The following chart shows the percentage of Canadian students learning several different second languages in high school over a given period

IELTS Writing Task 1

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The following chart shows the percentage of Canadian students learning several different second languages in high school over a given period. Report the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

The line chart illustrates the proportion of Canadian high school students learning six different second languages—French, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, German, and other languages—between 2006 and 2014. The Y-axis represents the percentage of students learning each language, ranging from 0% to 35% in increments of 5%.

Overview

At first glance, it is clear that the popularity of these languages fluctuated over the eight-year period. French, Spanish, and Japanese were the most commonly studied second languages, whereas Chinese, German, and other languages attracted fewer students overall.

Analysis

French consistently remained the most popular second language, varying between 27% and 33%, with an average of around 30%. Japanese, initially almost as popular as French at approximately 27% in 2006, gradually declined over the period to only 18% in 2014. By contrast, Spanish saw a steady increase in popularity: around one-fifth of students studied it in 2006, and between 2009 and 2010 it surpassed Japanese.

By 2011, roughly a quarter of students were learning Spanish. German, Chinese, and other languages accounted for between 2% and 15% of students. During this period, German’s popularity declined, while Chinese gained momentum and increased significantly.