International Literacy Day – 8th September: IHS Symposium

On Thursday 8th September the Indian High School, Dubai hosted a Symposium for World Literacy Day exploring the effect and impact language has on our culture. 5 DAIS delegates- Kavya Sinha, Meher Mathur, Aanya Shah, Ria Chawla and Kcavyan Agarwal studying three different second languages - French, Spanish and Hindi – attended the symposium to share their insights and experiences through these languages and the impact it has had on understanding culture and origins.

The keynote address by Dr. Mansoor Al Obeidli, a physician, actor, and entrepreneur, was a segment which highlighted the obstacles we can overcome through languages. Speaking to someone in their own language, he believes, creates a personal connection, and has a significant impact because it makes them feel important and impressed. Moreover, we also understand how learning a language can make you more helpful and inspire others to lend a hand.

There were various Baraza sessions, each representing a language, Latin, Telugu, Hebrew, Sanskrit and Greek. The leaders in each room organized a multitude of engaging activities that imparted knowledge regarding the diversity of languages around the globe, such as kahoot quizzes and languages guessing games based on diction and script, which were followed by profound discussions amongst the delegates.

A great way to get us into the spirit of talking about our languages was the Pre-task. Each of the delegates got to present their given language and it was a great way to learn something new. Along with that, multiple discussions on topics like 'Are languages a barrier or a bridge?' encouraged us to put forward our views and perspectives, encouraging us to pursue Languages in the long run.

To conclude, the conference broadened the horizons of our perspectives as we heard from a multilingual keynote speaker, discussed the significance and uniqueness of languages, explored the nuances and distinctive features of certain languages and brought to light as a community how literacy around the world and communication through languages intersect in the most crucial of ways.