How and when learning a new language helps you
For All Ages
Learning a language at any age makes your brain grow.1 So language-learning provides a lifetime of benefits. You might not be surprised that people who know more than one language do better academically, and have an advantage in seeking jobs. But did you know that language-learning keeps our minds healthy even into old age? See more details below on the benefits of learning another language at each life stage.
Test Scores
Bilingual students do better on standardized tests in math, reading, and vocabulary.2
Life Skills
Bilingual children develop superior attention, mental flexibility,3 and memory.4
Cognition
Bilingual students outperform monolingual students in forming scientific hypotheses.5
College Success
High school students who study languages do better academically in college.6
Higher Earnings
The additional lifetime earnings of a bilingual worker can be as much as $128,000.7
Employability
88% of job recruiters say speaking more than one language is critical to business success.8
Longevity
Onset of Alzheimer’s disease is delayed by 4–5 years in bilingual adults.9
Healthier Brain
Bilingual adults who get Alzheimer’s disease suffer less brain damage.10
Better Recovery
Bilingual adults are twice as likely to retain full brain function after a stroke.11
1www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121008082953.htm
2www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/10/more-languages-better-brain/381193/
3www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26402219
4www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26712798
5www.actfl.org/advocacy/what-the-research-shows/studies-supporting#hypothesize
6www.actfl.org/advocacy/what-the-research-shows/studies-supporting#collegeperformance
7www.economist.com/node/21598844?fsrc=scn/tw/te/bl/ed/languagestudywhatisaforeignlanguageworth
8www.monster.com/career-advice/article/value-of-spanish-in-workplace
10www.theguardian.com/technology/2011/jun/12/ellen-bialystok-bilingual-brains-more-healthy
11www.livescience.com/52860-bilingual-language-stroke-recovery.html