Re: Umlauts (was Re: Elves and Ill Bethisad)

Quoting Muke Tever <hotblack@...>:

> >> Over the years, I've become amazed at the number of
> >> people who have a four-year college degree, but have
> >> never taken as much as one semester of a foreign
> >> language in either college or high school. Invariably
> >> they believe that learning another language simply
> >> consists of memorizing long lists of corresponding
> >> words with no thought that the grammars might be
> >> different.
> >
> > Really? Here (Victoria Australia) it's compulsory to do a foreign
> > language for some of secondary school (and I think all of primary
> > school, I haven't met anyone who didn't).
>
> Where I went to university I wasnt allowed to take language courses
> because I had had courses in high school within four years.
>
> Rather, I was allowed, but credit would not be given me for them.
> The high school did require two classes' worth, though.
Lemme see ... I've had six years of English in elementary school (which is year
1-9 in Sweden), plus two years in high school. Then the years of German in
elementary, two in high school and two at Uni. Add one little Uni course in
English I only did an exam in, and a four-week Uni course in German here in
Germany.

Now, most people in Sweden don't do any language at Uni level, but the rest is
the norm. You can, of course, exchange German for French or Spanish (or
possibly something more exotic if you've got a school which offers it), or, but
this is really only recommended for underachivers and so carries a certain
stigma, for extra tuition in English or Swedish.

                                                   Andreas