With over 8 billion people in our world, a lot of languages are spoken. As the population of the United States grows, people are exposed to different cultures and languages. So the question stands: do we need more languages offered at Powell High?
As it turns out, a vast majority of students do think so. When surveyed, most students said that they would enjoy a language other than Spanish taught.
“There are plenty of languages that are spoken across the US other than English and Spanish,” sophomore Justin Dusenberry said. “Just because Wyoming is not diverse, that doesn’t mean that other places aren’t.”
This idea seems to hold true for many students. However, some students do not think that knowing another language will help them here in Wyoming.
“I feel like around us, not a lot of people speak anything other than English,” freshman Kaylen Greenwald said. “Spanish is the second most spoken language, so that can be helpful.”
There are a variety of reasons why students should learn a second language. From helping with brain function to improving with social cues, the benefits are innumerable. Another reason to learn a second language is that it can help you understand the world around you.
“Learning another language can help you learn about people around you and around the world,” former French teacher Mrs. Nancy O’Neill said. “When you open yourself up to that worldview and the idea that we all have similarities and differences, they can be celebrated rather than demonized.”
Unfortunately, the possibility of having these classes here at PHS is slim. With limited resources such as rooms and money, it is improbable that we will have more language classes; however, some students had the idea of online learning.
“I think that [online learning] is a fantastic opportunity,” sophomore Audrey Johnson said. “[Online learning] really pushes students to do it because it gives students the ability to move at their own pace and gives them the opportunity to do something that the school doesn’t offer.”
However, former Spanish teacher and current counselor Mrs. Kara Miller expressed some concerns about online learning.
“Learning language is one of the hardest to do without repetition, direct instruction, multiple experiences with the language in auditory form and interaction that is spontaneous and multi-dimensional,” Miller said. “Having been a Spanish teacher, it is extremely hard to replicate that in an online format.”
This is a truth; students are less likely to actually learn a language when they do not have another person to talk to. However, there are more reasons why online learning is difficult. PHS principal Timothy Wormald also had some thoughts.
“It gets tricky if we say we’re going to allow students to take online courses for enrichment purposes when students have interests in specific areas because it becomes hard to say yes to some courses and no to others.,” Wormald said. “So, if we have a student with an interest in learning Russian and we purchase an online course for that student, we could be obligated to purchase psychology for the student who has that interest, or photography for the student who has that interest. There’s really no end in sight once we start going down that road.”
So, it appears that PHS will not be getting anymore foreign language classes in the immediate future. But, at the pace that the US is developing, who knows what our future holds.
“I think that having more options creates more opportunity,” O’Neill said. “You never know what doors you can open with language.”
