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23 Merchant Taylors’ Prep School Newsletter - 04.10.2017 On the 26th of September, Merchant Taylors’ Prep celebrated the European Day of Languages which happens every year since 2001, as an initiative of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg. Throughout Europe, 800 million Europeans are encouraged to learn more languages, at any age, in and out of school. Being convinced that linguistic diversity is a tool for achieving greater intercultural understanding and a key element in the rich cultural heritage of our continent, the Council of Europe promotes plurilingualism in the whole of Europe. The general objectives of the European Day of Languages are to: • Alert the public to the importance of language learning and diversify the range of languages learned in order to increase plurilingualism and intercultural understanding; • Promote the rich linguistic and cultural diversity of Europe; • Encourage lifelong language learning in and out of school. In 2013, a survey of more than 1,000 UK university graduates showed that 70% of them cannot speak any languages other than English. It also revealed that 14% of them had lost out on a job opportunity because they did not speak another language. In fact, employers are increasingly seeking talent abroad because of the shortage of graduates with a foreign language, according to HR Magazine. Many businesses are global in their very nature but it seems that UK graduates are not always well placed to take advantage of the massive opportunities abroad, for instance in South America or Asia, simply due to their lack of language skills. All young people should therefore be ready to travel, experience different cultures and try to pick up a bit of language from their chosen country. We celebrated the European Day of Languages, and the 300 languages and dialects spoken in London, by running a few activities dedicated to languages i.e. a giant price draw, an Assembly where Houses competed in a ‘Families Fortune’ game, a continental breakfast, various lunchtime screenings of French and Spanish cartoons etc. MTP MFL