Featured Student: Cristian Ivan Torres Hilario

In this edition of Featured Student, we spotlight Cristian Ivan Torres Hilario, a 2023 high school summer intern at WIDA. Cristian is multilingual and this interview was conducted in Spanish with translanguaging. Read the English version below.

Let’s get to know Cristian through a conversation (which has been edited for clarity and length) with WIDA staffer Erika Rosales.

Erika Rosales: Can you tell me a little bit about yourself? Like your name, where you grew up, where you’re from, what high school you attend.

Cristian Ivan Torres Hilario: My name is Cristian. I grew up in Madison, Wisconsin, and I attend East High School.

Erika: Y, ¿qué es lo que te gusta hacer en tu tiempo libre?

Cristian: En mi tiempo libre me gusta cocinar, hablar con amigos y salir con familia.

Erika: Y, ¿hay algún tipo de comida que te gusta cocinar en particular?

Cristian: Mole.

Erika: ¿O sí? Impresionante, because it is not easy to make mole.

Cristian: No, it’s not!

Erika: ¿Cuáles son algunas de las clases que te gusta tomar en la escuela?

Cristian: Álgebra y biología.

Erika: And what do you like about them?

Cristian: Algebra I like because I like math, and biología because I learn about DNA and a lot of stuff.

Erika: I give you credit for liking math. Biology is really cool, right?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: And, ¿para ti qué significa ser multilingüe?

Cristian: Para mí, ser multilingüe es como si hubiera empezado a hablar dos idiomas cuando yo ya los sé dominar bien. Y así para que yo pueda ayudar más gente que no puedan entender el lenguaje, como el español a inglés e inglés a español.

Erika: Y, pues me imagino que ser multilingüe para ti es una experiencia muy única, ¿no? Entonces, ¿nos puedes contar un poquito más de tu experiencia como multilingüe? Como en tu comunidad, en la escuela y en tu familia. ¿Cómo se ve esto en cada uno de estos lugares?

Cristian: Pues, comunidad lo hago porque hay varias personas que no entienden y me gusta ayudar a la gente; entonces voy, me acerco, les digo si puedo ayudar en algo. Si me dicen que sí, sí puedo ser su traductor. Puedo traducir cada cosa que ellos me puedan decir a la otra persona. Y en la escuela, esa es más inglés y un poco de español. En unas clases hablo español por DLI.

Erika: So, you’re in a DLI program?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: Okay. Cool.

Cristian: Y, en otras clases pues hablo en inglés. Les hablo más formal. Y la familia, pues no más traduzco cada cosa que sea en inglés y se los digo en español para que ellos puedan entender y para que ellos se sientan bien, porque si usan la aplicación del traductor hay veces que lo traducen mal.

Erika: Y entonces en tu casa, con tu familia más bien, ¿siempre hablan en español?

Cristian: Siempre. Siempre hablamos en español.

Erika: What about your family members that are your age? Like your cousins.

Cristian: We sometimes speak English.

Erika: Or like Spanglish?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: I do that with my family. Spanglish is the easiest. Whatever comes out, right?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: And then, I’m assuming that you also have to translate formal documents or important documents when your family members go to the doctor or things like that, right?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: And what is that like for you? Do you feel like you get a little bit nervous? Or do you feel pretty comfortable with the language?

Cristian: I feel pretty comfortable!

Erika: That’s great! Y, what about experiences where you have felt like somebody has essentially made you feel good about being multilingual? This could be an educator, a mentor or a counselor where they have shown you that what you say, the ways you express yourself in both of your languages, is really important. What experiences have you had where your ideas, voice and cultural and linguistic practices have been centered and uplifted?

Cristian: On voice or culture, many people say, “do you speak in Spanish or English?” I’m like, “yes, I can speak them! How can I help?” So, I help people who have more difficulty. I like to help them and that makes me happy.

Erika: For sure! And, what about your teachers in school? Do you feel like there are teachers that are supportive of you being multilingual and your culture? Do you think that you have any specific teachers or counselors with whom you feel really comfortable speaking about your culture and in both languages? Do you have any educators or counselors like that?

Cristian: Yes. It would be my teacher of DLI.

Erika: And what was that like?

