Some facts about being bilingual

• People who are competent in more than one language outscore those who are speakers of only one language on tests of verbal and nonverbal intelligence;
• For those who speak Japanese, there were more than 1,400 job openings in the country, and 400 of those were in California;
• The longer students study languages other than English, the higher their standardized test scores in those subjects;
• Four out of five new jobs in the US are created as a result of foreign trade;
• Each year, nearly 200,000 Americans lose out on jobs with business because they do not know another language;
• Multilingual and multicultural individuals exhibit a greater sense of respect for others who are different from them selves and, through their ability to converse with others affirm the dignity of individuals from different cultures;
• In March 2007, Monster.com listed more than 1000 jobs nationwide for those who speak French (not including military, government, or teaching jobs). Of those jobs, nearly 200 were in California;
• For Chinese speakers, there were more than 700 job openings, with 300 of those located in California;
• Research has shown that multilingualism can delay the onset of Alzheimer’s and dementia;
• If you speak Spanish, you could have found more than 8,000 jobs in the country. Of those, almost 3,000 were in California;
• In 1996, the American Association of School Administrators identified knowledge of foreign languages as one of the most important skills that students will need to develop in order to prosper in this century;
• Students who are learning another language show greater creativity at solving complex problems than their monolingual peers.

Original source: California Language Teachers’ Association