Addressing proper English is more important than requiring foreign language development.

However, the importance of learning foreign languages should never be diminished or not addressed in our educational system.

I do think a foreign language course should be required for students. However, it bothers me some that the expectations might be a bit rough.

I have heard it mentioned by many that Spanish is a language of importance because of all the Spanish-speaking people in the U.S.

Immigrants from south of the border, however, rarely speak Spanish. Most speak Mexican and many speak Portuguese. Spanish is not the same language. "What's up?" in Spanish would be "Que Tal", in Mexican it can be "Que Pasa" or "Que Undo", depending upon which part of Mexico one is from. Most Mexican's can understand Portuguese but most speaking Portuguese understand little of the Mexican language.

We should know what we are doing before we make things mandatory.

There are over 100 Chinese dialects not understood by other Chinese. Germany has different pronunciations for the same word (I.E. "King" can be "Que-en" or "Key-en").

I have a friend who failed high school German though his parents were immigrants and he had been speaking it since he was a small boy.

I passed high school Spanish only because my teacher understood that I could not "trill" my R's, not because of my speech, but my hearing. I hear a trilled R differently than others and can only reform what I hear.

Like being partially color-blind, I see what is green or blue, but you and I are actually seeing a different color. What I learned as green or blue is not necessarily the color you are seeing.

My Chinese, French and Italian are much the same; I pronounce what I "hear" not the accurate inflections.

I believe that making foreign languages a high school "requirement" will come with many costs, unless we are careful in our training of teacher in the different aspects of language, and the different levels of student speech. It will affect grade levels of very intelligent students for one thing.
Maybe administering high school students "attempting" a foreign language a pass or no reduction of grade level is an answer. Alternatively, an extra credit without the chance of a failing (as many students will not attempt foreign language for fear of lowered overall grading) would begetter than a "requirement" course.

Learn more about this author, Duane Kuehn.
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