English : Why it is important to study the language

One may ask why is it important that we learn how to speak English in our schools? After all we live in a region of non-English speaking countries. Would it not be better perhaps to learn the languages more commonly spoken in our part of the world? In fact the most populous country in the world is China which accounts for more than fifty per cent of the world's population. the Chinese people don't speak English but rather Mandarin or their individual dialects. The answer would be that traditionally the cultures of the world have come to be. broadly classified into two groups the Western and the Eastern cultures. English has come to represent the means of communication in the West. With more and more gateways being opened to Asia it is imperative that one language be adopted to suit our needs. As the people of Asia speak a diverse variety of languages it would appear that English would be the logical choice. In Singapore, English is the National Language in a country with a mixture of races. Singapore is also a focal point for trade with the West in this part of the world. English is taught as a language in our schools to reflect it's importance in our society. If this were not so, there is a good likelihood that in time the strong influence of individual cultures here would result in people only being well versed in their mother tongues. However Singapore being a former British Colony and the present education policy have seen to it that most Singaporeans are bi-lingual, that is able to speak English as well as their mother tongues. Another factor which has promoted the use of English as a medium of communication here in Singapore is the rather significant expatriate community here. The process of globalization is not restricted to trade alone but also covers all aspects of our life. The important thing to remember however is that we should not sacrifice or compromise on our unique cultural identity in order to keep up with the pace of globalization. diverse   varied or different       compromise   To arrive at a settlement by making concessions Click here to lauch more sample english essays : http://www.englishdaily626.com/ (source)