Elzbieta attended Polish-speaking schools growing up and graduated with the Shepherd Hill Class of 2022. She took Spanish in middle school and at Shepherd Hill, and she is the first one of our graduates to achieve two Seals of Biliteracy with Distinction in two different languages!
Read her testimonials below, and check out her advice for students coming to DCRSD from a Polish-speaking school.
My name is Elzbieta Gronek and I received the Seal of Biliteracy with Distinction for Polish my junior year. I have been speaking Polish at home and with my family in Poland my whole life; however, this amazing program is not only for those who were raised learning a different language. This is an opportunity for everyone to test their skills in a foreign language and work their way to achieving a Seal of Biliteracy.
For many people, the main incentive for participating in this program is to obtain a Seal because it looks good on college applications. While this is a big bonus, it is not as important to me as expanding your knowledge of the world and the beauty of its cultural diversity. I was lucky to be raised learning two languages and getting to be a part of two very different cultures, and this has given me an appreciation for my own culture and a desire to learn about other cultures across the globe. In this modernized world of technology, it may seem pointless to learn another language when virtually everyone carries a translator in their pockets in the form of a phone; yet while Google can easily translate anything for you within a second, it cannot translate the tone, mood, and real human interaction that occurs between two people speaking the same language.
Language learning is still vital to our society in order to connect with people across different countries, and it opens a world of opportunities for you as someone who can speak multiple languages. It may also prove to be beneficial to you not only in college, but also in your future career. This program is great for language learners from beginner to advanced level, and you can also take the test for multiple languages. I will be taking another exam in the fall for Spanish, and I am so grateful for the opportunity to use my knowledge of different languages through this program!
Dla tych którzy byli zmuszeni przez rodziców do utrzymywania języka polskiego lub chodzenia do polskiej szkoły, wiedzcie że to nie było na marne. Jeśli dalej bierzecie jakieś lekcje, wiem jakie to jest okropne iść dodatkowo do polskiej szkoły jak już trzeba się męczyć z szkołą angielską, ale te lata trudu się opłacają. Tyle razy nie miałam motywacji i chciałam już się poddać, ale zachęcam was abyście kontynuowali waszą naukę języka polskiego. Nie było lekko, ale w końcu czuję że było warto i mam satysfakcję że zdołałam ukończyć polską szkołę i dostać wysoki wynik na egzaminie. Wierzę że dacie radę!