What to Expect When Acquiring English as a Second Language

              Modern advancements in transportation has made it possible to travel to faraway places with relative ease than was possible at the time of our forefathers. Thus, notwithstanding immigration laws, it is also easier to uproot and settle in another country. Doing so would mean adapting to the language of the host country. Typically, the most popular places receiving immigrants are first-world countries and territories such as the US and the UK. Since both have English as their official language, immigrants will need to learn English as a second language.

             Students who are suddenly thrust into a classroom whose medium of instruction is English would likely find themselves not understanding any of the things they are hearing. Subsequently, this impedes the student's ability to learn no matter even if he or she has no learning deficiencies. Educational institutions try to make up for this by exposing the student to more spoken and written English to increase their chances of learning English as a second language faster. However, this strategy backfires because the student now has added pressure to acquire English as a second language in addition to learning whatever subject is being taught.

                 However, research studies also support the benefits of minorities learning English as a second language. For one, a fluent bilingual earns cognitive-linguistic benefits. When tested for metalinguistic skills, fluent bilingual speakers such as those who have learned English as a second language tend to outperform monolingual students.

               There are also obvious career benefits for a bilingual. As the economy becomes more and more global and barriers to business are reduced because of advancements in travel and communication, citizens of non English speaking countries who have acquired English as a second language has a significant edge in getting career opportunities over their counterparts with more academic qualifications and wider job experience. This is especially true if their company has multinational operations or is outsourcing their functions to other countries.