![](/media/0erpmpjk/616a4aff0b727cfab816e7fe25882629.gif?width=1002&height=668&bgcolor=White&v=1da4db24aca2490)
In ethnically diverse cities like London, nurseries and primary schools are full of children who speak an array of languages in the home. But when it comes to modern foreign languages, Britain still performs very badly. We sit at the bottom of the EU's league tables for the proportion of students taking modern foreign languages in schools.
The fact that English is the dominant lingua franca of the global economy has made us complacent and lazy about learning the languages of other countries. We learn languages too late, in secondary rather than primary school, and too few young people bother taking GCSEs in modern languages at all.
Register now to continue reading
Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Unlimited access to news and opinion
-
Email newsletter providing activity ideas, best practice and breaking news
Already have an account? Sign in here