when I went to school). But as in other countries, it is taught in a very err... mild way.



Is _English_ compulsory in Italy? Or just _any _foreign/Europeanlanguage? 

I'm confused because I attended high school in Italy (liceo scientifico), but I studied French at school, not English (which was great because I am bilingual anyway - however my classmates studied French too, and they didn't speak a word of English. And other students in my school chose to study Spanish, instead of English)

But then, that was a decade ago, I'm not sure if school in Italy has changed since then.

Rye


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## federicoft

That was true in the past (indeed, until some decades ago the first foreign language was French). Today the only compulsory foreign language is English and, in the most prestigious secondary school type (the _liceo_) English and Latin - in _liceo classico_ there's also ancient Greek. 
A minority of students in middle school or high school learn French too. Just in a type of liceo specializing in foreign languages (_liceo linguistico_), students learn a third language (German, Spanish or Russian).


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## Hermocrates

federicoft said:


> That was true in the past (indeed, until some decades ago the first foreign language was French). Today the only compulsory foreign language is English and, in the most prestigious secondary school type (the _liceo_) English and Latin - in _liceo classico_ there's also ancient Greek.
> A minority of students in middle school or high school learn French too. Just in a type of liceo specializing in foreign languages (_liceo linguistico_), students learn a third language (German, Spanish or Russian).



It makes sense! Thanks for clarifying. I attended a "liceo scientifico" in Italy (I would have loved to attend a "liceo classico" because I wanted to study Greek too, but my parents pretty much forced my choice)  and I studied Latin (compulsory) and French (as one of three possible language options - the others were English and Spanish). I graduated in 2000 but I think Italian school was reformed soon after that. 

So now, after reforms, are _all_ students in Italy supposed to study English (no other options available unless they attend a liceo linguistico)? Even if they are native English speakers? Or can native English speakers (attending a liceo) choose a different foreign language to study in school?

Thanks in advance, I find this really interesting!

Rye


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## trance0

Well, small contries obviously have the advantage of better foreign language programs in public schools. This is true for Slovenia and probably for most other smaller contries too. In my country most people learn at least two foreign languages in highschools and one(this is due to change soon and two foreign languages will be taught) in elementary school. Most students learn English as a first foreign language, some also German, Italian or other(rarely). In highschools most learn two foreign languages(the second being most often German) and in some highschools(for "turist technician" or "language and classical gymnasiums") three or more foreign languages are obligatory. And beside that most Slovenes have at least basic or passive knowledge of Serbo-Croatian, which means that the majority of Slovenes speaks at least one foreign language actively and have at least passive knowledge of two or three more. The degree of proficiency of course varies as not all schools offer equally demanding foreign language classes.


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## trance0

The reason is probably mentality of the general population. I think this is quite typical for inhabitants of larger countries or of countries that have so called "world languages" that are official in their coutries.


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## Hermocrates

By the way: I found this thread from last September

It may interest you!

Rye


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## miguel64086

I guess it has to do with opportunities to use your second language.
All movies are subtitled.
All books translated.
All of our neighbors (Chile's) speak Spanish (or some Indian tongue, but that's another topic).

I had the impression that in Europe it was easier to learn a second language because it's easier to use it.


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## trance0

Certainly, in Europe it is easier to use foreign languages, plus one has a high number of TV programes in foreign languages and if someone is exposed to them from childhood on, it is much easier to become proficient in those languages later in life.


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## Sepia

miguel64086 said:


> I guess it has to do with opportunities to use your second language.
> All movies are subtitled.
> All books translated.
> All of our neighbors (Chile's) speak Spanish (or some Indian tongue, but that's another topic).
> 
> I had the impression that in Europe it was easier to learn a second language because it's easier to use it.



To a certain point you are right. At least it is easier to learn English in some countries because of the media, English-language pop-music etc., and whoever lives a short distance from the next country where they speak a different language. So the smaller the country, the better are your chances of being good at speaking a foriegn language. On top of that some regions are bi-lingual.


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## mirx

Sepia said:


> So the smaller the country, the better are your chances of being good at speaking a foriegn language.


 
Finally a reasonable explanaiton as to why we suck at it.


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## trance0

mirx said:


> Finally a reasonable explanaiton as to why we suck at it.




Not necessarily. I very rarely travel abroad even though I live in a small country, so most of my foreign language skills originate from learning in school, watching TV and surfing the internet. Bilingual areas are another thing, in Slovenia, for example, it is quite common to find people with near native command of Italian near Italian border.


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## miguel64086

Sepia said:


> So the smaller the country, the better are your chances of being good at speaking a foreign language. On top of that some regions are bi-lingual.



I guess this also would explain to a certain degree why many people from United States are not bilingual, even though many college student learn foreign languages in their curriculum.


