Learning foreign languages come with endless benefits. One of the benefits is that it sharpens the mind. Research has found that bilingual adults are less likely to develop dementia than their monolingual counterparts.
Learning your first foreign language can be quite daunting, but subsequent languages can feel a lot easier.
But if you are still not convinced about enrolling in language institutions, such as schools offering Korean courses in Singapore, here are some compelling reasons to learn a new language.
One benefit that is not very obvious is that learning a new language improves tolerance. First, it gives people a unique perspective of doing things. Secondly, it increases the comfort levels of an individual when dealing with situations that they are not familiar with, also known as the tolerance of ambiguity.
- You Gain Cross-Cultural Understanding
To survive in a globalised world, there is a need for you to gain cultural competence. Language improves your cultural competence, as you will be more comfortable with other people and cultures.
Intelligence, in all its different types, is related to adult learning. One form of knowledge is practical intelligence, which is similar to social intelligence because it helps individuals learn about meaningful gestures or social cues from their environment. You’ll be able to learn more from ambiguous clues or signals.
Learning a new language also helps you in analyzing cultural stereotypes, which is a form of understanding culture. Learning a new language takes the form of acquisition of the way of thinking and behaviour in addition to the linguistic structures. With the help of the tutor, learners can critically analyse the stereotypes in regard to food, conversation styles, and appearance of the other culture.
- Ability to Deal with the Unknown
Acquiring a new language, in this case, Korean can increase one’s tolerance of ambiguity. This refers to the comfort level one operates in. A person with a high tolerance of uncertainty is more comfortable in an unfamiliar situation than one without any tolerance. Tolerance of ambiguity is enhanced when more than one foreign language is involved.
A person with high tolerance of ambiguity does not feel uncomfortable when they come across a word they are not familiar with in the course of conversation. Interrupting the conversation to look up the meaning of the unknown word would make the conversation boring and probably lose its direction.
- Benefits of Increased Tolerance of Ambiguity
Someone with a high level of tolerance of ambiguity will be less anxious when interacting with people not familiar to them. They become more confident in subsequent language learning experiences and social interactions. It is no surprise that the more experience an individual has in language learning, the more comfortable they are with ambiguity.
Such individuals also tend to be more entrepreneurial, more positive, innovative, and not afraid to take calculated risks.
Conclusion
Given the importance of an improved tolerance to ambiguity after the study of a foreign language, there is no reason why learning institutions would not want to embrace foreign language study. It’s time that people stopped choosing safe options like French, Spanish, and German, and instead, venture into new territories like Korean.
With the development of new economies, other languages are gaining importance, and the dominance of a few languages will only last so long. The economic world is growing in places where different languages are spoken, and these include Korean, Chinese, Hindu, and Urdu. Institutions need to consider offering what is known as the languages of the future, to improve tolerance of the learners. Sign up for a Korean class in Singapore and set yourself for success.
