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October 15, 2005. O; \2 ]1 c( R% B% l- @
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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. [( H- g n1 Z, ]( ~" d4 [5 S. {CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
& u. d, @5 G S4 P8 T+ |United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
" n4 Q- O' h# @2 E O$ ySchool, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas8 W* X( S5 Z# G! d! a
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese9 m9 f; j3 {% T/ @7 C
flag hang from the wall.5 [. I, D i4 |. y* E3 w. O
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One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
) l6 _; `- F4 o/ b* a6 vanother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
( a. o/ l& R- I' Y6 H# h! Y8 Lpracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker' a$ i; R, O3 x2 H, K" c1 M0 q
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students8 u7 K- n7 j. [% `; S" n
are already choosing it over Spanish.$ J2 t8 R4 [- J$ ~# {- o/ F; w1 A
4 F/ y u# ^5 B/ f0 S9 V5 y"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
g7 B* U/ G1 p& n* y" k+ H5 dat Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city4 c3 Q3 N% |" X! Q/ {- G: z
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
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, o9 e5 P( N5 Z* g* H; OWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
( x7 o5 |+ X( r! h7 y3 hschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
6 ^3 j: {# |2 ~4 tto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention' G, M$ r) J6 v+ |7 K
one of its most difficult to learn.; T. N* T+ j# Y/ u' C9 ~
! {& W3 s8 m0 a( T) @Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to: k( F! {* I' X
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
& ^* n m3 _3 N jstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
7 F7 O+ }. z6 L I" } F' YLieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of c, C$ G5 j2 R" T9 J
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on+ v8 F( u1 h" k! h* C
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
3 {: ]5 u" {+ z! c! R) Eimprove ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
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+ j* E9 `2 g1 \) B) Q# X- GAfter 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement9 [7 G. a. ~1 D5 N3 S$ A: D& U" c
Chinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country# w. d6 |4 K4 d1 {
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
! ?0 G- k9 W* j6 V! udevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing. b7 e3 L! j1 K* w. w, I& `
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
3 _! p' I% |% Y h8 v4 Yof the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.
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{& l/ q- b& A$ O2 G8 Y"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of0 r" f$ P$ t8 q/ q8 I0 x0 @
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
; Z$ R$ _: u- [6 o: I7 {Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
' L: J' x: O( k+ @' Wcan." 7 T0 o4 J; z3 ^1 U8 f
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
8 Q4 S/ s/ j; X4 w8 C( Lelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 101 s4 }* |% `" ?
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
l5 ^8 r0 P xInstitute in Washington.5 p/ I9 F) T: A6 z* k: [- S# n
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"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages0 g* b# d' h- l( h' H0 D& e
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.
9 m4 K4 a" ^; y8 n' W5 S1 Q4 [McGinnis said.8 v' h( V/ t; L) `: v, i( e
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
8 `* r3 \4 N* c( |8 \longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
2 g7 k2 F3 }( L9 x8 l7 k/ b4 B' zready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a
( O2 R% U- M' M0 Gchallenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."' E4 p7 \* O% g$ {: d: a
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Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and+ N7 P% }# N7 t3 h. _: z, G8 g
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
$ A1 d2 Q( h- n0 W, n+ _cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of: @9 ?7 e3 g$ C6 w
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or
, R1 }$ W. r. e8 ^: non weekends.1 ]) E5 s; J, L i3 N
/ Q. i; u( o5 A+ H) W, {* r6 RThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public- d9 n/ v. @3 p8 \( q* M' r( b) g k
schools during the regular school day and primarily serves
% W: m; x x7 }' }6 Astudents who are not of Chinese descent.3 C2 W* u1 k6 a
, m/ O- u, N6 q4 ?* }Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
6 r. h& d$ a9 z: n9 g- C; s% L" dproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
9 m1 S' ~1 B9 X6 y7 Y% fcompetition. ; h% K" j# N0 x. C7 T* c9 ~9 f
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"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
. K( r$ F8 q9 f' E0 i$ Xsaid. "There will be Chinese and English."( ^, L6 K2 W1 R! J [/ X
2 J/ Z; w* E7 K8 ?/ k# C3 K0 e8 XFrom an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly5 k- ?) G) y" n: l( t E8 @
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse
* P. B3 S0 j9 r+ g- u X; b2 h2 Jschools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
5 P4 {; a7 W# ^: b' c0 Gkindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
l! X1 z% W3 `' M9 S ]who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to# o$ V5 F: ~3 S4 j0 t/ ]
the school system last year.
