AIS Student Reflects On Language Learning

At the recent Global Language Convention, which featured a student panel on Saturday, April 18, seven multi-lingual high school students from metro-Atlanta schools shared with conference attendees the personal impact their language-learning experiences have had on them. Three AIS students formed part of the panel. The following speech was delivered by AIS student, Hannah Shore, grade 11:

Unlike many of you, I wouldn’t be able to tell you when my family first came to the United States. For as long as our family history can indicate, we’ve been here, in Georgia. I did not grow up in a multicultural environment; my parents are American by every criterion, and neither of them speaks another language than English. However, since I began going to school, I have never considered myself only a citizen of Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and this, I believe, is due largely to my background with the French language.

I’ve been learning French since kindergarten, and since then, there has always been a part of me that extends beyond the Georgia state lines. Speaking French has led me to be constantly conscious of just how global, of how vast and varied our world is. In a lot of ways, French has granted me a more international mindset. Perhaps this is because I share a common comprehension and appreciation of the French language with millions of people all around the world, to whom I am therefore connected. On a practical level, it has also opened up a great many possibilities as to where I may go in the future. Having a comfortable knowledge of French ensures that I will be able to find my way, read the newspaper, or make friends in many more countries than I’d be able to with English alone. In short, French has made the distant corners of the world feel as though they are just right around the corner.

On a different note, learning another language has been significant in my life in another way. Language, to me, is fun. I love the way certain French words sound and feel, and with every class, I am growing more and more fond of poetry, theatre, and fiction. Learning French has been a gateway to thought-provoking and entertaining works of art. And, although I can’t explain why, sometimes, it’s simply more fun to talk to a friend or to describe the world in French.

Language in my life has helped open my eyes to the rest of the world, giving me something in common with people of different backgrounds than my own. French is valuable to me on a cultural, a practical, and an artistic level. It has been a lesson with many facets, and the process has always been an amusing one.