High school students in Tennessee may eventually no longer need to take a foreign language class to graduate. But some insist that these lessons go beyond the classroom — by teaching empathy for people unlike themselves.
The Tennessee Board of Education recently held a meeting allowing the public to comment on the suggested change of dropping the requirement that high school students take two years of foreign language classes. The session led to an impassioned defense of language studies from a pair of students.
Emma Hatcher and MaKayla Webb, both college juniors at East Tennessee State University, drove four hours to speak before the board. They both stated that neither wanted to study a foreign language in high school and only did so because of the state requirement. However, the 20-year-olds said that those classes led to scholarships, study abroad opportunities and more cultural awareness.
“I never knew how many Spanish speakers lived in my town until I started speaking Spanish,” Hatcher told WPLN News.
Her high school was in the middle of a cow field in Bristol. The small town isn’t very diverse. According to U.S. Census data, its racial makeup is 89% white, with Hispanics constituting less than 3% of the population. Hatcher credits studying a foreign language with helping her become more aware of the marginalized members in her town.
“Now my whole family is aware of these communities that are living amongst us that we never even considered to be living in our communities until I had this opportunity for my high school Spanish class,” she said.
Hatcher recounted a time when she and her high school classmates provided supplies to a Spanish-speaking family whose house had burned down. She said her foreign language teacher’s connection with the town’s Hispanic community is why she and her friends were able to help the family.
She’s now studying Spanish and marketing in college and plans to become an immigration lawyer.
Her high school classmate, MaKayla Webb, told WPLN News that learning another language improved her experiences not only in her community but in her travels abroad.
“Most Americans who travel would just go over there and expect them to speak your language,” she said. “But you’re coming to them. If you at least act like you’re trying, they’re going to treat you so well.”
Robert Eby, chairman of the Tennessee State Board of Education, questioned the foreign language requirement during a board quarterly meeting on May 30. He noted that students can request a waiver of the requirement.
“But why should students have to request a waiver of this requirement if their ultimate path for their post-secondary success does not include utilization of a foreign language?” he asked.
Hatcher and Webb said that studying Spanish made them better students overall, with Webb noting that learning Spanish allowed her to make connections in her science classes because most of the terminology is rooted in Latin.
Hatcher also told the board that many other states require their students to study a foreign language, and she fears that Tennessee students who don’t will be left behind.
Hatcher and Webb have studied abroad in 11 countries and are planning to study in Spain together next year.
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