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October 15, 2005
2 m9 o3 g/ d# K/ e; ~Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity C7 `5 F! A- g8 J/ S r
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
3 l/ L' ?/ Z: v) T& C8 C5 M; O/ ]United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
$ |& q( q$ q) s0 W( {School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas4 ?+ L" }" U1 M) L# k
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese! [- n5 I6 U1 F: N. V
flag hang from the wall.
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. b+ X/ E3 C# _6 \6 w: D9 bOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one8 M# w8 D/ M4 @+ o2 ?" s: v
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders- d6 z4 d7 n/ n1 m0 d: Y' ^
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
1 O% x6 z4 ~- p# |boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students7 o' I; C' y, d* v k
are already choosing it over Spanish.
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"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal K0 t8 y0 T8 X3 r
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city# ^. m+ `' R( {$ o$ k E$ j4 s
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in.": \1 f8 w! n: R- y& C
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With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,7 W* @5 d$ r! `/ {" e/ L8 Q
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
3 F, ~; j" O5 Gto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention
6 I) s8 a* i0 M3 Gone of its most difficult to learn.
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5 n" c/ }% j" ~+ }& J- eLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to' G4 }5 W8 n1 m4 q6 h( f
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students# X' c/ Z/ H) K
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I., U3 m k" o& I2 x
Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of
" {/ W8 N' [! g* O# zTennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
5 T; V: R3 P' O8 y$ d5 Y& Z! AChinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
* S8 }: D- w) |3 l, g+ _* ~improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.; f7 C' a# P- }9 I1 A: e7 a5 g" n5 K
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement. L) k, L8 {4 R( z/ o# T
Chinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
# K8 V. s, z" e0 V% Q' Gstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to. N7 x7 r* m9 }* g
develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing
0 d* D/ j. d9 S# X$ J2 l# S! {curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
) E3 h& q' Z4 j1 @of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board./ h$ p# a; V; m; i6 Z& P! [
! Z5 Y$ y- T% Y& F4 `"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of3 \" ~ X$ l# v9 b5 H4 E" y
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
: h6 a3 {% \. W# G* f" @7 CConsulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we8 L$ Y% |) P$ T$ N' Z! T |
can." 8 j9 u r2 j) u! F2 k o
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
9 R' {" T1 n: e3 qelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10! j H, k1 a6 ]1 C) j% d( z
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
( a7 G# F; Z& W: {0 pInstitute in Washington. F9 A0 N2 y1 {% C6 l
2 m/ u2 }$ O" W, H"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
" g( y% v6 Y9 x- u8 v$ ?aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.
" t& q4 _! c" {1 J* CMcGinnis said.
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; Y1 R/ m! P. M ?8 Z"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical* a: F0 V$ o. Z4 n! f
longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
2 ^8 I0 |% a; o- X1 j8 ?' ~0 U Jready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a# m/ A: _7 r6 i& A
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do.") w& ]7 R0 j9 r2 X8 r$ b5 n
$ ~- T, K" {" \Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
2 r4 d) h! G6 W+ `/ F- qsecondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in9 I; t9 R0 S8 m/ b* Z k" I
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
( Y: o6 S/ @9 H( U2 r i; r9 VChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or1 ?3 M" Z* M) |
on weekends.; f+ j8 M" o3 S: u7 n7 W0 E
% k5 h4 f; ?6 d/ YThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
( ?- } J- }. `6 |schools during the regular school day and primarily serves
5 c2 B6 z9 g3 q3 m1 x8 H4 y/ Kstudents who are not of Chinese descent.5 z5 N# @( c. W: A
, t* o( g) Y7 v# `+ NMayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said5 ?: B4 y. E5 U) m: t X
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the0 V, j, _, Y$ p. h* r
competition.
