Reply to S/O what''s the point of studying Mandarin?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote]Seems like there have been several threads recently about elementary school kids taking Mandarin or other Chinese dialects.

I'm having a hard time understanding why anyone would want to do that unless they have some family or cultural connection to China. It just doesn't seem like a particularly useful language to know unless you plan to live there some day. It'll never be the language of business, for instance. So, what's the appeal, exactly?[/quote]

Why study French, German, or Spanish for that matter?  Doesn't seem particularly useful to know.[/quote]

Well, French is a language of diplomacy.

Mandarin will only ever be used in China. Yes, it's a huge market -- [b]but like I said, is usefulness is limited[/b],unless you're going to go live and work there.[/quote]

this is so dumb and ill-informed. [b]How many people right in this area speak Mandarin on a daily basis? - I know dozens of them[/b]. [/quote]

But I think that reflects the field you're in and the people you know - it's anecdotal.  I could make the same argument, to the opposite point.  I know one person in this area who uses Mandarin on a regular basis.  One.  But Asia isn't my focus, and business isn't my field.  The people I know out of this area who speak Mandarin live in CA (in an area where there is a lot of opportunity to use it) or mainland China.  And to echo a PP, friends in HK speak Cantonese, not Mandarin, and work in English.  I think the focus here on having kids learn Mandarin is more about the parents feeling their kids need an "edge".  [/quote]

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