Why is language education so important?

 "One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way.”

I have the fortune to speak five languages. This have given me so much joy and opportunities in my life that I have made it my mission to encourage young people to learn at least one foreign language.

Of course my mother language is Italian. In high school (Lyceum) I learned French and at the university in Padova I learned a little bit English. It was only in my early twenties, when I met my husband, who is Dutch, that I really started to study English. As I lived for a litttle while in The Netherlands I learned also Dutch. Last year I also started with an intensive course Spanish.

Speaking different languages have given me an better understanding of different cultures, which I consider a big enrichment of my life.

It is also scientifically proven that students that studying a foreign language perform better overall in school/college. 

  1. Foreign Language study creates more positive attitudes and less prejudice toward people who are different. 
     
  2. Analytical skills improve when students study a foreign language. 
     
  3. Business skills plus foreign language skills make an employee more valuable in the marketplace. 
     
  4. Dealing with another culture enables people to gain a more profound understanding of their own culture. 
     
  5. Creativity is increased with the study of foreign languages. 
     
  6. Graduates often cite foreign language courses as some of the most valuable courses in college because of the communication skills developed in the process. 
     
  7. International travel is made easier and more pleasant through knowing a foreign language. 
     
  8. Skills like problem solving, dealing with abstract concepts, are increased when you study a foreign language. 
     
  9. Foreign language study enhances one’s opportunities in government, business, medicine, law, technology, military, industry, marketing, etc. 
     
  10. A second language improves your skills and grades in math and English and on the SAT and GRE. 
     
  11. Four out of five new jobs in the US are created as a result of foreign trade. 
     
  12. Foreign languages provide a competitive edge in career choices: one is able to communicate in a second language. 
     
  13. Foreign language study enhances listening skills and memory. 
     
  14. One participates more effectively and responsibly in a multi-cultural world if one knows another language. 
     
  15. Your marketable skills in the global economy are improved if you master another language. 
     
  16. Foreign language study offers a sense of the past: culturally and linguistically. 
     
  17. The study of a foreign tongue improves the knowledge of one’s own language: English vocabulary skills increase. 
     
  18. The study of foreign languages teaches and encourages respect for other peoples: it fosters an understanding of the interrelation of language and human nature. 
     
  19. Foreign languages expand one’s view of the world, liberalize one’s experiences, and make one more flexible and tolerant. 
     
  20. Foreign languages expand one’s world view and limit the barriers between people: barriers cause distrust and fear. 
     
  21. Foreign language study leads to an appreciation of cultural diversity. 
     
  22. As immigration increases we need to prepare for changes in the American society. 
     
  23. One is at a distinct advantage in the global market if one is as bilingual as possible. 
     
  24. Foreign languages open the door to art, music, dance, fashion, cuisine, film, philosophy, science… 
     
  25. Foreign language study is simply part of a very basic liberal education: to “educate” is to lead out, to lead out of confinement and narrowness and darkness.
I kindly ask for your support. I’m seeking for a total of $25,000 in donations to pay for:  
- The extra costs of travel to travel earlier to the city where the concert will be held, to visit local colleges. 
- The costs a special paper on the positive effects of learning a musical instrument and learning a  foreign language.  
- The costs of the materials that will be hand out to the students, like CDs.
- The free tickets for the concert that will be given to the students.  

Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. To make this possible for I work together with the fiscal sponsor Fractured Atlas, an arts service organization and a 501(c)(3) public charity. For more information and donations visit:  

www.fromvenicewithlove.com  

Donations can also be done with a check. Please send your contribution to:  Giada Valenti,  27516 Shirley Place, Suite 203,  Santa Clarita, CA 91387.  

Checks should be made payable to Fractured Atlas, with From Venice With Love Tour in the memo line.  

Thank you for your time and consideration,  

Giada Valenti