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"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
4 S3 Z" P" {% Q" O- [. z, ?said. "There will be Chinese and English."5 Q1 V" S) r8 U! }4 ?
5 u) f. U! h. iFrom an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
; z" z$ t! ~# N5 I! mall-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse5 z* g: k2 r: h- Z
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
* Q2 A& t# A* nkindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students- `5 G: v2 [4 B) _. G' B
who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
+ |# Q/ l: ~6 S7 k- Gthe school system last year.+ {: E! R# r- Z7 x# a( L
4 E" i$ {, D$ ~& bThe program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this& g/ ~1 D0 W7 F
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.4 V5 y# o$ _! w0 J" P, z6 M( Q
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"They have a great international experience right in their own
: W, }! c9 [, V, Z- a4 e8 @classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago* j" h" U7 V$ j2 @/ v
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to# D( O6 x/ O& R+ D! z O
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet: Y. v- C$ H v& _' x
on an equal playing field."; W$ r+ r$ i3 _: s
0 s& J$ U" z# H1 B+ G @Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese, x$ b0 J$ n# l4 p: U/ d- Y
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign: B: E7 k! u3 v0 x
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks
+ }. U5 X& v' o/ a4 y% b: SChinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
; A$ i ?( Z5 F0 N# @average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in: G- N6 ]& W7 m. f8 H
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the' Q( l) m; v- L' j
institute says.! s8 r; [/ G' h; u" O
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
4 d! y8 [/ ]7 n _" o2 Wgrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
# G1 @' A, l, @6 u1 ]/ Ndeciding whether to take the class.% b9 K4 c2 k( F% M! a) S! K
# I3 p. h/ `) W9 n/ T"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
, ?- f4 ]' M3 B, d% \3 }! Ftold her daughter.1 ]0 L; b# k1 }+ `9 B5 X; p" {
! z- w* q; c- x* @Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite. } x2 d- |9 D( p& p
class.
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$ W4 }8 N% P) p' fAt Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
1 S; K% X9 H4 Y. i: Gstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without" r# k1 ]. i8 t
occasional frustration.
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a& _7 e; Z5 M5 A) h1 f& o
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
0 H( k% a: u8 f# I- h" o1 ^, qtaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
& `5 y! O+ P( u8 z0 vChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.8 l1 ~$ d( f$ C; W5 C0 S8 G" ^# n
, ]. {9 x1 z) w, {. }+ V5 g i"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
# b. K% u) e, psaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
, e C& p" d( m) L7 W% q6 las many languages as I can."
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
; _& h8 t) N8 p; [ hskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
+ T/ N: R4 ~: R2 h* Pmarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like7 I- M4 P+ H, i+ ^$ _+ ^ _/ Z( v! [. n
that," Ms. Freire said.4 O7 F: i4 I% V1 v+ R9 W+ A3 e
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program
. |' X1 n% X; S3 J4 ghere offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
% V- q& Q0 q1 t/ [/ aschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking
/ C% L9 `6 x+ O1 Y. A# ]5 ytime from classes like physical education, music and art to make ^$ E) C/ d& D2 ]3 D' V
room.8 _* f- T/ y7 l
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
, G' W. g3 C# V* n8 T6 i. IChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American3 ?4 D9 l0 h$ p7 l6 \$ T/ _0 J
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said." e( i, P+ N0 j; O: P
0 m" A' Q7 o7 Z+ S"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified
6 w1 Z. V7 E$ u1 r, Y" A3 u& K* Dbecause of that missing certification," he said.
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6 D7 B& X- L1 t! J+ p# I+ mThe shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,6 L& f- q3 S. G) g4 L
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia+ R4 A$ [1 B4 P* L0 N; n. R
Society in New York.- U9 |% s; y6 z/ I
; c- E9 X/ J+ x7 q2 ~* R, E( mSix states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the, X- |' Q' w- x y. @4 k" c
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
, Z# a |0 a. Mthe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.' @/ s' @9 y0 M9 x( _6 \- s
; w2 ~2 ~* B% W* ^' \"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
2 H+ D" O# K1 } xown."
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3 H7 F5 w0 |) e& Y. f8 H& ECopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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