Speaker A. There are many ways to learn foreign languages but the most effective is when people do it at school. I believe languages should be taught starting from the age of three or four. Children acquire new words and grammar patterns easily, while playing and communicating. They can imitate sounds and they enjoy reciting poems and singing songs even when they don’t understand the meaning of some words.

Speaker B. Some of my friends started learning foreign languages when they started to work. I myself took a Spanish course when our company signed several contracts with Spanish partners. Now it’s not a problem for me to write a letter in Spanish or make a telephone call. It’s easier and quicker to solve any problems if you are able to communicate without interpreters.

Speaker C. Our age is the age of information, and it’s very important for people in different businesses to be able to exchange information quickly. For scholars and researchers it’s even more crucial than for others. If they know foreign languages, they can read publications in magazines and on the Internet and be well-informed about the most recent discoveries of their colleagues in other countries.

Speaker D. I know lots of people who started learning languages at a very mature age. They say it’s fun and I agree with them. I’m taking an Italian course at the moment and I enjoy every minute in our classroom. We play linguistic games, sing songs and ...we talk about everything. It’s like getting back to school again. Besides, I’ve got new friends there.

Speaker E. I can’t understand why people fuss so much about foreign languages. Nowadays they are getting even less important than they used to be. All good films and books are translated by professional interpreters. TV broadcasts programmes in different languages too, so you can choose your language in the language option mode. And there are all kinds of programmes that can translate any text for you in seconds.