Which should I choose?
The World of Chinese
Why study Chinese?
 1/5 of the world's population lives in China.
Why study Chinese?
 Mandarin Chinese is the native language of over 1
billion people, making it the most widely spoken
first language in the world.
Why study Chinese?
 In addition to Taiwan and
Hong Kong,
countries with large overseas
Chinese populations include
Indonesia, the Philippines,
Thailand, Singapore, and
Malaysia.
 Speaking Mandarin gives
you a tool to do business
with them.
Why study Chinese?

China is one of
the world’s
oldest and
richest
continuous
cultures, over
5000 years old.
Why study Chinese?
1. China has become one of the largest trading partners
with the US.
2. Over 16,000 US companies sell
products in China.
3. Trade is not only from China to the US, but also the
other way. ($41.8 Billion in 2006)
Why study Chinese?
Knowledge of Chinese is beneficial when considering
employment in the following areas:
International Business, Banking and Law
Finance
Trade
Diplomacy
Academics
News Media
Travel
Chinese
is easy to
learn!
The World of French
Why study French?
 More than 200 million people speak French on five
continents.
www.aatfri.com
Why study French?
 French is the international
language of cooking,
fashion, theatre, the visual
arts, dance and architecture.
 A knowledge of French offers
access to great works of
literature, as well as films
and songs, in the original
French.
www.aatfri.com
Why study French?
 France is the world’s
number-one tourist
destination and attracts
more than 70 million
visitors a year.
A little French makes it
so much more enjoyable
to visit Paris and all the
regions of France.
www.aatfri.com
Why study French?
 French is both a
working language and
an official language of
the United Nations, the
European Union,
UNESCO, NATO, the
International Olympic
Committee, the
International Red Cross
and international
courts.
www.aatfri.com
Why study French?
 The Francophonie, the international organization of French-
speaking countries, comprises 68 states and governments.
www.aatfri.com
More facts about French…
 French is the second most widely learned
foreign language after English, and the ninth
most widely spoken language in the world.
 French is also the only language, alongside
English, that is taught in every country in
the world.
www.aatfri.com
Why study French?
Knowledge of French is beneficial when considering
employment in the following areas:
Aeronautics and Telecommunications
Literature and Drama
International Business, Banking and Law
Service industries
Math, Engineering, Computer Science
Culinary Arts
Medical and Scientific Research
Fashion, Art, Music study
Pourquoi
Take
French
The World of Spanish
Why study Spanish?
 There are over
328 million
Spanish
speakers
worldwide
(www.aatsp.org)
Why study Spanish?
 In the US, it is spoken by some 35 million people or around
10% of the US population. This makes the US home to the
fourth largest Spanish-speaking population in the world.
(www.aatsp.org)
Why study Spanish?
 Spanish is the fourth
most widely
geographically used
language in the
world, spanning 44
countries.
 It is the official
language of 21
countries.
(www.aatsp.org)
Why study Spanish?
 It is the third most
commonly used
language on the
Internet (after English
and Chinese).
(www.aatsp.org)
Why study Spanish?
 68.8% of high
school students
and 52.2% of postsecondary
students
with world
language
programs choose
to study Spanish.
(www.aatsp.org)
More facts about Spanish…
 It serves as an official language of the United
Nations, the European Union, World Trade
Organization, and North American Free Trade
Agreement.
 Hispanic citizens make up 15.4% of the US
population and the second largest ethnic group.
There are more than 5,000 elected US officials who
are of Latino/Hispanic origin.
(www.aatsp.org)
Why study Spanish?
Knowledge of Spanish is beneficial for the following
career choices:
Law Enforcement
Politics and Public Relations
Public Services
Communications in Radio and Television
Nursing and Social Work
Hotel and Restaurant Management
Pan-American Business and Finance
Legal and Business Services
French vs. Spanish
 The common perception that Spanish is the easiest
foreign language is in reality a myth.
 All languages require a commitment to daily study
and to the learning of new vocabulary and
language concepts.
 Spanish probably got its reputation as the “easiest”
language because it has fewer pronunciation rules
than some other languages.
(Comparison of language choices, Bull Peche, National Bulletin, AATF)
French vs. Spanish
 Therefore, if one learns the pronunciation rules and
applies them, it may be easier to pronounce Spanish
than French, for example.
However, there is more to a language than its
pronunciation…
(Comparison of language choices, Bull Peche, National Bulletin, AATF)
French vs. Spanish
FRENCH
SPANISH
VOCABULARY
Less difficult; more words
that are similar to English
More difficult; fewer
words that are similar
to English due to Arabic
influence
GRAMMAR
Less difficult; especially
with past and subjunctive
More difficult; especially
with past & subjunctive;
2 verbs for “to be”
PRONUNCIATION
More difficult; more
exceptions to the rule;
some sounds that don’t
exist in English
Less difficult; more
phonetic; fewer sounds
that don’t exist in English
(Comparison of language choices, Bull Peche, National Bulletin, AATF)
Which will you choose?
Language Selection Forms
 Friday, February 15, 2013
 Language Selection Forms due back to
Guidance Counselors
THANK YOU!