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Language Exchange

What is it?
We have incredible diversity at Rotman, but leveraging this diversity to practice a foreign language can be very challenging. Whether it's meeting native speakers or starting a conversation in a foreign language when you know that English is available as a much easier and safer option, language learning outside the classroom is hard, plain and simple. That's where we come in.

The Rotman Language Exchange breaks the ice for you. We work to create events that bring language learners and native speakers together for the sole purpose of practising a foreign language, offering a safe environment where mistakes and long awkward pauses mid-sentence are welcome and encouraged (and where English is not allowed!).

If you have a second, third, fourth or dare I say fifth language you would like to practice, or if you are a native speaker who wants to share your incredible knowledge and help your colleagues learn and grow, don't hesitate to sign up!

How does it work?
To get started, one of our primary activities will be language tables. A language table is a very casual meeting where speakers of a language meet over coffee and converse in that language. They are very fun and require zero preparation. It can sometimes be very challenging for learners to start a conversation among themselves since no one is fully comfortable speaking that language--that's where native speakers come in. Their role is to help get a conversation going if people are feeling shy or uncertain as well as to answer any questions that come up. "How do you pronounce Fernweh in german?" "How do you say stock market in Mandarin?"

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to Namita Multani.