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October 15, 2005) r" z1 ^. x- m( s
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity$ \6 y6 T [" |
9 [0 ]7 `( D% T9 u$ r6 R
By GRETCHEN RUETHLING' G2 ]% s1 b* G2 S
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CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
: c$ ?" J, P* Y; @- ~United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
, l+ d. x/ v+ r4 j! Y# g+ SSchool, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
' t/ j# ?) c8 l: j @* l4 p0 o: cdangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese2 r" S" m( K( {2 m3 h
flag hang from the wall.+ F7 O5 J8 ?3 a; O7 J1 ]; x
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One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
; Q5 T& t) A- Y; zanother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders9 A0 o) S5 v9 I. X7 i1 Z
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker+ D: G, P! X& v% _9 o5 e& _8 |
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students6 M& b( y# K2 n6 e2 G7 n2 I( r9 E
are already choosing it over Spanish./ k6 _2 V1 C9 `$ D
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"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal/ C3 E6 ]( r0 v4 v+ M$ P: s3 @
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
% Z6 S7 ]5 Q) ^; q# ioffering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
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7 d ?4 }" L; a/ d! Z1 nWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
9 \& D' j- b+ _3 a5 yschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
2 j; p* n$ T, {2 \to include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention. d! D' C) U6 Y3 X
one of its most difficult to learn.# ~, }& `" X4 I6 Y5 k" N8 s/ l) {/ M6 K
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Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to+ i3 @. @( @- [. p, h0 P
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students1 J) n. [- {& J! B( g
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.% z% R2 [/ u/ r! e* a: D' `% Q: x# K
Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of8 r! a8 v7 B, j" X% ?
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on# L' K5 @) w. @" ^
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to0 q8 J* f$ g! ~0 g+ k$ s
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. \/ ]/ Z7 B2 w& M
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
8 ^: a% \8 x7 h' {3 uChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
' v4 z0 j9 G( H! f6 kstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
* m! [, J2 n7 \9 D% S' ~9 fdevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing
7 r. p$ r9 Y9 g5 n5 {, p* M# Z8 Ccurriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director! C m1 y _$ O' w* g' u
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.1 Z, o+ K/ M- i' r+ j+ ?! |; N
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"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
" B* Y+ g9 }3 ^1 z+ X0 V1 n; P5 rspeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education! d3 ]3 v' n+ H6 e% [
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
. r% c) T% u# N! mcan."
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$ |( }1 b _5 E7 Q# ^The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from- { p) Q# A. z7 S
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10
: g+ i0 K8 d+ uyears, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language6 ]& o& G. `/ @9 Z* v
Institute in Washington." U. }& p4 v* n+ R5 G9 R; o
3 b; \) W+ w% g/ X7 K"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
0 P+ S. |, T' S0 `aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.
& l$ _4 n8 O/ b' ^4 @9 h) _McGinnis said.2 P2 o/ x+ A C8 } ~) r; _
; L' s9 y3 Y l% |"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
& p: j* p, k% |) X* D2 I3 F. Z8 Ulongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
: q8 ?2 z% H2 B& X3 ]ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a
, Q" s. G9 a' x6 a8 D+ M! q1 schallenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do.", Y. T0 q' e8 {0 c8 b7 V! q3 ]) K
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Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and E/ [5 s* m t! f5 {) `
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
" B2 s# h6 u: r8 [8 w8 y+ W' m0 kcities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
8 f! ^* `3 h6 \% G' T8 hChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or& v. `0 F7 R! o8 D3 V
on weekends.
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- B2 T, i. m: }/ m9 fThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public0 ^0 i C4 ~. T
schools during the regular school day and primarily serves
' \5 L4 G" P6 o& E& O+ a j) k* Q$ Fstudents who are not of Chinese descent.
