How can the languishing National Spelling Bee regain its sting? Go global
The English language is perfect for spelling bees. It’s replete with loanwords borrowed from dozens of languages, from Amharic to Zuñi. Its basic vocabulary is challengingly variegated, composed of three substrates, one Latin, one Norman French, and one Germanic, each with different spelling patterns. In principle, any country in the Anglophone world – and, as the existence of Yup’ik, Spanish, Iñupiaq, and Diné spelling bees demonstrates, even non-Anglophone countries – could hold spelling bees. Yet, for whatever reason, spelling bees haven’t really taken off in Canada or Britain. They seem to be uniquely American, perhaps because they reward hard work and tap into cultural memories of schoolhouses and quaint pioneer traditions. The fact that bees are uncompromising – that spelling is sudden death – lends competitions an inherent telegenicity. And as we all know, Americans love a good episode of reality TV.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee is celebrating its 95th anniversary this year, with a new executive director at the helm who I hope will be successful in restoring stability to the Bee. The last few years have been tumultuous. Several months into the pandemic, the 2020 Bee was abruptly canceled. Despite calls to extend eighth graders’ eligibility owing to these extraordinary circumstances, Bee officials denied eighth graders the chance to participate in 2021, dashing the hopes of many students who had dedicated hundreds of hours to studying in hopes of winning the coveted loving-cup trophy. The year 2021 saw the inauguration of controversial new rules which essentially converted the bee into a spelling-and-vocabulary competition and introduced a new finals format reminiscent of TV game shows: a 90-second “spell-off” can now be invoked by judges to prevent co-champions. The fact that spelling errors during the spell-off don’t disqualify spellers effectively eliminates the all-or-nothing quality which gives bees their exquisite drama. Since 2019, the Bee has been contending with alleged cheating scandals at regional bees, reduced revenue, regional sponsor shortages caused by local newspapers’ demise, and diminished publicity due to demotion from primetime ESPN to Ion. It’s high time to shake things up a bit.
In this age of global tensions, with China and the US apparently in the prelude to a new cold war, we could use an international sport that brings people together. Ping-pong has possibly run its course as a tool of diplomacy. The Olympics, which serve such a purpose, occur once every two to four years. In the realm of music, Eurovision unifies people from across the continent each year, but its scope is restricted to the EU. Spelling bees might be just the ticket. They’re wholesome, educational, and don’t require intense athleticism. And in a world dominated for good or ill by English, there would be students from many countries interested in participating. US embassies in Egypt, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Haiti, Liberia, Turkmenistan, and other nations have successfully held competitions, some of which have now become an annual tradition. And there are independently organized spelling bees in much of Africa, including Ghana, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
Such a move has considerable precedent. In May 2012, Scripps floated the prospect of an international spelling bee in which three-person teams from as many as sixty countries would compete. And to a certain extent, the National Spelling Bee is already international, embracing other nations in addition to US territories like Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, and the US Virgin Islands. Students from Ghana (whose national winners I tutor), the Bahamas, Canada, New Zealand, and China often participate. Amusingly, when I competed in 2007, a New Zealander’s accent prompted some drama. She was given the wordjardinière. Confusion over whether she said J or G so flummoxed the judges that they had to resort to pausing the competition. They listened to an instant replay; conferred; and finally, still baffled, asked her to clarify by naming another word which shared the first letter of her attempted (and ultimately incorrect) spelling.
Thus far, though, the students from abroad who participate in the National Spelling Bee only compete in small numbers. But more seriously internationalizing the National Spelling Bee – inviting many more international competitors to DC – would revitalize the Bee, giving it a fresh identity. It would also be a wonderful opportunity to promote cosmopolitanism and cultural diplomacy. During Bee Week, parents, coaches, and family members socialize and create community, and spellers befriend one another. Affording elementary- and middle-schoolers the opportunity to make friends across borders would be a good way to inoculate them against prejudice and ignorance. The act of televising the competition worldwide, letting people root for students and geek out on social media, would give people a chance to find common ground around their shared love of language. And a diverse wordlist which showcased the remarkable linguistic diversity of English (and drew from enough languages to prevent an accidental homefield advantage for any spellers) would further celebrate English’s role as a global language. In these days of international turmoil and turbulence, in a world marred by conflict, creating another annual tradition that knits people together would surely “bee” cause for celebration.
Scott Remer is a professional spelling bee tutor, freelance writer, and the author of the textbooks Words of Wisdom: Keys to Success in the Scripps National Spelling Bee,Sesquipedalia!: A Rigorous Vocabulary Study Guide, and Regional Bee Ready!. He is also the coach of the Ghana Spelling Bee champions.