By Stella Henretta
Every Monday evening from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., students, staff and alumni at the University of Maryland head down to the multipurpose room in St. Mary’s Hall to attend the Language House’s weekly Language Chat sessions — an opportunity for students to connect and practice speaking their chosen language with their peers.
The chats are organized and run by the Language House with support from mentors, faculty liaisons and the School of Languages, Literatures and Cultures. With tables set up throughout the rooms, students can choose their desired language and join those studying it.
The meetings offer a variety of languages: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish, among others. Some, like American Sign Language, depend on semesterly interest and capacity.
“The Language Chats complement what happens in the classroom by giving participants a space to use their languages in real conversations with a wide variety of speakers,” Marilyn Matar, an associate clinical professor at the School of Languages who oversees the organization of the weekly meetings, said. “Regular attendance helps students feel more confident and engaged, which naturally supports their academic work and language growth.”
The chats became a community space that unites faculty, exchange students, heritage speakers and students from different majors. Friendships form across languages, and many participants find conversation partners or even collaborators for other projects in the sessions.
Alice Fisher, a senior Persian studies, government and politics and international relations major, said that the Language House fosters multilingual connections beyond basic studies.
“The language meetings have exposed me to so many cultures and languages and have even inspired me to learn Spanish again,” Fisher said.
Sohrab Hashemian, a senior Persian studies major, stressed that language meetings accept everyone, regardless of experience or skill.
“The intertwining of cultures provides a unique experience for community members as a whole, regardless of background, to tie their roots from language and tradition into blooming social relationships with one another,” Hashemian said.
Matar is the director of the Language House, a living-learning program that hosts weekly chats and focuses on providing an immersive environment for students of languages, whether they are majoring or minoring in them or just taking a class.
Junior international relations major Ken Caballero, who primarily studies French at the Language House, shares the benefits of being involved in the community.
“It’s been amazing to have access to the cluster meetings, where I get to interact with aspects of the culture that I may miss out on in class, like going to restaurants and trying food of the Francophone world or watching a movie in French with my cluster mates,” Caballero said. “It’s really nice to get to know people with so many different perspectives that also enjoy studying languages.”
The Language House allows members to experience different cultures through genuine interaction. Participants might end up discussing food, music or current events with someone who has lived in another country, studied abroad or grown up speaking that language at home.
“I definitely feel that the time I spend living in the Language House, talking to my roommates in the language, going to language chats together with friends and going to cluster activities enhanced my language learning experience by giving me a safe space to make mistakes and be around people with the same love for languages,” Caballero said. “I think these resources helped me improve my French and Persian a lot quicker than if I had solely been going to class.”
For students who feel intimidated by attending the general Language Chat meetings, Matar reminds them that there are no prerequisites to attending.
“Just stop by once and see what it’s like. You don’t need to be fluent or perfectly confident; you can simply listen, observe and join in when you feel ready,” Matar said. “[The Chats are] meant to be an open and welcoming space, and everyone there shares the same love for languages and the same experience of learning and improving together.”
Featured Image: A sign outside of St. Mary’s Hall, which hosts the Language House’s weekly Language Chat functions. Photo by Miller Rogers-Tetrick.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to clarify that Marilyn Matar is an associate clinical professor at the School of Languages, Literature and Cultures. Previous version: “Marilyn Matar, an assistant clinical professor at the School of Languages who oversees the organization of the weekly meetings, said.” Current version: “Marilyn Matar, an associate clinical professor at the School of Languages who oversees the organization of the weekly meetings, said.”