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; ?) W6 n1 x7 x; E2 c, uThe program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this ^/ f! Z0 G# \' K% ~ g+ {+ z2 ~
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.* x0 C! j3 I# b* I
, g0 @* s! Q5 x2 t! X"They have a great international experience right in their own8 B0 A4 d5 p# e6 b2 d: q |2 c
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago$ h+ z; S3 H& Q
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
; x9 s6 z" O0 T8 L0 i, Ohelp students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet" K" e" G4 @ ~3 l7 T
on an equal playing field."( j: N5 X" q' G% E. r% N1 a! g5 z
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Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese. l9 M2 G5 ^# u8 L! Y; Z1 M
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign% a; m" E8 w- i* l1 s* E9 W
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks D2 w; I- ~ g" y; k
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
$ w0 ^* A: f6 daverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
1 M, P2 V; a; v. aChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
5 w. g. N A4 V6 h, f. y; t$ v% Y) hinstitute says.
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth. {2 T/ s* v* v6 m: Y
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
) O |3 k$ ]% L, c) _deciding whether to take the class.( I4 y4 f$ l3 E* {4 Y
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she4 _9 r' w) d' h
told her daughter.; q6 |/ E/ \& J; {, |, W: Q
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
0 |+ m0 D& `' C4 V5 {class.
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0 V# E" C/ p. b0 I. z x! f& t& T3 x5 mAt Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
" P( m" z4 K6 q7 }+ H( |studying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
+ Q; y4 _5 w0 J/ xoccasional frustration." r( x/ _! O4 y8 R$ Y' o
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a+ b8 P3 N! U( k7 ~# ]
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
' j( _% }) E! \taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
, @8 X+ j: u# { h* m& K; NChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
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" z% j9 B1 X2 }9 L+ [& E t2 _0 v"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
E# E# U; X/ l* E; ]said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn, b6 [4 k E5 u) L Z8 I; B9 j, _3 h/ v
as many languages as I can."
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* Q; z" D. u' L. cAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the- o( ?% y4 c8 S$ K! g
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
! W" S1 e) {& e0 C8 s- \& ]market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like/ m: e Z( Q1 w! v. n3 S! G5 O3 m
that," Ms. Freire said.- q0 g- Q! p8 @7 d7 J- A8 D2 v
1 C, r. r1 }: y' B9 K8 @, XMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program& n% G; C" i3 V
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
! M! a% f h) D; c$ y" ?, T% x, Ischool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking/ T% |6 n% K3 C" L0 x. D, o$ \
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make
/ ]3 Q" b) l6 F9 F1 J9 o4 N- `room.2 } Z! G! y9 i5 B
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
/ O; n, r" u* m( o- uChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
0 O% \5 G- [8 O5 fcollege, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.% N$ u" ?+ P9 K1 H
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"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified6 r& y4 d6 A1 X" h1 t
because of that missing certification," he said.) S# r8 L9 M- Q6 l
! N6 c3 y6 j! R9 nThe shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,- B$ C2 i8 ]: `, k4 R5 _4 k
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia7 u3 ]# {1 C4 h5 B
Society in New York.
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the4 d- i* d; Q) x8 }2 V
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from4 h g$ b7 |0 H4 ^$ |4 p
the United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
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Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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