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Learning English offers many benefits, including better job opportunities, easier communication with people from different countries, and access to professional publications. It also helps with social networking, traveling, and understanding different cultures. Immigrants to English-speaking countries can benefit greatly from learning the language, as can scholars and academics. Different forms of English exist, and the choice of which to learn depends on the individual’s goals.
One of the major benefits of learning English is that it is often regarded as the language of global business. The international business community often uses it to communicate, even between people who do not speak the same mother tongue. Speaking and understanding English can enable a person to communicate more easily with others and find more job opportunities not only in their home country but also around the world. There are also many professional information publications printed in English, meaning it is often an essential language for anyone working in science or research.
Professional opportunities
For many people, the benefits of learning English include broadening their job opportunities, as it is so commonly used in business. People who speak two or more languages are often ideal candidates for jobs in travel, international business or translation. Many government agencies and employers that offer employment with the general public, such as positions in law enforcement or the healthcare sector, often seek multilingual candidates.
Social networks and relationships
Many people see the ability to communicate and speak with others as one of the main benefits of learning English. Even outside of a professional setting, people often enjoy being able to talk to people from all over the world. Many people find great social and cultural benefits in having penpals from other countries, and the Internet makes that communication quick and easy. Knowing English can broaden the types of people you can talk to, whether via email or on an online discussion forum. A huge number of websites are available mostly in English, and anyone who doesn’t understand the language may find it difficult to use them.
For anyone interested in traveling to countries where English is the primary or common language, understanding and speaking it is often essential. Throughout the UK, US and Canada, travel and shopping are often made easier by speaking the language, as many people may not speak any other language. One of the most important benefits of learning English is the ability to explore these regions and communicate more easily with locals to learn about places and events that might otherwise remain unknown. Many people in European countries learn English in school, so knowing it can also be useful when traveling to places even where it is not the native language.
Learning a language can also be a great way to meet people, even if you never plan to leave the house. A class at a community center or local college can introduce you to a wide variety of people interested in English and give you the opportunity to interact with them in a controlled environment. Language courses often encourage students to have a conversation with each other in the language they are learning, and this can be a great way to break the ice with new people.
Immigration
Immigrants to English-speaking countries who do not speak the language are often at a severe economic disadvantage. It’s much more difficult to find and keep a job, find a place to live, and even do everyday tasks like grocery shopping if you don’t understand the language. Learning English not only benefits the immigrants themselves, but also helps families by enabling parents to be more fully involved in their children’s lives and education. Furthermore, these children do not have to translate for their parents, allowing them to be children rather than interpreters.
Entertainment and cultural understanding
A huge amount of popular entertainment comes out of Hollywood and almost all of it is produced in English. American movies and TV shows are distributed worldwide and are often subtitled for people who don’t speak the language. Knowing English can allow you to better understand the subtleties of dialogue that are often missing from subtitles. It can be a challenge to translate concepts and terms that don’t correspond one-to-one between languages, and nuances of meaning can be lost.
Language is an inherently cultural construct. The way people speak, the words they choose, and the topics they discuss are deeply tied to the culture of a place. By learning English or any other language, you put yourself in the mindset of a native speaker and are introduced to many of the concepts they find important. Gaining a better understanding of other cultures can help enrich your understanding of the world and how others see it.
Research and academics
Many of the world’s most important and well-known publications are written and printed in English. Scholars interested in doing academic research or working on new scientific developments should consider the benefits of learning English to read these periodicals and publish their work. Publication in peer-reviewed journals is often required for someone who wishes to remain in academia, and the ability to read and write English may be required to maintain that position. Even learning about current events often requires an understanding of the language, as so many global publications and news websites use it.
Education
As English is a first language for many countries, many other nations teach it as a requirement in schools. It is estimated that over one billion people around the world speak English at at least a basic level. For many people, the benefits of learning English are the new opportunities that become available to someone who understands it. Anyone interested in attending a university in the United States, for example, must speak it or be able to pass a test that proves they are fluent.
Different forms of English
People who decide to learn English may need to consider which type of English is best for them to know. The two most common forms are British English and American English and they can be very different in some respects. The basic fundamental language is the same and people learning one are probably still easily understood by someone speaking the other, but there will be cases where words are sentences don’t mean the same thing.
Much of the decision on what type of English to learn will depend on where the student is learning it and what their ultimate goals are. To understand the language in general, any type of lesson will help. Many people don’t have a wide variety of options to choose from, and a local college may only teach British English, for example. Someone living in Europe is more likely to be taught this form simply because they are geographically closer to the UK.
Individuals who are learning English for a job, however, may wish to seek out a class specifically tailored to the business language or form spoken in the country they will be doing business with. A person who will work regularly with an American company, for example, may better understand the nuances of his colleagues if he is familiar with that country’s terminology and idioms. Specialized classes typically focus more on the language used in business rather than casual conversation, which could be important if that is the student’s primary focus.