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## lonelyheartsclubband

Well, returning to the original topic - In Israel studying English language is compulsory.
About a decade ago the population started to study it around 5th grade of the primary school, but now it's studied from the 2nd grade.
I don't think that most of the Israeli people don't know English. On the contrary, you will be able to find people who at least speak basic English.
On the other hand, the're many people who have good skills in English and they're able to even read books that are originally written in English.
I would like to emphasize that the language skills are definitly not acquired in schools, but from watching TV, reading books and listening to songs in English, so I doubt if the public education provided by the State influences the quality of languege skills.


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## trance0

Public education influences the quality of language skills up to a certain degree. If you know the basics and are properly stimulated for foreign languages in schools, it is easier to learn those languages alone and become fully proficient in them later in life.


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## mirx

trance0 said:


> Not necessarily. I very rarely travel abroad even though I live in a small country, so most of my foreign language skills originate from learning in school, watching TV and surfing the internet. Bilingual areas are another thing, in Slovenia, for example, it is quite common to find people with near native command of Italian near Italian border.


 
Fair enough, however in México we have our very big and well developed TV, Internet and music industry, so there is very, and I mean very little opportunity for people to be exposed to foreign languages if they are not purposely trying to. The few English TV programs that we have are already dubbed into Spanish. 

Now, the boarder thing is a different case altogether and people there actually do speak English with perhaps native fluency but then again their TV stations are both in Spanish and in English, they have a lot of contact with US-americans, and maybe they themselves constantly travel up north.

Now, appart from English being compulsory in schools; globalization is taking its toll and younger generations are way more open to foreign influences, language included.


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## trance0

This is precisely what I was implying. The problem with bigger countries is, that they are too self-sufficient regarding languages and these countries` language policies(which are sometimes very nationalistic and "own-language protective") aren`t helping the matter either. In Europe, I think, there was a debate not long ago whether dubbing should be abolished in countries that use it instead of subtitles, because it seems to influence foreign language learning in a negative way. So, a lot of problems can be solved with a proper language policy adapted to each country and with active promoting of foreign language learning!


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## Wilma_Sweden

In Sweden, English has been compulsory since 1969 from 3rd or 4th grade (9-10 year-olds) through to 9th grade, and nowadays it is also compulsory in most secondary education programs.

We are of course helped by our high exposure to English from the media, computing and the internet. We have virtually no dubbing of English programmes, apart from Teletubbies and other pre-school kids' programmes, which saves parents from having to read the subtitles to their children... 

The degree of knowledge is of course very variable, and I recently found that even people of my age, who would presumably have taken at least 6 years of English at school, were barely able to order a lager in a UK pub. I don't blame the school system, though, but rather people's own linguistic interest and talent. Those who want to, can learn reasonably good English at school. 

/Wilma


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## Ry102

I know here in the U.S. when it comes to foreign language learning, people generally try their best to avoid it. When I tell people that I study Spanish I get some interesting looks or sometimes they tell me how cool that is but they could never do it themselves. I try to tell them that learning a language is fun and satisfying but my efforts are usually futile. When I told people I'm starting to learn German they always become confused because they have no idea why I would learn a language that isn't widely spoken here. Of course, this opens up the whole new topic because people here in the US don't seem to comprehend the possibility of living somewhere outside the US for more than 2 weeks. But more on topic, here in Florida Spanish is the compulsory language but in New Orleans where my mom grew up French was. Now though it has changed to Spanish. I wonder if it will change to Mandarin anytime soon. I would think not though since Spanish is so important to us here.


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## Mate

*Moderator note*:

Please don't wander too far from the thread topic and keep the discussion focused on the main questions: Is it compulsory to learn English in countries where English is not the official language? Do most Germans speak English?

If you decide to discuss something tangential, please open a new thread.

Also try to keep your contributions at least mainly cultural and not personal. 

Thank you.


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## Lugubert

Mother (now 92) had German as her first foreign language.



Wilma_Sweden said:


> In Sweden, English has been compulsory since 1969 from 3rd or 4th grade (9-10 year-olds) through to 9th grade, and nowadays it is also compulsory in most secondary education programs.
> 
> We are of course helped by our high exposure to English from the media, computing and the internet. We have virtually no dubbing of English programmes, apart from Teletubbies and other pre-school kids' programmes, which saves parents from having to read the subtitles to their children...
> 
> The degree of knowledge is of course very variable, and I recently found that even people of my age, who would presumably have taken at least 6 years of English at school, were barely able to order a lager in a UK pub. I don't blame the school system, though, but rather people's own linguistic interest and talent. Those who want to, can learn reasonably good English at school.
> 
> /Wilma


I can't judge to what extent my siblings and their kids are normal or exceptional for Sweden, but all of them are quite comfortable with English and quite a few of them manage one or more other languages. Myself, I had compulsory English from grade 5, German from 7, and French from 8 combined until finishing high school (grade 12).


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## Encolpius

I am surprised some have written English is compulsory.  Just like Sokol has said 1 foreign language is compulsory in the Czech republic but students can choose, and the majority picks up English, but it does not necessary mean English is compulsory.


