Press Release: Eurobarometer: 98% say language learning is good for their children, but tests highlight skills gap

According to a June 2012 Eurobarometer opinion poll on EU citizens' attitudes towards multilingualism and foreign language learning, almost nine out of ten EU citizens believed that the ability to speak foreign languages is very useful and 98% said that mastering languages would be good for the future of their children.

However, a separate European Commission study, the first European Survey on Language Competences, highlights that there is a gap between aspirations and reality when it comes to foreign language skills in practice: tests carried out among teenage pupils in 14 European countries show that only 42% are competent in their first foreign language and just 25% in their second.