What Languages Do English As A Second Language Teacher See Most Often In The U.S.?
A good way to find out what languages do English as a second language teacher see most often in the U.S. is to determine which non-English speaking countries have the most number of U.S. immigrants. As the United States is a melting pot of many races, a lot of people from a wide diversity of non-English speaking nations need to learn English in order to study, to find gainful employment, or to do business in the country. The bigger the number of immigrants to the U.S. a particular country has, the better it is for the English as a second language teacher who speaks that country's language.
According to demographers, about 40% of the entire school-age- population in the US will consist of English language learners (ELLs), or those students who speak a primary language other than English by the year 2030. Currently, however, there are areas which already surpass the projection such as some schools in the State of California where 60 to 70% are ELLs. Asians account for a majority of this segment while Hispanics come in at second.
So, what languages do English as a second language teacher see most often in the U.S.? Asian languages such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Hindi, and Filipino are more commonly encountered by English as second language (ESL) teachers simply because of the sheer number of people from these Asian countries that have migrated to the US, or are doing business with English-speaking trading partners. English, after all, is the world's most widely-used language for international business.
Spanish is another primary language of many English language learners because of immigrants coming from Mexico and other countries from Central and South America. French, Italian and German, on the other hand, are the more common languages spoken in Europe (aside from Spanish) that ESL teachers encounter and must prepare for. So are some languages from such African countries as Nigeria and South Africa.
Providers of English learning facilities need to know this information as well as the need for second language acquisition, in general, in order to provide better services. This will guide them in the process of preparing teachers. Teaching English after all, is a specialized field where the instructor must be well-versed in the students' native tongue. Imagine how odd the situation will be if a teacher faces a diverse class made up of native speakers of Spanish, Mandarin, French, or Korean.
According to studies, bi-lingual students develop a faster learning capability and absorb lessons better than monolinguals. They acquire cognitive-linguistic advantages that enable them to perform better in meta-linguistic skills tests. Eventually, with the current trend of globalization among most business sectors, students who can fluently speak two or more languages have tremendous potentials to be valuable resources to the American economy.
Ironically, this scenario puts the native American-speakers in the United States at a seemingly disadvantageous position. However, this should be seen more as an opportunity than as a threat. It has become apparent that learning a second language would at least level the playing field, if not give them the outright edge. It will provide a big boost for their future business and professional careers.
Outside of the United States, a lot of countries are encouraging their citizens to learn English as a second language. They find it necessary to help boost their respective economies by being able to participate more in international trading, and not necessarily to have their people migrate to the US. Although some highly developed countries like Japan and Korea found economic success in the past through isolation and avoiding language immersion, the internationalization of modern business makes it necessary for all countries to adapt to the changes in order to survive.