Languages for the Future Conference 2022
Sixth Form, Senior School, Alumnae, Languages
Last Tuesday was the second year of the Languages for the Future Conference, and what an enriching experience it was. Thanks to the wonders of technology, we were able to have speakers, all former RHS students, both online via Teams and in person, able to share their journeys of language learning with us. To accompany it all were of course some sweet treats from the various countries where the languages taught at RHS are spoken, and mocktails.
Our first speaker was Tara Williams, who is currently a first year studying German at the University of Oxford. As it is her first year, Tara lets us know the truth about what the shift between school and university is really like! She also provided us with an important understanding of how language degrees can vary greatly in content depending on where you study. Some courses will be more business focused, and some more literature and philosophy focused (what Tara is studying). She also described the all-important third year abroad, and how there is so much choice there too; you can teach, get a job or study another subject at a university.
Our second speaker was Marigold Whitaker, also a first-year undergraduate at Oxford studying Chinese. A key lesson I took from Marigold was that the benefits of learning of learning a language, as well as increased knowledge, are the skills gained, such as determination, resilience and dedication. She also gave us a couple recommendations of websites to have a look at to help our own learning, and she mentioned the “absorption” technique: watching media in the language you are trying to learn. Even just passively listening to something can develop your ear for that language, and you might even pick up on a new word or two.
We next heard from Leah Knight. She has been an RHS alumna since 2012, and via Teams we were able to speak to her all the way from Cochabamba, Bolivia, where she is currently based. Her story allowed us to see what the next steps after education look like. Leah works in education, and she has also co-founded a health and wellness project. One very interesting point Leah made is that she doesn’t think she would have co-founded that project had she been somewhere else, perhaps here in England. It really is fascinating thinking about how a change of environment can shift your perspective so much.
After Leah spoke Saskia Karakusevic, who is now a second-year student at the University of Bristol studying French. The thing I think people sometimes forget about is that some people don’t know what they want to do after school, and that is completely fine. Saskia was in that boat, and so she took a gap year where she spent 6 months at a language school in Montpellier, in the south of France. Along with the lovely weather, she took some time to understand where she wanted to go next, which led to her pursuing her degree. However, Saskia is also very passionate about art which might form part of her future, which just goes to show that a language degree doesn’t just mean becoming a translator or a teacher, but is adaptable and can be applied to almost any job.
To end was Olivia Latimer. She is studying Spanish and Politics at the University of Edinburgh. Olivia only started learning languages in Year 7, when she joined this school, which I think is a point of reassurance for those who are the same. She is also a great example of taking things step by step. She mentioned going through KS3 and GCSE years with no real thought about what languages mean to her. She then went on a school trip to Alicante, where her passion sparked, convincing her to continue Spanish into A-Level and then at university, along with Politics. Doing two subjects for a degree does just show that languages don’t have to be this daunting thing you have to devote your life to for mastery, but a gateway into a world that you can navigate with an open mind and a clear view.
The Languages for the Future Conference was an extremely inspiring and informative event which gave the linguists of RHS a goal to aim towards in the future. Perhaps in a few years’ time we’ll see some of those sat in the audience up on stage retelling their stories.
Finally, a big thank you must go to Miss Cossey for organising this event, and a continued thanks to the entire RHSB Languages Department for their commitment always to share the treasure of communication and linguistics with us.
By Kashuf Rehman (Year 10)
