Children set to study two languages

Published on 14/12/2012 00:00

AN INQUIRY has been launched to examine proposals that 
children should study two 
foreign languages while still at 
primary school.

The study by the Scottish Parliament’s European and external relations committee follows a recommendation that pupils learn a second language from P1, and a third foreign tongue no later than P5.

Members of the committee will today visit Dalmarnock 
Primary School in Glasgow as they begin their work looking at the capacity within the 
curriculum for meeting the aim.

Speaking ahead of the visit, the committee’s convener, 
Christina McKelvie MSP, said: “Understanding another language is such an important skill, and when children are young studies have shown they can learn this so much more easily. “Our job is to look at whether we think the proposals meet the aim of positively supporting 
primary school children in learning two more languages. And importantly, whether the resources and capacity are in place to help deliver this.”

The report, published 
earlier this year by the Scottish Government’s Modern Languages Working Group, called for a “radical change of approach” in language learning.