Viennese reading mentors promote multilingualism among primary school students

2023-09-24 14:21:05

Vienna (OTS) – On September 26th, Europe’s linguistic diversity is celebrated: European Day of Languages is about valuing languages and promoting multilingualism. The “Native Language Reading Mentors” project from the Integration and Diversity Department of the City of Vienna starts with primary schools. Volunteer reading mentors read to children in primary schools in Vienna in their first language.

Vienna – city of languages

Over 80 percent of Viennese people can converse in two or more languages in everyday life and more than half of Viennese students speak two languages or more.

Vice Mayor, Education and Integration Councilor Christoph Wiederkehr would like to promote language diversity in the city: “Languages open doors and ensure greater understanding. Different languages and their dialects should be protected and promoted. The reading mentors project is an example of integration in practice and it strengthens social cohesion.”

Multilingualism promotes integration

In the “Native Language Reading Mentors” project run by the Integration and Diversity Department, reading mentors read to elementary school students in their first language. Almost 80 Viennese volunteers are involved in the project. The reading mentors are currently working in 20 elementary schools. Depending on your needs, you can read aloud in 19 different languages, from English to Bosnian to Vietnamese.

“I’m happy that I can support children in their language acquisition. The reading lesson gives them an appreciation for their language skills. In addition, working with their first language helps them learn German.”, says the reading sponsor Duygu Ildan about her experiences. She reads to children in Turkish at an elementary school in the 8th district.

The “Native Language Reading Mentors” project is carried out by the Integration and Diversity Department in cooperation with the Vienna Education Directorate and the Vienna Libraries. Multilingual reading material offers e.g. B. the children’s library of world languages on Hütteldorfer Straße in the 15th district with almost 14,000 media in over 50 languages.

Promoting multilingualism is important to the Viennese. Two thirds of those surveyed in a study conducted by the SORA Institute in 2023 stated that not only knowledge of German, but also the promotion of multilingualism is an important integration measure.

Multilingualism in the city

The Integration and Diversity department dedicates its annual focus to the topic of multilingualism. New explanatory videos in different languages on topics such as work, education and residence rights are intended to help new immigrants get started in Vienna. The dialogue series “Your Vienna. Your City” and the “Community Forum” focus on multilingualism, and a funding focus on the topic of multilingualism is planned for 2024.

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