In an effort to explore how some of the International English Center鈥檚 (IEC) staff members self-identify, this interview asks questions about identity to Christina Shelton, Administrative Assistant; Conny Karman, Coordinator of Accounting Services; Eriko Yatabe-Waldock, Cultural and Community Programs Manager; and Jackie/Shing Kit Wong, Immigration Specialist/Advisor. Each staff member answered these questions individually, so this interview is a compilation of their responses.
听
Welsh:听 How would you describe your linguistic background and current multi language usage?
Christina:听 I am a native English speaker who studied five years of Spanish in middle school and high school and then moved on to studying Japanese in college. My Spanish is mostly gone, and while my Japanese is not as strong as it used to be, I can still understand quite a bit and feel pretty good in my conversation abilities.
听
Conny:听 I was born in Jakarta, Indonesia. When I was eight years old, I learned English through private tutors. When I was in the middle-high school, English was part of the school program. In Indonesia, it is common for a person to speak more than one dialect. My mom is from West Java where most people speak Sundanese. I can understand Sundanese enough to get by. My dad is from Jakarta. He speaks or has some influence with the Betawi dialect. My parents also speak Dutch. They would speak Dutch when they wanted to say something secret. But it did not last long because I was able to 鈥渄ecipher.鈥�
Now I am a mom of two daughters. I try to speak Indonesian with my daughters, hoping they will be a bilingual. It is really hard because if I speak in Indonesian, they will answer in English.
I was told that my English has an Indonesian accent. When I go to Indonesia and speak Indonesian, my friend thinks my Indonesian sounds weird. I feel that I do not belong to either world. 听
听
Eriko:听 My first language is Japanese, but our school started English classes in 2nd grade in a Language Lab environment. I predominantly learned English through listening, and watching Sesame Street helped as well. We learned phrases and vocabulary, so I probably know animal, vegetable, and tree names in English more than general Japanese people. I did not learn grammar and writing until 7th grade, although I could read and write what we learned. I was also taking an English class for kids. We met every Tuesday, and we had a special device at home to listen to stories in English, and I could repeat and record. So again, my learning was mostly through what I heard.
听
When I entered 7th grade, our school admitted a small number of students from outside, who went through the rigorous study to pass the entrance exam, but who had no English experience. So like other schools in Japan, we all had to start the boring English classes, where we read, translated, and memorized before a test.
听
At that time, I found out how the question, 鈥淗ow old are you?鈥� was written as I only knew the phrase and sound from the Language Lab. I remember that written understanding very vividly. Since high school, I have done homestays and visited friends many times in the United States. I took German for three years and Latin for two years as required in the university, but I did not learn anything.
听
I majored in English literature, but my graduation seminar was in English linguistics. I was fascinated by Robin Lakoff and Bill Labov, who became my advisors later at the University of Pennsylvania until I transferred to the Education Department.
听
Jackie:听 Since I was born in Hong Kong and the native tongue in Hong Kong is Cantonese, that would be considered my mother tongue. And since Hong Kong was a British colony, we grew up with Cantonese and English as our official languages. I learned Japanese in college, got a degree in Japanese and studied abroad in Japan. So I would say that my language background or linguistic background includes multiple language usage.
听
Welsh:听 In what languages or dialects do you feel comfortable discussing routine information and expressing your opinions?
Conny: 听These days I feel most comfortable using English. I dream in English. When I am angry with my daughter, I speak in English. So I think I am pretty comfortable expressing my opinion in English.
听
Welsh:听 How do you feel when you change between two languages?
Christina: I feel more proper when I speak in Japanese since I mostly use standard, formal Japanese; in English, I feel like I can be more myself since I use more slang and joke around more.
Conny: It is like wearing two different glasses. While I need to be aware that I am switching my brain to speak a different language, I feel I need to also understand the different culture, the way people think (perspective), norms, etc. When I learned English and was able to speak and understand English, I felt I had the world in my hand. I felt empowered. When I switch back to Indonesian, or even when I go home to Indonesia, I need to change my way of thinking, my expectations, and my actions to fit with the culture.
Eriko:听 I found that switching codes is very difficult at first. For instance, when the Seijo students came, I felt so awkward switching back and forth, and sometimes I completely failed. I talked to Holly [Holly Woodsome Sroymalai, Academic Programs Manager] in Japanese! Talking to Japanese people who have been living in the U.S. for a long time is the most comfortable way to communicate as we can just mix the two languages.
Jackie:听 I would say that a one second pause is fine for me to code switch because I just switch my brain over. Also, one thing about growing up in Hong Kong is that people would talk in Cantonese and in English all the time because the English influence is so strong. So in a sentence, in Cantonese, there is one word that is in English and so forth. I can change between English and both Cantonese Chinese and Mandarin Chinese in a second.
听
Welsh:听 What do you notice when you change between languages in terms of cultural expectations?
Christina: I know that in Japanese, there is a feminine way of talking (which I could never wrap my head around to do) so I often wonder if Japanese people expect me to speak in more of a feminine way. I also feel like as the native English speaker, non-native English speakers expect me to be the 鈥渆xpert鈥� on everything to do with the language, which I am not. I never learned the linguistic side of English; I just know how to speak it and understand it naturally.
Eriko:听 Japanese has so many levels of politeness, which makes it difficult, but I have to use Japanese in business interactions. I feel the conversation style in English is more honest as I do not have to worry about the levels of politeness and fill sentences with empty words. When I communicate in Japanese in business, I have to use so many decorative polite words. Japanese is useful for wrapping things in many layers to say something that is difficult or to avoid saying something important. Also, there is a significant difference between writing and speaking. With a client, speaking in person in Japanese is much friendlier and more casual than writing an email because overusing polite words in person is considered to be fake.
