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October 15, 2005
# U9 [, J9 `, ^1 d9 D+ a$ \- bClasses in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity6 n8 l2 w1 k! |# |: @- n$ c
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
G& N" s7 V2 B! M2 SUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary, D0 ?. w9 k1 `6 g5 Z
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
6 Q0 t* Q: L& @, g9 R* \# |dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese* b- e, O5 F# }! q& f/ V
flag hang from the wall.
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% t1 ]* t5 c% c: uOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
* ], o5 T- G2 F1 ranother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders4 k2 r$ x6 v* T. V' F
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
* h; G$ g. b7 ^, l+ vboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
( [) c; I" I( c' ]/ ^+ Iare already choosing it over Spanish.
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6 q( k4 A* }; A) u"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal0 A: [9 c, d/ S6 ~# [& @
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
, J/ M, S( f1 }! S" _% T% H- {offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."/ k' M# Z0 h. W9 k
* Z- u: Q5 g& A9 NWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
, i+ P' j4 `' d' Q: K) Jschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
/ z/ L/ E, c: X U; p, r6 h" Oto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention
& z+ V3 a- u+ {9 U8 vone of its most difficult to learn.
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Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
& s7 \9 M+ U( m5 O7 U" k5 Kpublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students+ |, {& a0 S& l. V& U4 l
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
* A D. `" P( \8 I: {Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of4 t# }2 D' U5 s
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on1 [. h3 B3 y9 D4 \& w
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
9 r% ?0 r* j7 l; ?5 y$ timprove ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.2 k# ], x, l) x- x: \6 g
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
% A: R' |8 o6 ?3 Q9 ^Chinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
. g- c6 {9 I2 i- x: Cstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to% c. T4 {: L( w
develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing' @/ s9 g Z- E+ z: x4 M
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
9 \: o8 A* L6 k1 Wof the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.
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"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
5 } j, V; H& {8 l2 e* q& Vspeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
% D; D; W0 z" T4 [. |1 _Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
( h) C7 M/ D( [' s: K. pcan."
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
; _1 l: D( x7 ?" L+ Aelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10
# ^/ B1 z" z; K$ xyears, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
' ~+ ^! \7 `7 v$ S" g! Q. aInstitute in Washington.
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7 j7 k- o4 _ L"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages! P0 C1 j9 x: c
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.3 b' Y$ j& W l+ T3 O! |3 }/ j4 J! B
McGinnis said.5 N5 A* M, Q- E1 ^+ {/ B: |( h
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
4 O& G) O: o+ \7 \longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
$ `3 A) B9 L/ v8 X, b* Uready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a; H: ?1 K3 e! w/ Y$ M
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."7 l! A: ~6 q( G6 n
0 o9 ^. S& m' |; U' J# S! I1 VUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
( P# W0 M0 `- t2 k5 M r2 Lsecondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
' w1 d( n& a) M! V; J1 B4 ~5 Ucities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of6 k8 j$ d3 P+ ^ j8 a- N( w: {
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or# q/ F7 @2 w, h. Z
on weekends.% A/ u7 z9 m6 f3 n- L. l
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public6 I3 c( { E9 Z, {& A% C5 A
schools during the regular school day and primarily serves* p+ O0 f2 X4 ], o9 o
students who are not of Chinese descent.
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+ }2 i* Y1 J* i8 kMayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
9 q% N* r2 ?4 V: Q6 g, pproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the# }5 F$ D K+ y* y
competition.
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2 Y. Y( ~' z+ Q, k6 e; r: W"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley% I. H. M! H6 h& 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
- P7 D3 A$ \' m. }+ e" `all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse
5 X. P8 }% y% ]schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
4 j5 m7 s$ J. H Q$ N- E# Okindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
6 G8 ^+ G0 N: A9 twho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to/ Q3 G z" F, z9 Y6 v
the school system last year.
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this6 n1 Z5 x" m+ N& R f0 m/ _
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.
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"They have a great international experience right in their own( X% G7 O- b7 H$ V6 g
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago8 u& q Y* l u, `+ F9 N2 ~
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
/ R6 B1 \4 \) o8 N1 ~' Q; A' H3 bhelp students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet. ]! s( ]7 p0 b3 E, ^
on an equal playing field."
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9 B7 O( C* ?9 K# y/ c9 r7 e7 h+ ySome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese# d0 \9 C" S( ^$ c1 [
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign4 {: g- @. k: Y: e2 l( A) I
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks
! N1 Y$ x. S, dChinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
r8 {+ G1 L R0 Zaverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in9 i$ K( x/ [; E/ J8 L0 _4 P5 K) r
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
, f" ]4 N" I' f4 D* r9 kinstitute says.
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: n; K* w" m/ M8 TSevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth: H3 |5 ]9 v( y8 i
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
\9 E* c7 {+ Z1 q, N( H0 jdeciding whether to take the class.- g+ R7 E7 P. _4 [) L
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she) q/ q& b) [0 `) x+ R
told her daughter.
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4 K b% G: Z2 v. n* [! ^- ~5 nSahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite$ B3 G5 M0 V" ~
class.5 I& E9 N4 E# w$ ?3 M$ B; S5 t3 X
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
2 y5 ^- M& N. d/ ~% ^$ ?$ _4 istudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without- U. |6 `: M. S" p: C/ y
occasional frustration.
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I: e* \- }+ f( {0 ?% A"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a5 V$ v& s9 `7 u( h3 z6 c( `
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.5 u f q: D* r! ?
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he$ M. E C5 B0 S4 @+ F: d
taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with; s' U4 Z5 t1 h0 {7 V b
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
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6 E w G5 h, x2 t/ y; P! d3 t"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul4 K, c. s3 }0 `1 i
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
* G4 X8 ]% _% h2 aas many languages as I can."* E' r5 p E- g5 D: r! P
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
' L/ C# g4 ]6 b# o& A1 yskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
2 L% ]# _1 m6 A9 N4 A# N- D8 Q: Umarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like! L6 l# C" M1 q
that," Ms. Freire said.# D% v( {$ d1 q: i. c0 j
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program
+ a2 f, G; w7 n7 r' t' Phere offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
6 f5 ~- s8 O3 ^& S0 r5 O5 o H: Gschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking
0 U2 h! s3 H" }# `. Y0 K2 C stime from classes like physical education, music and art to make) U$ J" R% Y, I$ t- F
room.( q9 r2 @& `9 S: {% K+ N
Z) R; z" S$ \2 U- @+ H! qChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer7 Z- n; Y ^# y- N4 q% ^9 t# z4 A
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American- L9 y; ?8 E. q4 x5 n6 ] m M/ t& H
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.% r" S/ l( u0 d5 ?5 T4 U
9 \7 G* P9 W; }"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified
8 _: ~1 O1 b% b6 Sbecause of that missing certification," he said.' D: \8 W/ N0 H7 s, R& o
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
- A6 I8 C" E1 ]' }) U: ssaid Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia& Z! l- k! m/ d
Society in New York.# | q$ ~: @7 h+ `* m( L8 i
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
- A c' Q) j9 l$ \& GChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
+ m4 K: s) t9 C# }3 b, A# [the United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.: }+ J2 L, }8 h
6 z# |% y5 N5 s2 S) m"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our- O$ o9 G W" n& ~3 Z+ f
own."
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& ~7 _1 V/ F4 c; iCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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