Say 'Ciao' to foreign language

With the halfway point of the semester looming, students across campus start settling into their courses and begin preparation for exams and mid-terms.
As I prepare for my first exam in Italian 101 in about a week, I can't seem to relinquish this feeling of anger in regards to the college system as a whole. I mean, I am a communication major with a focus on journalism and I have to waste my time learning how to conjugate verbs that I will never again use, or even think about, in a language I don't have any experience in.
These frustrations constantly lead me to the ultimate question of what college is all about. This should be a time where we zero in on our goals and strengthen every area of expertise we will need for 'the real world,' but we are sidetracked by all of these general requirements that are, more often than not, forgotten 10 minutes after taking the final exam.
This article is in no way meant as a blow to people in foreign language fields, because I have the utmost respect for my teacher and the people who choose to study these languages. But I feel as though my time would be better spent in a class that will further my English writing skills and help me get more experience in the field that I am going into.
There is just way too much emphasis put on well-rounded students in today's society. Maybe if people spent more time entrenched in their field of study when attending college, we wouldn't have to deal with so much incompetency in the work force.
With all this said, I am not naïve enough to think money has nothing to do with this scam. Every college wants to get every last cent out of every last student and the more general education classes they can cram into a major, the better.
What really gets me is that an argument can be made for history, science and mathematics to a certain extent, but how can requiring a second language be so important?
People rarely stick with these languages long enough to have a solid base for speaking it or even understanding the language. I bet if you polled a random group of 100 college graduates, 90 percent of them wouldn't be able to speak a sentence of the foreign language they studied in college.
At least I can validate the reasoning behind some courses. Some of the time, courses may offer a new outlook on a subject that a person may have never thought of adding to his or her education. However, the only time I will ever need to speak another language is if I go on vacation, and even then it will only be for a week.
I just think foreign languages should be optional to students instead of forcing it down our throats. But then again, who am I kidding? Anything that deals with common sense isn't a crowd favorite when it comes to higher education – especially when it cuts into the bottom line.

E-mail: matt.parrino@ubspectrum.com