Is speaking German becoming the preserve of the few?

The Department of Education suggests that learning a language has economic benefits, including more international trade. Germany is the fourth largest economy in the world, yet the number of teenagers in England studying German has fallen in recent years. Only 2,800 students sat A-level German this summer, of which 2,000 were at state schools, which implies that German as an A-Level subject is more prevalent at private schools.

The UK’s schools minister wants to ensure that all pupils have the opportunity to study a language and was quoted in The Times as saying we all need to speak more German. Speaking languages is about social mobility. He wants to ensure that young people from all backgrounds are encouraged to take up languages that the children of more affluent families take for granted.

The schools minister wants to raise the profile of learning German in schools and highlight the benefits of studying German by setting up a German Promotion Project to increase the number of German teachers.

The decline in learning languages is difficult to reverse, with fewer students studying German at university; thus, fewer German teachers are being churned out by UK universities. This vicious cycle is hard to stop without determined action.

Currently, Britain ranks bottom in Europe for the proportion of 16 - 64-year-olds who speak at least one foreign language: 36.6%. The European average is 64.6%; across the Scandinavian countries, it is over 90%.

Of course, the rest of the world is proficient in English, making it hard for British students to practice their foreign language skills, making the need to master German seem less critical. But Britons miss out commercially and culturally by not being able to speak German.

Do you speak the language of your German suppliers, colleagues, customers, trading partners, and in-laws? If not, get in touch to enrol on a German course.