The second language gap
I admit it! I am a hopeless Francophile. I can’t say exactly when my love affair with France began. I’ve been in love with la Belle France for as long as I can remember. I’ve dabbled in French since I was a sophomore in high school. As an adult I made two or three feeble attempts to learn the language but gave up when the going got tough. It is only in the last three years that I’ve finally gotten serious about learning to speak the language that I love.
Last month for the second time in three years I spent four weeks at a language school in the south of France. By week three my brain was full, but I marched on. I am happy to report that I feel more confident speaking French, although too much of my conversation continues to be peppered with witty phrase like parlez-vous plus lentement s’il vous plait (please speak more slowly) and répétez-vous s’il vous plait (please repeat that for the 10th time.) I am a long way from fluency and comprehension continues to be a challenge, but I made progress.
Approximately 22% of Americans speak a second language, compared to 56% of Europeans. Twenty-five percent of Europeans speak at least two foreign languages. This language gap was never more apparent than at my school in Montpellier, France. Students hailed from Switzerland, Italy, Poland, German, Japan, Australia, and the United States and the common language was English. Every student I met spoke English as well as their native language while the three or four of us from the United States spoke one language, English.
According to scientific studies on language learning, the critical period for learning a language is from birth to puberty. During this time children readily absorb the rules of a new language and easily imitate the sounds they hear. Yet, in the US most educational institutions don’t offer second language learning until high school. This puts us at a disadvantage in a global economy. Most European and Asian countries start second language learning between kindergarten and fifth grade giving their students a definite edge.
Consider this, 90% of businesses in the US rely on employees who speak a language other than English. Fifty-six percent of employers expect the demand for bi/multilingual speakers to increase in the next five years. One in four businesses say that they lost business due to a lack of language skills. From 2010 to 2015 job postings for bilingual workers doubled. Since the 2020 pandemic, there has been a 30% increase in remote bilingual jobs. Recent studies indicate that speaking a second language can increase your compensation by as much as 35%. So even if you don’t plan to travel the world, speaking a second language can significantly impact your financial future as well as your options.
In addition, second language learning promotes diplomacy, cross-cultural communication, and fosters connections between diverse people; it can also broaden our world view. The global economy isn’t going away and demand for a talented, multilingual workforce is only going to increase. If you’ve always wanted to learn another language, start today. There are plenty of free resources online, low-cost classes through local community colleges and adult school programs as well as cultural organizations that support language learning. As for me, my language journey is a work in progress.
Mary Jeanne Vincent, career expert and strategist, has a coaching practice in Monterey. She may be reached at 831-657-9151, mjv@careercoachmjv.com, or www.careercoachmonterey.com. © 2025 Mary Jeanne Vincent. All rights reserved.