International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on February 21. First announced by UNESCO in November 1999, it came up in tribute to the Language Movement done by the Bangladeshis (then East Pakistan) on February 21, 1952. The students of the University of Dhaka, with the support of the general public, arranged massive rallies and meetings. In February 1952, police opened fire on rallies. As a result, many students died with hundreds of others injured. This is one of the very rare incidents in history, where people had to sacrifice their lives for their mother tongue.
This event was the topic for discussion during the second meeting of the Russian Speaking Club “GURU”. The experts of the Russian Language were Ilona Antipova and Alesya Pechyorskaya, the lecturers of the Department of Slavonic Philology. They started the lesson with an unusual greeting. They showed the video with people from different countries saying “Hello!” in 50 languages. The students said “Hello!” and raised their hands when hearing the word in their native language. You can talk about the uniqueness of every language and its importance for a long time, or you can simply say to a person “Hello!” in his native language to make him happy.
Then the students were divided into three teams that played a fascinating game and fans, who observed it.
The students participated in different competitions the main purpose of which was to increase students’ vocabulary, practice Russian grammar, improve skills of listening with understanding, get acquainted with each other and just have fun. Besides, the fans were also involved in the game, so we can say that nobody was left to be bored.
The “Explain Unusual Things” Competition where people tried to guess what function the object performed entertained not only the students but also the jury and the audience.
The “Improvisation” Contest revealed the most artistic and creative guests of the evening, among whom were team members, audience and teachers. At the end of the meeting, our moderators pointed out the most intelligent and successful team. After that, while having a cup of tea in a warm atmosphere, our guests could share their impression of the evening.
Besides, everyone could quote their favorite lines in their native language to the camera under the “My Native Language” programme.
The “GURU” Speaking Club moderators express their deepest gratitude to the administration of the dormitory № 6 for the hospitality. They are also thankful to the student' video studio "Konspekt" for taking the video of the students participating in the “My Native Language” programme!
See you next time!
Russian Speaking Club GURU!