OPINION: Regrets? I’ve had a few. In my experience, most people’s biggest regret is either not learning a musical instrument or a foreign language.
Thanks to our country’s wonderful free Saturday morning music classes I don’t fall into the first category but definitely fall into the second.
When I entered secondary school the only language on offer was French. Back then it was often taught as a written language.
There was lots of rote learning and little speaking. As a result I was a far from ideal pupil.
Today some foreign languages are in decline in schools and universities as students pursue more ‘useful’ subjects like commerce.
This is a pity as languages exercise different parts of the brain than other subjects and can be great fun. Yet it used to be said that if you wanted to incur the wrath of Kiwis then just speak really loudly on a bus in a foreign language.
Even some politicians complain about not being able to hear English spoken on Queen St. Boo-hoo!
In other countries similar areas – such as San Francisco’s Chinatown, New York’s Little Italy and London’s Brick Lane – are tourist attractions.
So why are we such a monolingual little nation?
Island nations are separated by sea so there is a physical barrier. That’s why the English also suffer from monolingualism.
And English speakers get an easy time overseas as ours is often the language of money. That foreigner speaking English is not doing it because they love the sound but because they know it’s a great way to make a buck.
Maori is an official language yet there are no government moves to make it compulsory.
Forget that kids in Europe are often learning 2 or 3 extra languages, we can’t even handle one.
I have heard all the arguments against compulsory Maori, usually made by Pakeha.
Yet Education Minister Hekia Parata is also against compulsion saying that it hinders interest.
Does her theory apply to Maths or English as well as Maori? Or are they more ‘important’ so must remain compulsory?
Some Pakeha feel very threatened by the idea of their kids learning Maori. Yet learning a language is a great way to understand a culture and often dispels racist myths. Is that what these parents are afraid of?
Not that all Pakeha are against Te Reo Maori. Most of us can struggle through a verse of the anthem and we all love the haka.
Recently in Europe I attended a soiree (which is the French word for soiree) with some other Kiwis. After a sub-dignitary played the piano we responded with a verse of Pokarekare ana.
Yes, a token gesture, but five of the six singing were Pakeha. The Europeans, who are fascinated by Maori culture, loved it. Can you imagine a bunch of Australians singing an aboriginal chant?
For an English speaker the European languages have the advantage of similar origins. It’s quite easy filling out a questionnaire in France when you realise that the French word for questionnaire is questionnaire.
China is our biggest trading partner so why aren’t more people learning Mandarin and other Asian languages? One reason is that it’s difficult for English speakers to hear the different tones.
In Vietnamese, one word can have six different meanings depending on the tone.
A Vietnamese friend told me about his Australian mate who mistakenly called his girlfriend’s mother a cow because he used the wrong tone (or did he)? That’s why starting Kiwi kids young on Asian languages, as well as Maori, would be a brilliant move.
Speaking a foreign language is useful when you are in a non-English-speaking country, or in your own country in the case of Maori, but it goes further.
It can also be a political statement. Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd doesn’t have a great reputation amongst New Zealanders but as a fluent Mandarin speaker he made enormous progress in relations with China.
By promoting language learning in schools, and learning Maori and other languages themselves, the inhabitants of our little islands could make a great statement, not only to our indigenous people but to our friends and potential trading partners in the rest of the world.