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## Egyptlover

yes, it's a compulsory course in Egypt from the first grade in elementary school until the last year in high school. Not only that, it's even taught in kindergarten and in university. However, teaching it in first three grades started only a few years ago.


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## Orlin

Studying foreign languages is compulsory in Bulgarian schools (I don't know from which grade - it was from the 5th grade 15 years ago, I think that it starts in the 2nd or 3rd grade nowadays), but no foreign language is obligatory: every student must choose what foreign language(s) to study though English has become the most popular recently.


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## Goddess Mystyxx

In the Philippines, most of the subjects are all in English format (Science, Math, History, Arts, Computer etc). From pre-school to graduate school. Young kids can understand, read and speak english fairly well, especially if you live in the city.

For the indigents (tribesman) and some in the provinces, they usually have limited command in English, but can understand some thought.


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## Orlin

I think that only languages that have an official status in the country in question should be compulsory. So I wonder why English can be compulsory in countries where it isn't recognised as official - as far as I know, English isn't official in the Phillipines, is it?
In my opinion, imposing a compulsory foreign language is usually politically motivated - e. g. Russian was obligatory in Bulgarian schools (also in all ex-communist states in Central and Eastern Europe) in 1945-90.


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## Goddess Mystyxx

I agree orlin. English is not the official language in the Philippines, however, because of English being widely spoken and understood by the rest of the world, It had become the language for education in our country. I think it even became compulsory because we study english grammar from pre-school to college.  

We still have filipino culture and grammar taught at school, though. But the medium of instruction are all in English. I know sometime in our history, americans have lived here for a period of time and that might have been the the start of our english influence. 

I remembered my Lola (grandmother) telling me that her grandparents can speak perfect english, they have learned it during the war, even without going to school.


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## xmarabout

In the French speaking part of Belgium (so far, Belgium is a bi or tri lingual country: official languages are Dutch, French and German - small minority), in most of the schools they choose the other main official language as second language (Dutch). Some schools propose English as second language. A third language is accessible (secondary school) only if the cursus of the student is specialised in language. For exampple, if they prefer to be specialised in sciences, mathematics, latin, ... usually, there is no time in their timetable for a third language.

In primary school, a second language is not compulsory (it is a pitty for a bilingual country !) but most of the school offers that option (usually again Dutch or English)


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## effeundici

Italians don't learn English because sounds and syntax are so different from ours. 
No matter the number of hours at school and the quality of teachers, most Italian can't do anything to learn English.

Only a minority of people with a good attitude to languages manages to overcome the wall which divides Romance languages from Anglosaxon ones.


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## SaritaSarang

In the U.S it is a required class in highschool, usually one class for every year of highschool, so four classes. I've never heard of a school in the U.S where english classes in highschool were optional.


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## Orlin

SaritaSarang said:


> In the U.S it is a required class in highschool, usually one class for every year of highschool, so four classes. I've never heard of a school in the U.S where english classes in highschool were optional.


 
OK but the thread is for countries where English is *not* an official language. (If it's official, of course it's obligatory.)


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## chamyto

In Spain it is compulsory .


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## SaritaSarang

Orlin said:


> OK but the thread is for countries where English is *not* an official language. (If it's official, of course it's obligatory.)



The United States does not have an official language.


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## jacquesvd

twinklestar said:


> English is a compulsory course in China. I wonder whether it is a compulsory course in the courtries where English is not an official language, such as Germany, France.
> 
> And is it ture that most Germans speak English? Thanks!


 
In the Dutch speaking part of Belgium, a second language is compulsory as of the 3rd year. Until shortly this was necessarily French but since a number of years one can choose between English and French, the majority of people continuing to choose French.

As of secondary school a third language becomes compulsory and it is again French or English; students thus picking the one they didn't choose in primary school. (There exists one direction of studies (business) where also German is taught in the last three years, but no other direction adds a fourth language.

Even though the vast majority of students choose French in primary school and thus end up with more years of French than English, the knowledge of English is incomparably superior to the one of French in most individuals at the end of secondary school because of the omnipresence of
English and this situation then gets reinforced in high school, university, professional life.


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## rayloom

In most Arab countries, all public high schools teach a 2nd language. Elementary schools depend on the availability, funds and board of directors, but most public elementary schools don't.
In Egypt, there's what's called multilanguage elementary schools. Where your kids would have to learn Arabic, English and French at the same time.
Don't worry, the kids turn out fine!


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## Ottilie

In Moldova English is not compulsory . Russian is the only compulsory foreign language from the 2nd grade to the 9th grade( .The 2nd foreign language can be any of English,German and French.I studied in a small town and in our school that time there were no English teachers,so we had to choose the 2nd language between French and German,we didn't actually chose ,but the headmaster choose for us: half of the students to study French,the other half German-I studied German. In high schools (9th grade to 13th grade) Russian isn't compulsory,but it remains the most taught foreign language. 

