The problem with this view is that foreign language education isn't about the language per se (although that's a bonus if you manage to get good), it's about providing a vehicle for understanding history and culture in context.

Latin is a favorite punching bag in this discussion, and I don't want to argue about the practical benefit of _speaking_ Latin right now. But learning to _read_ Latin is learning how to deal with long, difficult, and poorly defined problems---skills that translate (no pun intended) to almost any field.