Everyone Has a Talent for Languages. The Myth That People Do Not Is Widening the Social Gap, Warns Dr Kateřina Chládková

The argument that some children lack a talent for foreign languages is, based on research, a myth. Psycholinguist Dr Kateřina Chládková from the Faculty of Arts, Charles University, and CoRe’s Research Project 3 (Conflict in Communication) points out in the Reparát podcast on Czech Radio Plus that the human brain is limited only by time, not by capacity. The evidence are children abroad who routinely master several languages.

In her view, the Czech Ministry of Education’s planned measures to restrict the teaching of a second language in primary schools are, therefore, a missed opportunity. The aim of teaching should not be rote learning, but broadening horizons. Moreover, the absence of such teaching unnecessarily widens the social gap in society.