 There are several foreign language high schools where pupils are all/most of the subjects in foreign languages . Pushkin High school (Russian),Asachi(Romanian and French),Creanga(Romanian and English). In Creanga high school for example,English is compulsory.


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## bibax

> English is a compulsory course in China.


And what will happen to the Chinese children who are rejecting to learn English? Are they shot at sunrise?

Strictly speaking in the Czech Republic there are no compulsory courses on the grammar/high schools as it is not compulsory to attend such schools.

However according to law it is compulsory to attend elementary school where children must choose one foreign language (English, German, Russian, French, ...), but it does not necessarily mean that they really learn it. Many of them have even difficulties with the mother tongue.

So English is not compulsory in the Czechlands. In our country you can live happily without English.


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## Deem-A

Most of the people here in South-Western Ukraine who learn English barely speak it,I studied English as well in school,and I cannot say I've learnt too much of it(most of that I've learnt is due to the internet and music)


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## uchi.m

English is compulsory in Brazil, but unfortunately the teaching is too much focused on grammar, and that disencourage students to have a genuine interest on the language learning.

Those who really have a need to learn how to speak, write, and read English and are not endowed with a natural grasp of languages usually have to go to an English school for extra work.


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## Vanda

uchi.m said:


> English is compulsory in Brazil, but unfortunately the teaching is too much focused on grammar, and that disencourage students to have a genuine interest on the language learning.



Not so much anymore Uchi. Many many good schools try to teach conversation nowadays, the problem is that Brazilians (unlike people from your parents' race which I envy) are not determined to learn anything, they just frequent classes because their parents force them to and teachers end their days trying to teach 40 or 50 students that are determined to make teachers's life a hell! The ones determined to learn really do that!


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## fitter.happier

As someone already said, it is compulsory in Italy as well. The main problem, I think, is that people never get a chance to practice. *Everything* is dubbed: movies, shows, you name it. Not to mention the teaching of English in schools is generally poor and almost entirely focused on grammar rather than real-life situations.

Just go to northern Europe (Scandinavia, for instance) and you'll be amazed at how good people are at English there.


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## Oddworld

Well, even if a language is compulsory it doesn't mean at all that people will learn it. In my country, English is compulsory in the majority of high schools. Since the elementary school we're learning english and in high schools you can learn optionally French. Instead of all this, the languages level here in Spain is so low. This could be, as mentioned before, because we are a "big" country and so we have everything dubbed. Due to this, people think that it isn't necessary to learn a foreign language. Returning to the topic, yes, in Spain English is a compulsory language but it seems to be futile because the people do not really learn it.


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## uchi.m

Olá Vanda!


Vanda said:


> Not so much anymore Uchi. Many many good schools try to teach conversation nowadays...


Unfortunately, good schools are not widespread in Brazil, Vandinha. The majority of schools in Brazil are budgeted by municipal expenses, so they cannot afford to provide a high level of proficiency and education in English even for instructors of English, let alone the students. Instructors who would eventually qualify as a good teacher of English usually will end up applying for other kinds of jobs.


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## Vanda

> Instructors who would eventually qualify as a good teacher of English usually will end up applying for other kinds of jobs.



Or leave the school. I did!


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## Oddworld

SaritaSarang said:


> The United States does not have an official language.



Sorry, I'm a little confused, English is not the offcial language in USA?
At least it should be consider as the most commom language, shouldn't it?
Or better say, as your native language.


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## uchi.m

Oddworld said:


> Sorry, I'm a little confused, English is not the offcial language in USA?
> At least it should be consider as the most commom language, shouldn't it?
> Or better say, as your native language.


English is the _de facto_ language of the United States.


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## Oddworld

uchi.m said:


> English is the _de facto_ language of the United States.



Ok, I know that "de facto" means "de hecho" but it differs from official. What's the difference between them?


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## uchi.m

Oddworld said:


> Ok, I know that "de facto" means "de hecho" but it differs from official. What's the difference between them?


Vide.


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## Oddworld

Alright thanks uchi.m for the explanation, all clear now.


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## Sepia

effeundici said:


> Italians don't learn English because sounds and syntax are so different from ours.
> No matter the number of hours at school and the quality of teachers, most Italian can't do anything to learn English.
> 
> Only a minority of people with a good attitude to languages manages to overcome the wall which divides Romance languages from Anglosaxon ones.



This is about the worst argument I have ever heard - right along with the claim that it should be especially difficult to native English speakers to learn a foreign language for some specific reasons based in the pronounciation of their language.

This, however, does not in any way explain why we find so many more French who speak English or sometimes even German well, than we did 20 years ago. And it doesn't explain why so many Irish speak exellent French or other foreign languages. Tells me, at least, it can't be the language itself ... but maybe a political or psychological problem.


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## jdotjdot89

Sepia said:


> This is about the worst argument I have ever heard - right along with the claim that it should be especially difficult to native English speakers to learn a foreign language for some specific reasons based in the pronounciation of their language.
> 
> This, however, does not in any way explain why we find so many more French who speak English or sometimes even German well, than we did 20 years ago. And it doesn't explain why so many Irish speak exellent French or other foreign languages. Tells me, at least, it can't be the language itself ... but maybe a political or psychological problem.



