Teach languages besides English

In response to Joe Kudelka of Elk Grove Village, his letter makes a lot of assumptions. First it suggests that English will not be taught in schools. Not true. All students must complete the required English classes to graduate.

Why is Joe so afraid of teaching Spanish or German or any other language? My daughter spent a year abroad and not only was required to learn the host country's language but continued her English and Spanish. As a senior this year she's now fluent in two languages outside of English. This is a huge competitive advantage.

Europe requires its students to learn English. We shouldn't be afraid of teaching Spanish or any other language particularly when multilingual requirements are almost always a short route to lucrative employment.

The State Department, Chamber of Commerce and leading Fortune 500 CEOs have been highlighting the language deficit of American students for at least a decade. In response, major companies as well as small business are meeting the needs of their customers and their employees by offering bilingual sales and customer service.

We can't continue to put our heads in the sand and suggest English is the only language when we don't reciprocate. We sacrifice not only our own education but the need to be a global competitor when we assert that English is the only accepted language in the U.S. and therefore in the world.

English is a requirement for graduation that hasn't changed. If District 59 wants to also support the bilingual representation of the student body then it behooves all of us to step out of the way. Our tax dollars are not being wasted by recognizing the need of a student population. To the contrary it's offering opportunity.

Danette Hayes

Buffalo Grove