In addition to developing a lifelong ability to communicate with more people, children may derive other benefits from early language instruction, including improved overall school performance and superior problem-solving skills. Knowing a second language ultimately provides a competitive advantage in the workforce by opening up additional job opportunities. Students of foreign languages score statistically higher on standardized tests conducted in English. In its 1992 report, College Bound Seniors: The 1992 Profile of SAT and Achievement Test Takers, the College Entrance Examination Board reported that students who averaged 4 or more years of foreign language study scored higher on the verbal section of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) than those who had studied 4 or more years in any other subject area. In addition, the average mathematics score for individuals who had taken 4 or more years of foreign language study was identical to the average score of those who had studied 4 years of mathematics. These findings are consistent with College Board profiles for previous years.

Students of foreign languages have access to a greater number of career possibilities and develop a deeper understanding of their own and other cultures. Some evidence also suggests that children who receive second language instruction are more creative and better at solving complex problems. The benefits to society are many. Canadians fluent in other languages enhance our economic competitiveness abroad, improve global communication, and maintain our political and security interests.

• increases your child's personal pleasures such as the enjoyment of literature, art, music, theatre, travel, and personal relationships;

• increases your child's understanding of and respect for other peoples and other cultures;

• gives your child access to a larger pool of information and to more educational and career
opportunities.

• What are the benefits of learning a second language?

• develops your child's listening and learning skills as well as self-discipline;

• increases cognitive abilities, creating a more flexible thinker;

• enhances his knowledge of and his ability to communicate in his first language;

• makes learning a third or fourth language much easier.