Agreed.  Frankly, I think it's more of a societal attitude towards foreign language.  The Spanish and Italians just as a society don't care about learning English, and so they don't, despite it often being compulsory.  In Germany and the Nordic countries, some level of proficiency in English is simply expected, and as such, students are tasked to meet a higher goal.  America is an excellent example.  Much of the US is monolingual; Americans are notorious for their lack of foreign-language skills.  Yet take a trip down south, especially near the border in Texas and Miami, and you'll find a large number of people bilingual in Spanish and English, countering the Germanic/Romance language claim made above.  It's simply a matter of necessity/societal attitude, and as a result of that societal attitude, the opportunities (or lack thereof) that individuals in these countries or regions have to learn and practice the foreign languages.


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## jdotjdot89

uchi.m said:


> English is the _de facto_ language of the United States.



Also note that English is indeed the official language of some states in the US, though there is no official language of the country as a whole--that is, the federal government.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English-only_movement#Current_law


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## Orlin

I think there's no point making a language other than the country's official language(s) compulsory - making things obligatory is worth only if there is such a strong need that we can't afford to have any member of the society that doesn't possess these things or hasn't acquired the skills in question. While, I think, 99% of people can live happily without speaking a word of any foreign language (English is no exception). Moreover, forcing something that most people don't find so necessary can be counterproductive - like, for example, forcing Russian in Central and Eastern Europe in 1945-90: such forcing simply turned many people against this politically imposed obligation and almost didn't learn anything in Russian or quickly forgot it after leaving school. If most people find English really useful, they'll study and *really* learn it because they'll study it in order to get a real useful result (at least in their own opinion) and will be much more motivated; if people don't care about knowing English, there's no use forcing them to study it.
In Bulgaria studying foreign languages is obligatory in schools and universities, but what exactly language(s) to study has to be chosen by every student. All Bulgarian citizens must study our official language (Bulgarian) though according to the Bulgarian constitution.


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## tyhryk

In Ukraine English is the most spread foreign language in the secondary and high schools, but it's not compulsory course. German, French and Spanish are often foreign languages in the schools. I remember my childhood and that time when I had to go in the first class. I had to choose class with foreign language and my choice was English class, though I could choose also Spanish class in my school or to go into another school nearby my home, where German was the main foreign language. But, of course, schools with teaching of the different foreign languages are in the big Ukrainian cities, and in general English is the main foreign language even in the villages. 
Many Ukrainians know or understand well Russian and Polish, but don't study them as compulsory foreign languages, besides examples of studying at Russian and Polish specialities in the high educational institutions.


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## yannalan

In France, when I was young (sixties) people could choose between many languages, often they chose the language spoken on the other side of the border (German in the East, spanush in southwest,...) Now a minority can yet choose german and generally every chukd is obliged to learn english in primary school and the two first years of secondary school.
After that you can choose a second language, mostly spanish or german, but in some places they offer italian, portuguese, russian, arabic.. In some places, you can have lessons in your local language as breton or corsican..
Latin too.
Do people speak english after that ? Some do.... Here there are  lot of english living, but we axpect them to speak at least an usual french. Normally, I do not speak english to them,as I do not expect them to speak french to me there
Compared with northern countries, the problem us we translate filsms, we do not often put subtitles


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## Copperknickers

Needless to say, English is a compulsory course in Scotland, even for Gaelic speakers. Its a little tough for them actually because some of them grow up learning to speak Gaelic before they go to school, and only start English in school yet are expected to speak it to the same level as native English speakers throughout their school lives, as well as Gaelic. The only foreign language that is compulsory in my school is Latin, although you also have other options:

You take English through your whole school career.
You take Latin in the first two years, after which nearly everyone drops it having learned absolutely nothing.
You take either German, Spanish or French as a Foreign language
You take an additional auxiliary subject, either a technical subject, a humanitarian subject or one of the other languages that is not your main foreign language.

So in my school career I have studied English (native), German, French and Latin. Next year I'm also doing Ancient Greek, so that will be 4 foreign languages.


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## Katoussa

Being a French teacher, I agree with what Orlin said, that you cannot force anyone to study a language, otherwise they will probably not learn it and be able to use it.

However, we could say the same thing for mathematics... or history... or biology.... for every compulsory subjects in schools. 

My point is that you have to make a subject compulsory at school to offer children a chance to learn it. The younger you are, the better you learn a language. So schools give the opportunity to children to discover, learn, practise, speak a language. It's a chance, not a punishment.

If I take mathematics as an example, I'd say I've always hated mathematics and that I wished it wasn't a compulsory subject. But now that I am a grown-up, I realised that I have learnt stuff, that I remember, and I'm quite proud of myself to have been able to get through with it, and so, I would violently protest if mathematics were to be optional.

The same goes for people who don't like languages.


