Latin 'still an important subject'

December 01 2010

Latin may be an ancient language, but it is still an important subject and should be offered more widely in state schools.

This is according to schools minister Nick Gibb, who said that learning Latin when he was younger helped to equip him for life.

"The English we speak today descends in part from the Vulgar Latin spoken by workers, merchants and legionaries. English is so riddled with exceptions to the rule that we need Latin to bring sense, order and structure to grammar," he explained.

Mr Gibb said schools should not be forced to choose between offering Latin and a modern language.

"Learning an ancient language equips you to learn a modern language and vice versa," he added.

Government figures show that less than 3,000 state secondary school pupils sat a Latin GCSE exam this year.

More than 70 per cent of entries came from the independent sector.

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