Now we are ready to start.

Speaker A. Learning a foreign language at school was a nightmare I will never forget. I don't know what's wrong with me, maybe I'm just not talented enough, but I could never master either good pronunciation or grammar in a foreign language. I took Spanish in high school. It was a disaster. Everyone laughed at my pronunciation, and I felt too shy to even open my mouth. I knew that whatever I said would sound funny to everyone else. I was so discouraged that I stopped even trying.

Speaker B. I'm learning German and I find its grammar pretty easy. I like watching videos and reading books in German. The only thing that is difficult for me is speaking. You need practice to speak a foreign language well. For that you need a friend or a teacher who is a native speaker. I've never had either. However, everything changed when I started using Chat GPT as somebody to talk to. With AI I'm no afraid of making mistakes and my ability to speak German has rocketed!

Speaker C. I see so many people really proud of themselves for speaking a foreign language. I just don't understand why a native English speaker would need to learn any other language. I can see why speakers of other languages learn English  — it has become a global language recently like Latin was in the Middle Ages, and later French. But for English speakers? The whole world can understand you, so why even bother and waste so much precious time on something pointless?

Speaker D. In my family we have always spoken two languages, so I'm completely bilingual. I think this is the best gift life  — and my family!  — have given me. Being bilingual is not just the ability to speak two languages. It allows you to look at the world from two different perspectives. It makes you more open-⁠minded and more tolerant. It lets you understand how different points of view of different people can be.

Speaker E. I’m a polyglot. Yes, I'm one of those strange people who learn foreign languages for pleasure, while many consider it a torture, especially at school. Learning many foreign languages has always been my ambition. I honestly believe that it develops your brain so much better than anything else  — better than math or chess! Grasping completely different grammar and phonetic systems is particularly good for the brain.

Speaker F. When I was growing up, my parents always told me that learning a foreign language was an essential part of education. They were certain that the ability to read books in the original language made the whole reading process much more enjoyable. Well, I've tried learning French and I agree that any translation makes books  — or films  — worse. However, even after so many years of studying I still struggle when I read a book in French, so I'd rather read a good translation.