American students should be required to learn a second language; CLEP exam

I'm studying to take the College Composition CLEP exam. I'm not sure how my writing is though I know I definitely need to work on getting my essays done within the time limit...

Anyway, I would be super grateful if y'all could read my essay and give me some tips for improvement. Thanks!
My essay prompt: Should American students be required to learn a second language?
The essay:
Visit the five largest cities in the United states
and your ears will hear the sound of many foreign languages
being spoken. The English language may dominate the USA, but
runners up Spanish, French, Mandarin, and a myriad of other
languages are not far behind in their number of speakers. Since
the USA is so diverse in ethnicity and culture, American students should be required to learn a second language.
Learning a second language allows students to explore the
country of the language's origins and also plays a part in
helping students achieve all around academic success.

When America was first settled, it had many different
countries represented in the various colonies and settlements.
Beside the languages brought by the different countries, there were
many diverse cultures being rooted in the New World.
The people who left the country of their birth to make a new life had
not forgotten the memories of the Old World. They passed from
generation to generation special traditions and heirlooms that
are unique to the country they once called their home. These
amazing cultures can also be experienced by others and learning
a second language can give a student the opportunity to do so. When a
student learns a second language, they are also able to study the country
where the language originated.

Learning a second language not only opens doors for students to
learn about other countries, but also helps them to excel in other areas
of school. The results of a recent study display how academic success and
the ability to speak multiple languages are related. In the study, bilingual
students scored higher than monolingual students in an academic test, with
multilingual students' scores exceeding those of the bilingual students.

Learning a second language benefits all areas of a student's life.
Being able to communicate with speakers of other languages paves the way
to new friendships and career opportunities. It broadens students'
knowledge in geography and culture and helps them to excel in the classroom.
With all the benefits considered, American students should be required to
learn a second language.

I am a beginner to the writing things, which menas that I am not sure if I am right.
So, just take my advise as a reference. If I made a mistake and mislead you I am really sorry.


Here, I think you can try to define the thing that you want to talk at first, then give the example.


You can try to use this sentence as the first sentence of this paragraph.
It will make your position more clear.(At least to me)

Wish you good luck =)

Well, learning a second language helps a student to broaden his perspectives and that has a great value for society. This is the key thing that promotes a person to respect other cultures, values, beliefs and appreciate co-existence. This fact would certainly be instrumental in bringing peace and harmony to the world. I wish you stressed this point somewhere in your essay.

Good luck!