Cristian: It was great because I could talk to her in English and Spanish while sharing more of my culture—plus she was a teacher to my big brother, so I had more confidence in her.

Erika: Perfect! So, she met your brother first and then you had her class.

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: That’s nice! It probably made you feel more comfortable. ¿Cuáles son tus esperanzas y metas para el futuro?

Cristian: Mis esperanzas son que a lo mejor pueda hacer mi carrera de carpintero y mis metas son graduarme de high school y de la universidad.

Erika: Perfecto. ¿Y piensas ir aquí en Madison o ir a otro estado?

Cristian: Sería acá en Madison.

English Version:

Erika: Can you tell me a little bit about yourself? Like your name, where you grew up, where you’re from, what high school you attend.

Cristian: My name is Cristian. I grew up in Madison, Wisconsin, and I attend East High School.

Erika: And what do you like to do in your free time?

Cristian: In my free time I like to cook, chat with my friends and go out with my family.

Erika: Is there a particular type of food you like to cook?

Cristian: Mole.

Erika: Really?! Impressive, because it is not easy to make mole.

Cristian: No, it’s not!

Erika: What are some of the school subjects you like the most?

Cristian: Algebra and biology.

Erika: And what do you like about them?

Cristian: Algebra I like because I like math, and biology because I learn about DNA and a lot of stuff.

Erika: I give you credit for liking math. Biology is really cool, right?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: And what does being multilingual mean to you?

Cristian: For me, being multilingual means being able to speak in two languages and be fully fluent in them. And being able to help more people who may not understand a language—like from Spanish to English or English to Spanish.

Erika: I imagine that being multilingual is a unique experience, correct? With that in mind, could you tell us a bit more about your multilingual experience? Like in your community, at school or with your family. Can you paint a picture of how this looks like in those settings?

Cristian: Well, as far as the community, I like helping people who don’t understand the language. So, I approach them and ask if I can help. If they agree, then I translate for them. I can translate anything they tell me. And at my school, there I mainly use English but also some Spanish. In some of my classes I speak in Spanish because of DLI.

Erika: So, you’re in a DLI program?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: Okay. Cool!

Cristian: And in other classes I speak only in English. In those I use a more formal tone. And with the family, I translate everything from English to Spanish so they can understand without feeling ashamed, because if they use a translation app they can easily get it wrong.

Erika: So then, do you always speak in Spanish at home?

Cristian: Always. We always speak in Spanish.

Erika: What about your family members that are your age? Like your cousins.

Cristian: We sometimes speak English.

Erika: Or like Spanglish?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: I do that with my family too. Spanglish is the easiest. Whatever comes out, right?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: And then, I’m assuming that you also have to translate formal documents or important documents when your family members go to the doctor or things like that, right?

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: And what is that like for you? Do you feel like you get a little bit nervous? Or do you feel pretty comfortable with the language?

Cristian: I feel pretty comfortable!

Erika: That’s great! And, what about experiences where you have felt like somebody has essentially made you feel good about being multilingual? This could be an educator, a mentor or a counselor where they have shown you that what you say, the ways you express yourself in both of your languages, is really important. What experiences have you had where your ideas, voice and cultural and linguistic practices have been centered and uplifted?

Cristian: On voice or culture, many people say, “do you speak in Spanish or English?” I’m like, “yes, I can speak them! How can I help?” So, I help people who have more difficulty. I like to help them and that makes me happy.

Erika: For sure! And, what about your teachers in school? Do you feel like there are teachers that are supportive of you being multilingual and your culture? Do you think that you have any specific teachers or counselors with whom you feel really comfortable speaking about your culture and in both languages? Do you have any educators or counselors like that?

Cristian: Yes. It would be my teacher of DLI.

Erika: And what was that like?

Cristian: It was great because I could talk to her in English and Spanish while sharing more of my culture—plus she was a teacher to my big brother, so I had more confidence in her.

Erika: Perfect! So, she met your brother first and then you had her class.

Cristian: Yes.

Erika: That’s nice! It probably made you feel more comfortable. What are your hopes and dreams for the future?

Cristian: My hope is to first have a career as a carpenter, and my goals are to graduate from high school and then from college.

Erika: Perfect! And do you plan to do this in Madison or elsewhere?

Cristian: I would be in Madison.