Pupils in the European Union are learning foreign languages at a younger age, even as young as three, while English is learnt by 90 per cent of all European pupils at some stage of their compulsory education, according to a study by the Eurydice Network.

In a statement on November 21 2008, the European Commission said that the study by the Eurydice Network, an information network on education in Europe consisting of 35 national units based in all 31 countries participating in the EU's Lifelong Learning programme, shows growing support for language learning in general education, with more learning of a foreign language at an early age.

The main findings of the study were that teaching of foreign languages starts earlier but the time taught is limited in primary education.

Over the past three decades there has been an increase in early learning of a foreign language as a compulsory subject. In almost all European countries, compulsory learning of a foreign language now begins in primary education.

While in most cases, children learn a foreign language from the age of eight to 10 years of age, in some cases, there is even an earlier start: in all autonomous communities of Spain, and in Belgium's German speaking community, children learn a foreign language from the age of three.

The countries that include at least one foreign language from the first or second year of compulsory primary education are Italy, Luxembourg, Austria, France, Norway, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Estonia, Finland and Sweden.

However, the time devoted to foreign language teaching in primary schools remains limited, in general less than 10 per cent of the total taught time, and varies considerably between countries.

The amount of time spent on language learning is generally greater in lower secondary education than in primary schools.

When it comes to teaching at least two foreign languages from a very early age, not all countries have achieved this yet, but the study demonstrates that in most countries it is already possible for pupils in general secondary education.

In 2006-2007, teaching of a foreign language at school for at least one year was compulsory in all the places studied, except in Ireland and Scotland.

In most countries, about half of the pupils in primary education learn at least one foreign language.

In 13 European countries, English is the mandatory first foreign language. Even when a choice is provided, pupils and their parents tend to favour English, which is now the most widely taught language in primary education. English is learnt by 90 per cent of all European pupils at some stage of their compulsory education.

When a second foreign language is taught, French and German are favoured.

Language learning is often provided in primary education by general teachers. In secondary education, the degree of specialisation of teachers varies greatly from country to country. The majority of countries covered recommend that teachers' education enables future teachers to teach foreign languages but mobility is the exception rather than the rule.

The European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Youth, Jan Figel, said: "Although we register progress, there is still some way to go to give all students the possibility to learn two foreign languages at school: this is the objective that the member states fixed for themselves in Barcelona in 2002. Nevertheless, it is now considered one of the eight key competences for Lifelong Learning that were recommended by the European Council and European Parliament in December 2006."

The European Commissioner for Multilingualism, Leonard Orban said: "Multilingualism is an issue for all of European society. It starts in school and goes much further, as we need to master an increasing number of languages to foster social cohesion and prosperity.

"This is the subject of the recent Commission Communication, Multilingualism: an asset for Europe and a shared commitment, and I welcome the fact that it is endorsed by today's Council Resolution on Multilingualism," Orban said.