I took two years of German in high school (40+ years ago!). I think I slept through most of the second year. Both my sons studied German in school and actually walked away with a pretty good grasp of the language. Kids these days! We had two exchange students from Germany stay with us, two different school years. Remarkably, some of my prehistoric German was awakened by their presence. Maybe I learn better when I'm resting!
My wife and I visited and stayed with the family of the first student in 2012, for over a week. Their grasp of the English language was far greater than mine of German. It was kind of embarrassing, but they were very nice about it. They actually treated me to a cab ride on the Harz meter gauge line. The crew spoke no English and seemed a bit annoyed with the language barrier, but they put that 2-10-2T through the paces like a couple of pros, which they were!
In looking at the English language, it is amazing how much is derived from German. Probably more so than any other language.