Why SHOULD YOU learn English?
Good question. I believe everyone should learn the English language
for the following reasons.
Distribution
English is the most widely spoken language in the world based on the
distribution of native speakers.
900 million people using English, out of a total world population of about
6.7 billion people, is only 15% of the total population. Then why is English
so important? The importance of English is not in the number of speakers,
but what English is used for.
Communication, Friends
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English is the main language in the United
States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and
Ireland.
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In many countries, English is widely used,
particularly among people who have no other language in common,
even though English is not the main language of the country. For
example, English is widely used in Hong Kong, Singapore,
Nigeria, the Philippines, and Malaysia. In these countries, it
is often used as a means of communication between people who use
different dialects of their native languages.
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English is studied as a foreign language in
countries even though it is not used as a means of
communication.
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In China, English language lessons are
popular. Two hundred fifty million Chinese, are learning English
on TV.
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English is the most commonly taught foreign
language.
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Now online communities like My Space, YouTube,
etc., offer people a way to make friends around the world and
practice speaking English.
News, Information
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English is the main language of news and
information in the world.
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English is the language used in business and
government even in countries where it is not the main language.
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75% of all telex messages and telegrams are
sent in English.
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80% of computer data is processed and stored
in English.
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Most satellite transmissions are carried in
English.
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Five thousand newspapers, over half of the
newspapers published in the world, are published in English.
Even in many countries where English is not the main language,
there is at least one newspaper in English. In India alone,
there are three thousand magazines published in English.
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In many countries, television news is
broadcast in English.
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Because of the power of television,
demonstrators even use signs printed in English to send their
messages to the world.
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Much of the information countries disseminate
about themselves outside of their borders is in English.
Business, Government, International Relations
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English is the main language of international
business, diplomacy, and science.
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It is a common language that a Russian
businessman and a Japanese businesswoman are likely to use to
communicate.
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English is an official language of many
professional and international organizations, including the
United Nations.
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It is usually the language of international
conferences, and international athletics.
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English is the language of maritime
communication and international air traffic control, and it is
used even for internal air traffic control in countries where it
is not a native language.
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Most commodities such as silver, gold, and
hard currency are traded in English.
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Throughout the world, many professional papers
are published in English. Even papers that are published in
other languages often have abstracts in English.
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English is used in government and as a medium
of communication among people who do not have another language
in common.
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In some cases, it is a neutral language that
is used to avoid giving any one indigenous language too much
prestige. English is often used in India, because it is neutral.
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People who speak English have a certain status
in society.
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In Singapore, English is a second language,
but it is necessary for daily life. Many companies there use
English.
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In addition, sixteen countries in Africa have
retained English as the language of government. Now standard
English is taught in schools in those countries, because it is
necessary for careers.
Entertainment
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Popular culture has played an important part
in spreading English.
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American and British popular music are heard
all over the world.
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American movies are seen in almost every
country.
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Books in English are available even in
countries where few people actually use English.
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It is used for books, music and dance.
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One reason that students give for learning
English is to understand these songs, movies and books.
Travel
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English is spoken in large hotels and tourist
attractions, at airports, and in shops that tourists frequent.
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Tours are almost always available in English.
Even in countries where few people speak English on the street,
people who work with tourists generally speak English. In some
countries even drivers of buses or streetcars and sellers at
newsstands speak English well.
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