Jackie:听 What do I expect when changing between languages in terms of cultural expectations? The context is the key.
听
Welsh:听 How do your language skills enhance who you are and what you do?
Christina: From a young age, I have always been interested in other countries, languages, and cultures (especially Japan) so my language skills make me feel more like a citizen of the world and it also shapes what I do for a living since I like working with international students.
Eriko:听 Since my Japanese friends in Japan know that I have been living in the U.S. for a long time, I can be more direct in my opinion without being 鈥渃riticized.鈥� This may not be related to language. I am more aware of the traits of the two languages. First, it is hard to translate Japanese into English, so sometimes it is like going into a maze. Even as a native Japanese speaker, I have to ask writers what they want to say. On the other hand, English is very logical and precise, but it can upset people without intending to. I want to think that I could understand these nuances to help Japanese and English speakers to communicate with each other. I have been working in international business and education thanks to my language skills.
Jackie:听 My language skill is definitely an asset at the International English Center because we have a very large Chinese population. Talking to students in Chinese is a bridge to bring them into the U.S. college system and culture. Although they are supposed to learn and to use English, sometimes when we communicate, we speak Chinese. Communication should happen naturally because I am not having a practice lesson with them.
听
Welsh:听 What challenges do you face as a result of your language skills?
Christina: When I was studying foreign languages in school, my family and friends would always ask what people around us were saying (to which I would either respond: 鈥渘othing鈥�, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know鈥� or 鈥渢hat鈥檚 Chinese or Korean so I can鈥檛 understand what they鈥檙e saying鈥�). I would also say that in Japan, there was a perceived notion that I did not speak the Japanese language so people would just speak to me in English.
Eriko:听 I do not think I speak perfect English, and I do not think I speak perfect Japanese.
听
Welsh:听 Have you experienced a negative interaction between language and power? Would you like to describe the situation?
Eriko:听 There was an analyst who had her MBA from a well-known U.S. university, but she had a thick foreign accent. Her boss told her that nobody understood her, so she was scared of being fired. This illustrates that some people do not appreciate how much education you have if your English skills are low. We have all experienced that some native English speakers tend to treat English learners like children even if they are accomplished in their own country.
Jackie:听 From a utopian view, I speak English because it is one of the most spoken languages in the world because of Manifest Destiny and colonialism. However, what is in the past is in the past, so in terms of when I was in Hong Kong having English as an official language, we needed to learn English, but it was not necessarily a bad thing.
听
Welsh:听 Have you noticed language learning as being subtractive or as losing dialects, culture and identity? Would you like to describe the situation?
Conny:听 I do not notice that. I enjoy learning something new. I would like to learn many different languages. Now, I am learning Japanese through Duolingo.
I do not think learning a new language causes you to lose your identity. I think I am creating a new identity by being an 鈥渋nternational鈥� person.
Eriko:听 In a way, yes. As you cannot belong to either 100%.
Jackie: 听In my daily life, I would say having a common tool of communication is definitely a positive aspect because we conduct our business and our daily matters with the same communication tool. Therefore, I am pretty realistic about this subject matter.
听
Welsh:听 Have you noticed language learning as being additive or as increasing dialects, culture and identity? Would you like to describe the situation?
Eriko:听 You can learn to see 鈥渙utside the box.鈥�
Jackie:听 Very additive in this sense that the more languages you have, the more tools you have.
听
Welsh:听 What else would you like to say about language and identity?
Christina: Although English is a useful language to know, I think it is really cool to be able to speak another language besides English. As a child, I was always jealous of my classmates and friends who spoke another language at home, even if they did not think it was cool. It made me wish that the language my grandparents had grown up speaking, German, had been passed down within the family so I could speak English and German at home. I think having that language ability would have made me feel more connected to my roots and heritage.
Eriko:听 My background is sociolinguistics/intercultural communication. But I did not study these subjects only. I took some MBA courses not to be 鈥淓igoya,鈥� which is a derogatory reference to those who speak English very well but have no other strength. So having taken MBA courses and worked as an intern in a Wall Street firm, I could market myself better when it was time for me to find a job. When I have been contacted by people who were studying English or Intercultural Communications and seeking advice about finding a job, my question would be, 鈥淲hat else can they offer?鈥� And I usually do not get clear answers. In my opinion, studying Intercultural Communications alone will not make you marketable or useful in business situations. You need to know business practices, regulations, and the particular industry in order to utilize your intercultural communication skills. So learning English was important because it was a tool for me to learn something new, like horseback riding, dog training, or even raising a child. I just hope English will evolve without the articles. As texting takes over our communication, who knows how long the articles will survive.
Jackie:听 I graduated from Penn State with both my masters and undergraduate degrees. I did basically all of my schooling in the U.S., so I consider Pennsylvania my adoptive home state. When people ask me where I am from, I usually say Pennsylvania. The stereotype is that for Chinese Americans, no matter how many generations anyone has lived in the United States, people always ask, 鈥淲here are you from?鈥� My answer is that Pennsylvania is more home to me. My bachelor's degree was in aerospace engineering and then my master鈥檚 in Japanese and International Studies. I also experienced some international education because I studied abroad in Japan with a concentration in science, technology, and education. If you talk to me in Chinese, I can respond in Chinese. If you talk to me in English, I can respond in that language. If you talk to me in Japanese, I can try to respond in Japanese.
听
The IEC has such an expansive and excellent source of world views right here in our staff. Many thanks to each one that I talked to and all who shared their ideas and identities.
听