Celebrating Mother Tongues

The World Languages, EAL and Thai Departments celebrated Mother Tongue Languages Day with activities focused on developing global citizenship. This includes raising awareness of the variety of languages spoken throughout the world, recognising that other students in school may speak different languages, understanding what “mother tongue” means, learning how some languages are endangered (43% of languages spoken in the world!), understanding why it is important to protect such languages and recognising the significance of learning other languages. Students were also encouraged to think about how their mother tongue shapes the way that they think and their perspective of the world.

Students were provided with a Language Passport that they had stamped upon the completion of each activity. In the Language Passport, students listed their mother tongue, languages they can speak, languages they can understand, languages they are learning and other facts about language learning. As languages are vehicles of our cultures, collective memories and values, it is vital that students celebrate the languages that are important to their heritage. As an essential component of identity, languages also emphasise diversity, an important aspect of global citizenship. How many languages are spoken at Bangkok Patana? Watch the video below to find out!