Parents upgrade their tongue to give their kids a head-start
2012 October, 4
Rosetta Stone, a leading provider of language learning solutions used by more than 20,000 schools worldwide, reveals the desire to help childrens' development as an important motivation for language learning.
In their recent research into the reasons behind the decision to learn a new language, Rosetta Stone has found that parents see their own language learning as a key activity in setting an example to their children, and in supporting their child's educational development. 17% of respondents of a survey conducted by Rosetta Stone actually said they learned languages, to be an inspiring role model for their child. Learning a language comes naturally to children, but it can be fun for the whole family.
Sylke Riester, Managing Director Europe at Rosetta StoneUK said: "Being a parent myself, seeing how my children learn by doing "Monkey see, Monkey do", our findings suggest that a fifth of language learners questioned did so in order to help their child learn languages. Learning additional languages provides a boost in confidence and personal growth. Our findings suggest that parents now want to hand the benefit of a language down to their children."
In 2010, just 43% of GCSE pupils were entered for a language, showing a significant drop from the 2002 peak of 75% . Rosetta Stone sees their survey findings as encouraging, showing that there is a definite desire in many parents to make languages a priority for themselves and their families. "When a parent speaks another language, they are in a far better position to encourage their children – at any age – to learn and to support that process and try a new language. We also see language learning as a massive plus for family culture: knowing a foreign language can make holidays and cultural events even more meaningful and enjoyable." And for those lucky enough to have relatives living in other parts of the world, getting their child to connect with their heritage through language is price-less.
About Rosetta Stone:
Rosetta Stone is changing the way the world learns languages providing interactive solutions that unlock the natural language-learning ability in everyone. Available in more than 20 languages, Rosetta Stone is used by schools, organisations and millions of individuals in over 150 countries throughout the world. The company was founded in 1992 on the core beliefs that learning a language should be natural and instinctive and that interactive technology can replicate and activate the immersion method powerfully for learners of any age. With the new version TOTALe learners practise speaking in live sessions tutored by native speakers in an interactive, online environment, play in an exclusive online community dedicated to language learning and reinforce language skills with an innovative mobile application built for iPhone®, iPad® and Android phones.
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