And then I wrote...

by Dick Schilling, "Editor Emeritus"

... that I read with considerable interest the series of articles in The Des Moines Register about the education efforts regarding the ever-increasing number of foreign born students in Iowa schools.

My interest stems in part from the fact that Postville is essentially tied for third among all school districts in the state in numbers of such students. And partly because of a chance encounter with what was then a Japanese foreign exchange student in Waukon whom I interviewed many years ago for the newspaper. She was back visiting the hostess of her exchange, and has been back several times since her school days. She speaks essentially unaccented English these days.

I am certain English has to be among the more difficult languages to learn. Cattily I might observe that lots of citizens born here do not manage it well.

Those whose first language is one of the so-called romance languages, French, Spanish or Italian, would seem to have an edge.

I am a poor one to judge. I took Latin in high school, but think I learned more of that language as an altar boy than I did in class. Not all of it was particularly useful, although dona nobis pacem, grant us peace, seems apt in the current state of world affairs. I took French (or it took me) at university. Two avenues were offered, speaking or reading. I chose reading. My apartment mate chose speaking. I think I learned as much French from his effort as my own.

So I can empathize with learners of English as a second language.

However, I have known persons who grew up in certain areas of Europe who spoke German, French and English with equal aplomb, because it was necessary to have some fluency in all three where they lived as children.

I think I have seen studies that say the earlier one is exposed to another language, the easier it is to learn. So childhood education is the answer. But it is difficult and expensive.

The cost in Iowa was $50 million last year.

And part of the difficulty is in the number of langauges involved.

Spanish is by far the most common, and should be among the easiest. A daughter of a cousin was an exchange student in Mexico one year, and picked up a great deal.

Second was something called the Karen language. I have known some Karens, but they all spoke English. Turns out, the Karen language is common in Burma, Vietnam and, oddly, Bosnia!

And there are more than 100 others.

What’s the solution? Maybe there is none. But as a famous columnist suggested, seek one lovingly.