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October 15, 2005: b7 A4 F( \6 F$ N# `
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity% ~5 f+ R6 l" i( j6 N# g' `5 I: |
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the( c3 C o9 ^& g' o' S
United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
* D7 ?+ Q6 t) [! zSchool, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
4 s9 R6 Q8 q9 `) ndangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese$ L5 A, H, z# o/ ~9 F! g
flag hang from the wall.: z4 \! c7 D9 p$ T
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One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one4 f) h0 j0 ]- Z/ G9 O b4 F1 u% W
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
0 ]1 V% [* W8 b' B3 W+ b. q1 epracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker- _( N4 J+ w* Y- d% h
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
# R$ u5 A, h1 ^3 h# @: tare already choosing it over Spanish. w/ L/ q' b! ^& R
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"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
4 I+ B3 |& B/ \0 `at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
. d* D. R4 P) @6 foffering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
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With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
, ]' `; l, u9 l5 o" z" e2 Hschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings) d2 D5 v7 Z. x4 t1 D* J, e% b
to include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention+ Z! @- L' a, X, K6 `
one of its most difficult to learn.9 P% [7 ^8 q& P6 p5 Q
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Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to! `6 v3 R5 u- R: v( R& {) r
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
1 _; h# i8 v, n! P5 t) P: Xstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.6 L0 ]8 C+ k, Z/ x
Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of! t! @, e$ \$ I! O7 q
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
, ~. P3 P9 Q5 O, t3 O/ M! W# i y4 mChinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
1 S( C8 w" x2 c2 B2 g" X3 Gimprove ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.! d- d: b. v: s, c) K( Y
3 m( d/ d, J, n% j# mAfter 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
' J( c+ z" k% X0 p& q, l7 I" VChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country6 h) J0 q3 {% m3 p9 Y$ n8 K# C) Z
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to) J6 z/ c1 ]5 z* [/ q% d
develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing5 ?! U1 }' ~: W1 g; i7 V
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director$ ]" @6 S- F1 |" f& |4 D
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.. b: l' ?9 ?2 j/ Y9 `9 C4 }
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"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of- d2 v4 t2 s# `( O; C
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
0 B: p& A1 S N5 x; `Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
, R: C+ \7 g" |& q/ V- T' ycan." ; a; d0 _) f( F
* C8 u* R* w+ u: H( ]2 nThe number of Chinese language programs around the country, from) u9 [9 K, i" J7 V4 A' m, B- s
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10) c) X0 U5 D1 Y7 ]+ ^# a
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
) G6 R3 z- |9 _5 _/ @2 QInstitute in Washington.
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9 S m( k# X' z8 g+ a3 l" W"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages) F( J* q2 G/ e% r7 N
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.% x6 H5 Q0 v' [! \) Z, ]: J3 }
McGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical! e, A- y+ z" K9 b
longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
# E, H1 x7 ?) ]8 {; O5 ^. Vready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a8 t" z U1 M0 K5 R
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do.", Q9 Q+ t* |; ^7 V* T6 {% o
* F' @1 ?' j# R2 e/ _Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and- D. [9 [8 ?8 H& P. c) ~
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in+ X( R4 P# k9 s( e9 r, k5 K
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
, o; k9 J1 w' E0 M$ v2 ]) c- f9 }8 VChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or! B$ ?* B7 C+ y0 A
on weekends.6 d/ @8 k# E1 G) ^" H, E
: l! s$ `' A! [* _* E$ TThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
$ u! }5 d: G) @schools during the regular school day and primarily serves
0 x9 \/ z; `2 Ustudents who are not of Chinese descent.7 O! ^# J0 F7 W
+ `0 z8 @$ D% EMayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
6 C8 ?% X9 }8 X4 B# `9 r8 iproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
. t" ~3 c% S" m% N) u x6 {competition.
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"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley2 a+ C2 }3 T- G; P6 k
said. "There will be Chinese and English."4 |& I+ [% i/ b0 d% t: a3 x
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly$ \4 n; L* s, l/ }$ V; H
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse: N' u0 B* K+ G& D
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from4 U6 m4 O4 x J7 t! p9 f
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
$ F. ~% a v% x7 j! D0 F8 r0 @who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
- R! T S9 X4 Pthe school system last year.
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this
! }# X6 n( U4 T; q& Kyear and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.; a9 [* ?9 d) O1 Z
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"They have a great international experience right in their own
8 w Q0 c L6 ^2 s- iclassroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago. H V9 g1 L5 Q3 }1 L* v
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
2 E+ @; R- K1 O+ _help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
# N2 C, ^ `1 f& F& `, \* _& ?9 r8 kon an equal playing field."
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/ m! r, g% S' N( w/ qSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese
( ~$ _: s6 _, j P" i" Kclasses are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign/ y+ f( o. H% Y7 M, e; F
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks
9 c" `4 r% Y+ WChinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An' _/ {, t5 t/ d6 _0 |4 U% h# |( n& V
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in4 F6 b; }: s9 R$ d: @
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the. g c- r0 w& h. h9 K8 ?
institute says.5 ^* N( @5 L' U* n* ~6 J
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
/ x0 I- c7 |9 b3 i+ ^$ Tgrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before3 }/ u' ^0 \4 q$ D3 e' k
deciding whether to take the class.# P: J1 B0 a% x. K$ L
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
0 U% _5 e, l ttold her daughter.
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
! B' O5 ~( u# O# [( s: m0 \& Aclass.
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S1 _% P" j! N3 y5 J/ k% qAt Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
|4 @4 v8 K% [3 wstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without- \2 F) x0 y. S% j& z5 Z8 J
occasional frustration.
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( k( L* T2 _/ s( q& U+ x/ W) G"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a& r* \$ {. S: v4 L9 P: v" D6 R
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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+ y; K* O2 i7 i5 P* J2 cRaul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
, X6 i L. H* utaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with( A% p1 n4 a7 o
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
1 d/ F' m7 b) u" N! O* rsaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn* B n/ \4 N( {* q ?+ m
as many languages as I can."
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+ u: g7 S( X+ k: IAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
, l% H6 Z9 f% ~skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job1 t8 Z: \ E* H# T% y8 j
market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like( D" f. h* n7 A- V( p& D
that," Ms. Freire said.- v4 g' F! Y" s9 T8 L) H, `
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program
6 W1 a7 T1 i& qhere offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
- @+ R+ _4 F" Y( d% Y- M; Dschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking
) }! D! [" E" A, c7 u8 Etime from classes like physical education, music and art to make8 q# I4 i, y6 a& k* p! p( h p: B
room.
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' P5 s6 k4 n4 z0 ^6 [Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
% E5 a8 y: g3 ?! _* r1 t2 Q! f: b/ [Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American1 E. R, H7 T# E' P- d2 J- j: j2 z( M
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.3 k8 b7 S* x% E3 t! s
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"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified
- y! [ r, A3 G: M) obecause of that missing certification," he said.: q# s, _6 p+ c$ w' ?( h1 q
! K8 I5 C) S* w9 Y7 CThe shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
) H# g$ |, V& V% p! Zsaid Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia
8 g7 T8 _3 b+ XSociety in New York.6 K: m) \& Z p; p. m7 ~
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the: Q# }* r- @8 r) s& |
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from3 n% J' l1 s+ X; t
the United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.: s* F0 V$ s) `* R1 B) T5 J
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"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
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9 c1 I3 t3 }) P+ tCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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