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## Orlin

Kako je u Nišu? Ja sam jako blizu u Sofiji.
Ja mislim da je svakako korisno učiti *neki(-e) strani(-e) jezik(e)* jer ovo daje mladim ljudima upravo vredna znanja i razvija njihovu pamet. Ali, da bi se ovaj cilj dostigao, skoro uvek nije korisno *fiksirati konkretni(-e) strani(-e)* *jezik(e)* za izučavanje u školama i na fakultetima jer izbor jezika A, B ili C pošto svaki izbor jezika koji se uči praktički ne utiče na rezultat nastave *u* *ovom aspektu*, i tako je značajno bolje dati pravo svakome sam odlučiti koji(-e) jezik(e) osim zvaničnog jezika države da izučava u zavisnosti od svojih preferencija i svoje ocene praktične korisnosti tog ili drugog jezika. Mi smo i tako rešili: Bugarska (barem još uvek) nije protektorat SAD, Velike Britanije ili neke druge države sa službenim jezikom engleski, i zbog toga nema potrebe da svi znaju engleski. Ko preferira taj jek, neka ga uči, ko ga ne voli - ne.


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## English Speaker

In Mexico, we can say that English is compulsory, just for the highest levels of studying, such as Universties. There are universities that request an English certificate, but you don't have it, you can't graduate. 

In others levels such as secondary or elementary schools it is almost not compulsory. For instace, in public schools there aren't English classes, only in paid schools.


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## mirx

English Speaker said:


> In others levels such as secondary or elementary schools it is almost not compulsory. For instace, in public schools there aren't English classes, only in paid schools.



I am not sure this is the case anymore. For as long as I can remember, English has been a compulsory subject in secondary education and since 2000 also compulsory for primary students.


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## Seikun

In Chile where I am from, English is another subject among the common ones. The past government and the current one have been trying to make English teaching a more important subject in classes, They want Chile to become a bilingual country. We are usually told by the media and the government that "English opens doors" (Inglés Abre Puertas), In other words, if you know English the world is yours and you will get anything you wish >.<

It is intended that in some years Chile becomes a bilingual country, but for now most students cannot read English much.

I have an opinion on this matter. Chile is the kind of country that sees the English language as the language representative of developed countries, sometimes being able to speak English tells that you belong to a higher social class, and stuff. The chilean government has been trying so hard to make student learn English as a second language instead of improving the teaching of Spanish. And as I once commented in other forum I have the idea that the gorvernmet would love to read this in WIkipedia:

_The official languages of Chile are Spanish and English, but mainly and mostly English._


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## Pedro y La Torre

Seikun said:


> In Chile where I am from, English is another subject among the common ones. The past government and the current one have been trying to make English teaching a more important subject in classes, They want Chile to become a bilingual country. We are usually told by the media and the government that "English opens doors" (Inglés Abre Puertas), In other words, if you know English the world is yours and you will get anything you wish >.<
> 
> It is intended that in some years Chile becomes a bilingual country, but for now most students cannot read English much.
> 
> I have an opinion on this matter. Chile is the kind of country that sees the English language as the language representative of developed countries, sometimes being able to speak English tells that you belong to a higher social class, and stuff. The chilean government has been trying so hard to make student learn English as a second language instead of improving the teaching of Spanish. And as I once commented in other forum I have the idea that the gorvernmet would love to read this in WIkipedia:
> 
> _The official languages of Chile are Spanish and English, but mainly and mostly English._



Is the standard of English amongst the general population in Chile high?


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## Seikun

Pedro y La Torre said:


> Is the standard of English amongst the general population in Chile high?


According to researches only 2% of the chilean population can speak English fluently. But you will find a lot of people, specially youths who can speak quite good English. If we talk about children and older people then you won't find many people able to speak the language.

A reporter said on TV once: "a bilingual country is a developed country". But, is a bilingual country a developed country?
Teaching another language is a good thing to do, but in Chile we have serious problem with our own language. So in my opinion we should improve the learning of Spanish and then English.


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## Angelo di fuoco

Seikun said:


> According to researches only 2% of the chilean population can speak English fluently. But you will find a lot of people, specially youths who can speak quite good English. If we talk about children and older people then you won't find many people able to speak the language.
> 
> A reporter said on TV once: "a bilingual country is a developed country". But, is a bilingual country a developed country?
> Teaching another language is a good thing to do, but in Chile we have serious problem with our own language. So in my opinion we should improve the learning of Spanish and then English.



What about the autochthonous languages like mapudungun and others?


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## Seikun

Angelo di fuoco said:


> What about the autochthonous languages like mapudungun and others?


Interesting question. There were a lot of cultures across the chilean land in the past, now some are already part of the past, others are about to just remain in books. I am not sure, but I think Mapudungun which is the language of the Mapuche people is taught in the Mapuche communities (schools where most children belong to this culture). But there are not classes of any indigenous languages as an important subject in Chile. All efforts aim to teach English as a second language.

