TOPIC: 1st Grade ( Practice 39 )

 

Agree or disagree

 

 

POINTS:

 

There has been a lot of discussion on whether English should be taught in primary school or not. In fact, many people insist that young children should learn their mother tongue first before foreign languages, but I believe the key to success in learning English is to start at an early age.

 

First of all, since English is predominantly used and spoken all over the world, we are expected to be proficient in this international language. In this day of globalization, a growing number of multinational corporations hire their employees from around the world, where business is mostly done in English. In order to meet the global demand, English should be taught in primary school, so that younger generations can be well-prepared for global competition.

 

Second, teaching English to children at an early age is the best way to master the language. As a matter of fact, English grammar and pronunciation are so different from those of Japanese that most Japanese learners have trouble speaking correctly. However, when they start learning at an early stage of life, they can learn perfect grammar and pronunciation without difficulty.

 

Lastly, English is playing an important role in Japanese society. Today, there are growing numbers of foreign people living in Japan. With this trend, many businesses and public offices are required to employ people who can speak English well to help such foreign residents. Moreover, since Japan is suffering from worker shortages due to the declining birthrate, more foreign workers may be allowed to join the workforce, which will make English more important to communicate with foreign workers in Japan.

 

For these reasons, English should be taught in elementary school. As Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to be held in 2020, we expect more and more foreign people will visit Japan. One way to meet increasing demand for English proficiency is to give children the opportunity to learn it in elementary school.