The 187 member countries of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) adopted November 17 a resolution calling for the strengthening of foreign language training besides English for high school students.

Initiated by Ecuador and Guatemala, the resolution is aimed at facilitating communication between peoples and preserving the linguistic and cultural heritage of all countries.

The resolution said that the "globalization of communication" could threaten the linguistic diversity of the world and result in the use of one single language (English) by all and a marginalization of other major languages.

It said that the English language itself is threatened with "being divided into many dialects and a declination in syntax, lexicology and phonetics."

It suggested that high schools open at least a second foreign language course to enable students to speak three languages. (Xinhua)