This educational initiative brought international languages to the fingertips and tongue tips of countless university students.
On Feb. 18, the Being Multilingual Is My Superpower event drew a capacity crowd to the Sprague Library’s first-floor reading room. The four-hour field day featured more than 20 foreign language activities and four panels of guest speakers. The seminar was held in celebration of International Mother Languages Day (IMLD).
IMLD is observed on Feb. 21 and is held globally. The purpose is to promote linguistic and cultural diversity. The United Nations (UN) formally recognized the day in 2002.
Dr. Antonella Calarota-Ninman is a professor of Spanish and Latino studies. Ninman is also director of the university’s Center for Latino Heritage and Spanish Language Excellence. Ninman co-organized Being Multilingual Is My Superpower with Dr. Maisa Taha, anthropology professor and co-director of Native American and Indigenous Studies at Montclair State.
The linguistic exhibition is a collaborative endeavor between about 12 university entities. They include the World Languages and Cultures Department and The Humanities At Bloomfield College.
At 11 a.m., the door opened to the table-studded reading room. Within minutes, about 100 people filled the study hall. The keen interest in the event was exemplified by multiple continuous conversations that paused only when it came time for a lecture. People arrived at the linguistic fair individually and in groups. In one case, an entire class from a university course was seen arriving at the bustling scene.
University President Jonathan Koppell pays a visit to Being Multilingual Is My Superpower fair on Feb. 18 in the Sprague Library's first-floor reading room. Photo courtesy of Dr. Antonella Calarota-Ninman
The numerous unique attractions included a Latin American slang wall from the University Office for Hispanic Initiatives. The university linguistics department had a “Do You Know This Proverb In Another Language?” challenge. There was also a Chinese calligraphy stand, a “Guess the Kichwa word” game, and an interactive multilingual word station. The last exercise featured a large flat screen where students translated words between various languages.
Dr. Antonella Calarota-Ninman, director of The Center For Latino Heritage And Spanish Language Excellence. Thomas Boud | The Montclarion
Ninman said the event provided visitors with plenty of opportunities to use their foreign language skills, whether native or studied.
“They can practice, play games, do recordings,” Ninman said. “They can talk about their music and their language, and we have digital walls. We are doing short interviews in their mother languages, so that we can edit one video and show every language here on campus.”
The event also featured a bonus for all attendees, Ninman explained.
“We are giving passports away,” she said, referring to the forum’s souvenir. “So that students can actually take a journey around all the activities and the tables that are in this room, and fill up their passports with activities that they will be doing in the different languages. So, there are, I would say, at least 15 languages represented today.”
Dr. Andrea Dini, Department of World Languages And Cultures Italian professor, tends to the interactive translation wall at the Feb 18 My Language Is My Superpower seminar in the Sprague Library's first floor reading room. Thomas Boud | The Montclarion
Dr. Andrea Dini, an Italian professor, commented on the students’ participation while staffing the translation wall. Dini said he noticed that collegiates were intrigued with discovering the nuances in foreign language translations.
“The more that you talk to them, the more that you see they’re absolutely fascinated by what they can express in different languages,” Dini said.”Because perhaps in your native language, you are more limited. In this other language, you can run the whole gamut. They find the activity fun, but mostly fascinating, I would say.”
"You’re able to speak with people you would wouldn’t otherwise, and that really has been the premier joy of mine throughout this journey of starting to study language and culture and all those kinds of things," said senior Jack McCabe. Thomas Boud | The Montclarion
Among those applauding the Being Multilingual Is My Superpower event is Jack McCabe, a senior with a double major in German and language, and business and culture. McCabe said the foreign language forum groups multiple linguistic experiences in one location.
“You’re able to speak with people you would wouldn’t otherwise, and that really has been the premier joy of mine throughout this journey of starting to study language and culture and all those kinds of things,” McCabe said. “I’ve spoken with someone from Peru, someone who specializes in the Native American indigenous languages, an Ecuadorian woman — [it’s] wonderful.”
McCabe said few other events offer such edifying horizons.
“You would never otherwise speak with those kinds of people,” McCabe said. “Events like this, internationalism, multilingualism and culturism, bring all this together.”
Staffing the entrance at the Feb.18 Being Multilingual Is My Superpower seminar is Dr. Antonella Calarota-Ninman, director of The Center For Latino Heritage And Spanish Language Excellence. Thomas Boud | The Montclarion