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
! ~2 j9 |8 ~. M4 i4 N$ u" Rproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
4 H. w7 x4 ^% I$ Jcompetition.
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( v* n! x. n0 E1 t& `" O8 W"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley9 q5 h5 `% F4 a0 V9 }5 Z
said. "There will be Chinese and English."
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
1 [0 o% }4 D$ X# Mall-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse" d; C6 ]% s# H
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
0 V: W' z s& d2 Z$ f# ikindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
3 i8 [- o5 f* S$ p ?% Awho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
" ~. ^( p0 W* W) @6 n+ P0 Nthe school system last year.
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) }9 e6 c* r; P0 Y0 gThe program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this: g2 ]1 I7 J- U6 W- j: K
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.9 X- M6 s: d* D$ O" I
, e. o5 ~1 r* e"They have a great international experience right in their own
4 O( R7 {% a! F8 a. T% ?2 g% Fclassroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago! Y# M0 X# S' v& K. e
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
* ?$ O4 y( f9 b1 @, b% \( @help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
& O9 l6 F' g+ U! non an equal playing field."
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8 v6 y$ h) ~9 r PSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese S! c, w, M3 [4 s) d5 b8 I
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign, w: E& j2 ^6 r; ]$ e
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks& S+ E) p/ b9 R
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
* u2 [: s+ Z1 ~: H, zaverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in. c" P# Y& Y, T9 T, f& j* T
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the3 e4 q6 @8 V7 Y
institute says.
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% K8 Y0 o3 F' s5 _( @8 ?8 qSevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth: U; s4 Y+ |6 b9 Y3 y: V. @
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before: h( D; U' { g6 h* o3 e6 }
deciding whether to take the class.
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
. {5 O% z0 p- ?- R/ i- x' P( gtold her daughter.
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite: z3 T( k* h, K2 E- |! n
class./ |9 m8 t, L* [. ~
& ~1 k) ]- Y! Z! J! y9 o; Z! Q0 DAt Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
4 o' v0 d7 t8 a, V! G( j( V- M+ Tstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without5 `7 N6 `7 b" M+ u/ |
occasional frustration.
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
2 d. N- |* G( C' x+ @" m( x( M1 ]$ a ~recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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; F8 C* E4 u0 P7 {' E2 Z' ]Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
: n. K2 H% O0 w b& |taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
3 T# F7 B, Z$ s# y* H+ lChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.2 |8 F& _8 l% z9 |! {
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul2 T, i2 _7 J6 H( P. {" {# `6 r) y
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn1 B' I4 B2 W6 f; Y+ x/ a
as many languages as I can."
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
* o5 f% p' N+ X" a# L, eskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
( M# ?! f( N& f5 C ]market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
; l0 R' m0 y3 u9 Y7 othat," Ms. Freire said.# r' G5 P! ~) ]8 h
: @2 p- ?2 \" Q {2 RMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program
. s" i7 j- X) Y% q- Phere offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
0 l* m: k$ G6 R, t- v, R/ Cschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking" \5 K$ W; q8 a8 x1 r& a) m
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make- ?2 B" [3 J7 L! k9 O( j3 C
room.; S! {5 G. C3 o$ r. f4 F
' T" s! I" P0 \8 Z( y. i4 l% ?0 uChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer- z1 U8 k& k3 F- u4 k. \1 O
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
9 }$ K, V6 C8 Ecollege, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.
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"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified
p: a+ D/ q; ~2 [$ \8 X) Hbecause of that missing certification," he said.
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,2 N3 v; `2 u3 Y: q
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia" `$ K% Q3 @3 v3 F% N
Society in New York." [2 q$ b! ^& @. O- f- g% h/ y
4 A% B8 {4 F5 m; nSix states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
$ ~. t7 ^. Y/ E" e, QChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
4 a o, `, E* uthe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.) O& s0 n: v: c
( S* m% W% J) `. j2 k"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our/ p4 S' Y& I- r: G8 M! o- S; E
own."
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0 M+ J R3 ]7 A# c$ y1 aCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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