Read the instructions for the task. With the information given, produce a monologue using your own words. (approximately 2,5 minutes)
Task description
You are a member of the School Council at your local school. At one of the meetings one of the items on the agenda is whether kindergarten students should be taught foreign languages. You decide to express your opinions about it based on an article you have recently read. Consider whether it might be helpful for children to learn a second language at such a young age or whether it is a case of too much, too soon. Deliver your monologue explaining your views.
Article
Kindergarten introduces foreign language lessons
Happy
Kids Kindergarten in Leeds has caused controversy by introducing
foreign language classes for its students- some as young as two years
old. Many parents are supportive of the new scheme, claiming that it
gives their children a head start when they learn foreign languages
later in life or when looking for a job, and at the same time they also
become aware of the world's cultural differences. Others, though, say
that these classes will simply confuse the students and affect the
progress of language learning in their own language.
Sample answer
These days there
seems to be a general consensus about the importance of knowing at
(1)_________ one foreign language, (2)______________ reminds me of a
quotation by Roger Bacon, (3)___________ once said, "knowledge of languages is the doorway to wisdom."
Disagreement
arises, (4)____________, over whether it is appropriate to start a
foreign language programme as early as kindergarten. On one hand, some
people (5)_________ argue that we should introduce children to foreign
languages in their early years. (6)___________ others are convinced that
teaching foreign languages to young learners can delay progress in
their mother tongue. (7)___________, we need to examine both sides of
the argument before we reach any conclusion.
Firstly, by teaching
foreign languages to children, we can make it easier for them to learn
languages in the later stages of their education. For (8)__________,
even learning the alphabet of a foreign language can be useful. In this
(9)___________, students would find it easier to learn languages in more
detail when they get older.
Secondly, having a second language
(10)____________ one's sleeve when job hunting is likely to help a
candidate to get a certain position. This is very often the case in most
jobs in international business or in the hospitality sector in tourist
areas. As a (11)___________, there is a lower unemployment rate among
people who speak foreign languages.
Furthermore, foreign language
lessons teach kindergarten students about how diverse the world is. For
(12)_____________, they learn that people in foreign countries speak
other languages and have different cultures. As a (13)__________,
students learn to respect other cultures at a young age.
On
the other hand, opponents of foreign language teaching in kindergarten
argue that it can hamper the development of a child's language
acquisition in their mother tongue. In (14)____________, when children
are still building their basic vocabulary in their own language,
learning foreign words might disrupt this. (15)_______________, students
could fall behind in their language development.
All things
(16)______________, I feel that kindergarten children have much to gain
from learning foreign languages, (17)___________ they not only prepare
them for future language learning and employment but they also
familiarise them with the diversity of the world (18)__________ the fact
that it can delay their own language betterment. Young children have an
amazing ability to learn foreign languages, (19)__________ why not
exploring this as early as (20)_____________.
KEY
1. least
2. which
3. who
4. however
5. would
6. While
7. Therefore
8. instance/example
9. way
10. up
11. result/consequence
12. instance/example
13. result/consequence
14. particular/fact
15. Consequently
16. considered
17. since/because/as/for
18. despite
19. so
20. possible
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