Bridging the Language Gap

Type of Abstract (select): Paper presentation

Abstract (max. 250 words):
Almost every Diaspora meeting starts with a heated debate about whether the meeting should be held in English or in Hungarian. The main reason for this dilemma is, that there are language barriers on both ends. How do we bridge the language gap? What alternative ways of communication are there to embrace individuals who have a strong connection to Hungarian language and culture but didn’t master the language? What practices does the American-Hungarian School’s Association follow to help learners, educators and parents to overcome language barriers?


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Katalin Petreczky was raised in Budapest, Hungary. She studied at Kossuth University in Debrecen and at Bielefeld University in Germany. Katalin also has been working for 20 years as German as a second language teacher at the Deutsche Sprachschule Long Island (DSSLI) where she serves the board as the director of the adult program. She is also a founder and co-president of AMIT, American-Hungarian School's Association. In this capacity she organizes conferences, workshops, webinars and reading camps, edits the organization's newsletter, represents the organization and reports on its activities.