I don't know what is the point of view of other countries regarding the teaching of the English language while preserving your culture, but my opinion about my country in this topic is that as someone said in a report on TV, French used to be the language spoken by high class people, now it is English. Most people try to say things in English because is "cool". like most people want to be/look like Americans or Europeans.

I support the teaching of English, but there must be a reinforcement of our own culture. In my opinion you can't skip the fact that *another language makes an impact on other culture*. That is my concern, we want to learn English because it will help Chile in its way to development or we want to learn English because it will make us look more like the USA and/or Europe. If the first, let's learn English.


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## irinet

It is the same in Romania. In fact, we study two foreign languages: French- English or vice-versa; German-English. Little Russian, and obligatory Latin, I think for one year at least.


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## irinet

Maths, foreign languages (esp.Am.E) and programming languages are definitely connected worldwidely.


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## Eihab

it's compulsory in the most Arabs countries, even in Tunisia which they used to study french as a foreign language, they started to study English from the primary school. My Tunisian friend told me that.


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## Angelo di fuoco

As far as I know, in Tunisia they study both. French used to start in first year, now I think it's third year. English about the same time.


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## Eihab

Angelo di fuoco said:


> As far as I know, in Tunisia they study both. French used to start in first year, now I think it's third year. English about the same time.


Yes, you are right.


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## Etcetera

twinklestar said:


> I wonder whether it is a compulsory course in the courtries where English is not an official language, such as Germany, France.



In Russia, it is compulsory to study at least one foreign language at school. English is the most popular, of course, but some schools choose to teach pupils French, German, or some other major language. 

The quality and the focus of teaching is another story, though. I had excellent English teachers at school, and English was my major at university, but I remember how difficult it proved for me to explain to an English-speaking tourist in Peterhof that he would have to purchase a special ticket to get into the palace - and I just finished my second or even third year and was able to write long essays in English


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## LeRenardReynaerde

In the Netherlands English is a compulsory subject in secondary school and you have to pass the course to obtain your diploma. The fluency of students varies sharply from extremely mediocre to surprisingly well and depends on the interest and capabilities of the individual. 
All English-spoken television programmes are subtitled, with the expection for the young audiences which can't read yet. So all in all, it is fairly easy to manageable for any Dutchman or Dutchwoman to give directions in English and impress tourists who only speak English themselves. However, university students are often complain that their tutors aren't as fluent in English as you'd expect for English spoken courses.


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## dreamlike

Etcetera said:
			
		

> In Russia, it is compulsory to study at least one foreign language at  school. English is the most popular, of course, but some schools choose  to teach pupils French, German, or some other major language.



That's also the case in Poland. In Primary School students are most often taught one foreign language, and in  Junior High School and High School students learn two or more languages. In most cases students can choose from variety of languages (in my school those are school French, Italian, Spanish, English and German) with English being mandatory course. That being said, the level of language teaching in Poland is dire. There are some exceptions, of course, but these are rare. I really hate to say it, but good teachers are scarce good in our country. The way of teaching English also leaves a lot to be desired, with the biggest emphasis lain on grammar and some impracital things instead of encouraging talk and actually using language. It would be unfair not to mention the attitude of most learners which are reluctant to put in any effort to learn a language, who settle with just passing the subject or the final exams in the last year of High School.

Also, the vast majority of students (those who care a bit) are compelled to take extra lessons in their homes with private tutors. We tend to say that one can't learn English, or any other language for that matter, at school. I'm not saying that's true in every single school in Poland but well, in most of them. The level and the way of teaching languages in Poland calls for radical changes. 

That all being said, I think it's one's own, regular work and persistence that guarantess good grasp of foreign language. Teachers open the door but you must enter by yourself, as the saying goes.


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## OneStroke

English is compulsory in Hong Kong. Most people start English from the age of two or three.  The British only left 14 years ago.


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## irinet

Hello,

The same happens in Romania. We have private schools where children can learn English correctly. There is a problem with conversational area, too. Many curricula underline the importance of writing instead of communicating. I think this is a problem with all courses. Pupils have to write instead of talking over issues.


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## Pretty_Gaella

*
English is our second language in the Philippines. 
**It's being used at home before even a child goes to school. 
English is implemented in the curriculum in both public and private schools.




*


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## Sepia

jdotjdot89 said:


> Agreed.  Frankly, I think it's more of a societal attitude towards foreign language.  The Spanish and Italians just as a society don't care about learning English, and so they don't, despite it often being compulsory.  In Germany and the Nordic countries, some level of proficiency in English is simply expected, and as such, students are tasked to meet a higher goal.  America is an excellent example.  Much of the US is monolingual; Americans are notorious for their lack of foreign-language skills.  Yet take a trip down south, especially near the border in Texas and Miami, and you'll find a large number of people bilingual in Spanish and English, countering the Germanic/Romance language claim made above.  It's simply a matter of necessity/societal attitude, and as a result of that societal attitude, the opportunities (or lack thereof) that individuals in these countries or regions have to learn and practice the foreign languages.



