Faculty of Arts

Surprising people is a wonderful thing.

Surprise opens minds. It is a great antidote for prejudice and generally leaves a positive effect. So what's this got to do with learning languages? Well, an Anglo-Saxon who has command of a foreign language can surprise all the time.

I work overseas and speak German and French fluently, thanks to language training in WA. Knowledge of German was a prerequisite for my initial employment in Europe. Even in London now, many jobs are requiring a working knowledge of at least one other language.

There are other benefits I've found in learning a language. Thinking skills are improved; learning to express yourself in another language also fosters creativity; you train yourself at communicating with a minimum number of words. It encourages greater precision in the use of English - what with so many words to pick from! So, knowing a language is great: you can surprise people as much as you want and you've got that much more opportunity to work.

I worked in Europe for several years before moving to South America.