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July 24, 2024
By Brent Davis
International Baccalaureate schools like AURA consider languages a key component of developing intercultural people. As a requirement of the DP curriculum, every student learns at least one additional language. At AURA, we currently offer Arabic and plan to add Spanish this coming year.
One of our students shared his experiences with learning Arabic, noting that it helped him better understand Arabic culture, enhanced his future employment opportunities, improved his cognitive skills, and enabled him to relate cross-culturally. These benefits highlight the significant value of learning a new language.
To truly understand another culture, it is not just about learning its language, but about gaining a deeper insight into its people and their way of life. This helps us see the strengths and weaknesses of our own culture and become more open-minded by considering different ways to achieve life goals.
According to the Economist (Oct. 18, 2018), Arabic has 313 million speakers, is the official language of 25 countries, and is one of six official languages of the United Nations. As with understanding cultures in general, if we want to do business at more than a superficial level, we need to use the language of the businessperson. Learning Arabic can open up a world of opportunities in the global market.
Research by Viorica Marian and Anthony Shook in the journal Cerebrum (Oct. 31, 2012) highlights the cognitive benefits of bilingualism. They found that bilingual individuals often have better attention and task-switching abilities because they can inhibit one language while using another. Bilingualism also offers benefits throughout life: young bilingual children can better adjust to environmental changes, and bilingual seniors may experience less cognitive decline.
In our diverse society, cross-cultural communication skills are essential. For example, in nursing, culturally competent care is linked to improved patient outcomes. Understanding and addressing cultural factors influencing health behaviors, treatment adherence, and health disparities enable nurses to design more effective care plans and interventions (nurses.co.uk). By becoming bilingual, our students become better communicators and thinkers, contributing to a better world.
At AURA, we are not just a school, but a stepping stone to a globalized future. We are committed to equipping our students with the skills needed to thrive in a globalized world, and our focus on language learning is a vital part of this mission.