I am sure this is true - it probably also goes like this: In a culture like Denmark the overload of English-language media influence is immense. You watch television series and movies in original. Kids remember the original lines out of the movies, the whole thing becomes part of their identity. English was obligatory in school for half a century now.
In Germany English is obligatory but has not been for such a long time. Movies come in dubbed versions. To many English is something they only know from school. When listening to pop music hardly anyone pays attention to the lyrics. Very few can really SPEAK English.


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## Schem

Eihab said:


> it's compulsory in the most Arabs countries, even in Tunisia which they used to study french as a foreign language, they started to study English from the primary school. My Tunisian friend told me that.



English starts in the sixth year in Saudi Arabia and is, from then, compulsory through college. I suppose that's the latest it starts in the Arab world.


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## Sherlockat

Cabeza tuna said:


> That it is public schools, in privates ones you can find a really good level of *E*nglish, right now the government is working to give more and better *E*nglish classes but is not a easy thing I have *E*nglish teachers than doesn't speak *E*nglish at all, but they have their degree and all....



YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD! Good point Cabeza de tuna.
In fact, sometimes it's rather *incomprehensible* than some (most!, actually) Chilean English teachers has never travelled not even for a month to an English country. As a result of that, not much heed is paid to pronunciation and intonation (typical examples: Yellow ("lleloU" by /jelou/); confusing the Spanish "d" and "a" by the English "d" and "a" E.g, cat ("cat" by /caet/). So, the only way to have a very good or acceptable English level ("competent") would be by attending a very expensive private (and/or English) school (like Grammar schools.) Public ones: no comments, save for certain exceptions.   

While on the subject, the other "endemic" problem (at least for me a very serious one) is that most English teachers pay TOO MUCH attention to American English (I know, US is around the corner for Latinos) but what happens is that if you speak to others in an Australian way, most of them (teachers and people) think you speak "a bad English" (well, sometimes ) because you are "unable" to pronounce "er" or "ar" endings (the "schwa" usage), for instance. 
That means, maybe, to miss the chance of getting a good job for this misconception (it's incredible as people idolise American English.) In my opinion, there's no "perfect" English language (some think the BBC's is), they are just different. As long as you has a good command of it, fine. 

My two cents. Happy new year guys!


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## dreamlike

Sherlockat said:


> YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD! Good point Cabeza de tuna.
> In fact, sometimes it's rather *incomprehensible* than some (most!, actually) Chilean English teachers has never travelled not even for a month to an English country. As a result of that, not much heed is paid to pronunciation and intonation (typical examples: Yellow ("lleloU" by /jelou/); confusing the Spanish "d" and "a" by the English "d" and "a" E.g, cat ("cat" by /caet/).



Spending some time in an English-speaking environment is, od course, immensely helpful, but it's not a neccessary condition for one to have a very good English pronunciation. I know of one Polish teacher who, never ever having been to an English-speaking country, has an impressive pronunciation skills, and speaks with an enviable British accent. I could easily mistake him for a native speaker of English. Replacing Eglish sounds with L1 sounds is a mistake common with non-native speakers of English from all countries, Chilean teachers are no exception in this respect.


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## Sutemi

Message deleted.


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## kirahvi

Sutemi said:


> Yes, it is compulsory in Finland.
> The minimum in elementary schools is six years. Most study it for eight to twelve years.
> I'd like to say that I consider our level of teaching to be high. At least I'm happy with it.



I couldn't find anything that says that English is compulsory in Finland, and if it is compulsory, the minimum definitely cannot be six years. Are you sure it really is compulsory?

We have to study at least one foreign language plus Finnish/Swedish depending on our first language. The one foreign language doesn't have to be English. 

I know someone, who started to study Swedish on the third grade, German on the fifth and started English on the eigth grade, so by the end of the upper secondary school she had studied English for about 5 years. Now, this was when I was in school, and I graduated the upper secondary school in 2003, so the legistlation may have changed since then.


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## Sutemi

Interesting, Kirahvi. I have never heard of anyone who hasn't studied English for at least six years. Well, I do trust you and maybe I'm mistaken (and surprised).
I have absolutely no knowledge of the legislation whatsoever. I just assumed since according to my knowledge hundreds of Finns, without any exception, have studied English for six years or more.
I checked from Wikipedia and it seems that you are right. I have removed my erroneous post.


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## kirahvi

That's because English is the most popular foreign languge in Finland, but the Ministry of Education are working for rising the popularity of other languages, too. 

If I remember correctly, the schools are by law required to offer Finnish/Swedish and English as the first new language starting at the third grade. Other languages are optional. This means that even if English is not compulsory by law, in many schools, especially in smaller towns, the pupils don't have the possibility to study other foreign languages. And, of course, even if there are other languages to choose from, there have to be at least 10-ish kids who want to take it for the class to begin.

So it's no wonder that most everyone takes English for at least 6 years.


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