It is hard as a child to understand the importance of certain things. I think Children in Switzerland are in a unique position to learn a second language. I grew up in an English speaking country in Africa surrounded by Francophone countries and even though my parents tried to encourage me to learn French it was too hard and I checked out. Fast forward to today I am married to a Swiss and probably will live here a long time and as an adult it is so hard learning a new language especially French.If Switzerland is serious about maintaining their national languages then they should encourage kids to speak another language. If not then make English a national language…when I was in Zurich with my husband last year it seemed most people prefered to speak in English than French. I find it funny that when two Swiss people from different regions meet they end up having to speak English in order to communicate