News

“En Espanol, s’il vous plait…”

French, Spanish high school students immersed in languages

By Nick McCrea

Posted on April 07, 2008, at 12:00 a.m.

With dozens of her peers gathered around, Brewer High School junior Shirley Valley dressed up in a silver robot costume and sang Styx’s “Mr. Roboto” in French.

Valley said it was easier to do than one might think because everyone was there for the same reason – to learn about and practice foreign language and culture.

Nearly 90 high school students from Hampden, Dover-Foxcroft, Hermon, Bucksport and Brewer came to The University of Maine on Wednesday for a French and Spanish language immersion day. Students participated in activities from improvising skits using a bag of props, to poetry and rap in their foreign tongues.

“The last time we held this sort of event was before most of you were born,” French professor Jane Smith said to the group, which met in Little Hall before splitting into groups for the day. The last immersion day at the university happened about 20 years ago, according to Smith.

She hoped students would leave with “a tired mouth from having spoken French or Spanish all day and, of course, newfound knowledge of cultures.”

This cultural exposure was one of the main focuses of the day.

“Anytime you get exposure to culture in Maine it’s a big ‘hooray’ in my opinion,” said Christine Reynolds, a Spanish student from Hermon High School.

The most popular event of the day was dancing. The students learned the tango, salsa and the French-Canadian style Quebecoise.

Morgan McLean, a Hampden Academy sophomore, said the dancing was “energetic, and everyone got up on their feet and had a good time.”

“Rather than hands-on, it’s feet-on practice that teaches something about these cultures,” Smith said.

The students participated in a human scavenger hunt to begin the day. They bustled about the room trying to find people who fit criteria listed on a sheet of paper in French or Spanish. Other activities included a sing-along with guitar accompaniment from UMaine professors.

Organizers said the immersion day was important because it exposed Maine teens to culture they are not used to experiencing, but will see more and more of as they get older.

“We’ve all heard that the world is shrinking,” said Jeff Hecker, interim Dean for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. “It’s completely true. Borders are shrinking.”

Hecker said the university is the ideal place for students to adjust to the increasing cultural changes in American society.

“It’s extremely important to know how to communicate and be a part of this democratic institution and society,” Hecker said.

UMaine’s Department of Modern Language and Classics and the Foreign Languages Association of Maine sponsored the event. Smith said the groups plan on holding the immersion day next year and hopes it will become an annual event.

Smith said Maine students should be exposed to this type of cultural learning experience more often.

“We hope it will serve as a model for others around the state,” Smith said.

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