Many European Union countries must continue working on language teaching if they aspire to turn this polyglot yearning of their citizens into a reality: while almost all respondents agree that learning other languages will be essential for their children (98%), just over half of them considered themselves capable of holding a conversation in a language other than their own (54%). This figure varies widely among countries since some of them have a strong tradition of multilingualism, while others have not yet reaped the fruits of the spread of language teaching. In Sweden, for example, 91% of respondents claimed to be able to hold a conversation in another language, but only 46% of Spanish citizens has that ability; and it’s even less prevalent among respondents to the survey in the UK (39 %). It is clear that the governments of these countries should review their educational and cultural policies so that their linguistic future will look a bit more like the one their citizens’ desire.
Finally, the survey also highlights the high value Europeans attach to the task of translation: between 67% and 76% of respondents concur that it plays a fundamental role in the international circulation of information, education, job search, health and safety.
To read the original Spanish article go to:
https://www.trustedtranslations.com/opinion-publica-y-realidad-linguistica-en-europa-2012-06-25.html