It really depends on the location- where I come from It’s pretty common to find adults who are not fluent- some people are just not good at learning a new language, and some may not pick it up because they are not so exposed to it. Sorry I can’t give you actual numbers or statistics, but considering that there are several shuls where announcements and droshos are in English, I would assume a large number are not comfortable with Hebrew. The large critical mass of English speakers makes it easier for those who don’t know Hebrew to function, but it doesn’t mean that there won’t be situations where they will need Hebrew and be disadvantaged without it. For example, I was at a parents-teacher meeting at my kid’s preschool. Lots of mothers chatting in English. Some were translating the teacher’s instructions to another mother. But when the teacher talked for an hour in rapid Hebrew about child development and what the goals were for the year, I am sure this woman was completely lost. Which means that the child is losing out because the mother cannot be as involved in her education.
I would recommend that the family in question try to learn the language as best as they can, even if they don’t know it now. It will definitely make it easier to adapt to a new country.
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