Why does Princeton require its students to "gain proficiency" in a foreign language? For the most part, such a requirement is a holdover from a different era, from a time when one had to know French to be a successful diplomat or German to be able to read the most notable physics journals. Thankfully, for those of us who could never master le subjonctif, English is the dominant language in nearly all fields of scientific endeavor, business and diplomacy and is generally recognized as the de facto standard for international communication. Requiring proficiency in a foreign language as a prerequisite to graduation is an unnecessary source of aggravation to many students and is tangential to Princeton's present-day goals as an institution.
Successful fulfillment of the foreign language requirement can take a student up to four semesters of coursework. Moreover, introductory language classes are notoriously demanding. Most meet four or five times a week (including the loathsome 9 a.m. Friday slot) and entail a significant investment of time on the part of the student. But for what purpose?
Princeton can no longer truthfully maintain that knowledge of a foreign language is necessary for post-graduation success. Perhaps some would argue that the University ought to inspire us to become well-rounded individuals. After all, the general distribution requirements currently in place make us leave our comfort zones and explore disciplines that we might otherwise have avoided. Yet, if that's the case, why demand proficiency in a foreign language? Requiring that students achieve proficiency means that the language courses offered will be work-intensive and generally unenjoyable for the students. The only thing that most people's introductory language experience inspires, at least among those who are forced into language courses by the requirement, is a disdain for that language and an aversion to future study in that field.
There are a number of other reasons that make a foreign language proficiency requirement a poor policy for the University to have. First, the optimal period to learn a foreign language is during childhood, before the brain has fully developed. It can be very difficult for a college-age student, with a more mature brain, to become fluent in a new language. On top of that, those who are obligated to study a foreign language are unlikely to explore language-immersion options and will soon lose any proficiency that they gain. But the true problem here is that nothing short of genuine fluency confers any real benefit to that individual. Being "a little bit fluent in Arabic" is not a marketable skill nor is it useful in day-today life. Why should the University require such a waste of a student's limited time here?
I believe that Princeton ought to abolish its foreign language proficiency requirement. If President Tilghman deems that some value can be derived from producing well-rounded students, then we ought to get rid of the notion of proficiency and instead give students who have no desire to learn a new language the same options that an engineer has when choosing an LA to take. The engineer can choose between everything from Clapping for Credit to Contemporary Literary Theory and, out of that large pool of possibilities, he can find a subject that will interest him with a work requirement that he can manage. The University could achieve a similar end in the language departments by diversifying the 100-level course offerings and replacing the foreign language proficiency requirement with a "Foreign Cultures" distribution requirement. While maintaining a fast track program to fluency for those who want it, the University could offer more courses focusing on a society's history and culture and on less intensive but more useful language classes like Conversational Spanish for Doctors. This would be a perfectly reasonable step for the University to take to conform to the realities of the modern world and to better allow its students to exercise their free will in determining their path of study at Princeton. Jason Sheltzer is a sophomore from St. Davids, Pennsylvania. He can be reached at sheltzer@princeton.edu.
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Faculty hear proposal to shave a week off winter break starting 2027
Serin Kayserilioglu and Meghana VeldhuisAt the March 2 faculty meeting, the Faculty Committee on Classrooms and Schedule presented a proposal that would shorten winter break from six weeks to five weeks starting in the 2027-28 academic year.
At the March 2 faculty meeting, the Faculty Committee on Classrooms and Schedule presented a proposal that would shorten winter break from six weeks to five weeks starting in the 2027-28 academic year.