 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
October 15, 2005
6 ?) G- r5 n* O6 f; E8 qClasses in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity/ d% j6 J6 L& Z" Y4 ?, M/ {
$ J* D# g) t- j( { b2 M
By GRETCHEN RUETHLING& [ @8 L& g/ s$ H% _! O( J
! A2 h- M% N6 W4 x" a0 BCHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the" h" _0 |% i+ h0 \+ b1 {4 N
United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary5 v9 x9 N9 G' o% Y
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas( V! H: [0 s+ S8 U6 U( z- i
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese# x h1 ~: n9 `6 W& y' ~
flag hang from the wall.; L r) K( |1 e& {
) h4 v: T, F5 J% b7 c" o
One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
! Z: D, f6 f6 d9 T6 i6 ]( banother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
' T" \, I3 p7 M3 }/ S: z% Fpracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
% q0 w" ~- e) z( r) |- Bboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
3 F* j' b! d- D3 T* Z$ [are already choosing it over Spanish.% Z; B0 S) A( e1 [( m
2 U& \7 \- e, b* ?9 t; e
"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal4 B8 J$ a/ P4 J; h# ^' x$ l9 i) ]
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
7 K2 Q; Z$ b3 J* n+ ?. Eoffering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
$ _: {) Z. q1 p4 C9 o0 U. j: N& G# B$ E6 P0 |+ ]6 I0 d
With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,3 }0 ~7 q y4 H; g) x1 G' f
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
' }' H/ H( E( N" |7 e7 Pto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention
% s1 b0 y; {3 L0 X9 C! [( `+ X V1 eone of its most difficult to learn.
5 ~4 f- P/ t5 S
* Q1 W6 B2 r5 uLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to. ~1 Q: z) n2 _9 l7 L2 Y+ n9 M
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
4 d% G6 D2 H0 J, X" Rstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.: {* h4 C9 U; i" f9 F- H5 n
Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of1 U' C+ Y* F! d! A) ]5 @: L, D
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on% D) l$ j4 j6 a$ O+ \
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to3 F7 S8 e- @6 ?, C, G- M$ ]
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
" A) ~/ Y; Q, K( E9 F; E8 {2 h- f( E E1 O
After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement8 N# t8 c, k/ n0 P y* v7 d3 Y# a
Chinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country3 v4 Y9 q+ [: m+ z
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
+ K4 @: F" o' j2 idevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing' d8 ~1 m4 [% h, n; o
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director7 s6 Y1 }' L6 h
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.
7 y+ i& D1 S/ g# C
9 M+ @6 r- i- `3 N"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of: T4 ?; l! {/ I! \
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education& i, d8 S- s/ K( P
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we, r$ J3 H, O" }! Q
can." & H' ~ j3 I1 W- Q' h
( n& B. M9 ^( N& d& p% S" ?The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from6 H, F& b' X) m3 p( ~
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10$ L3 j/ ^- U5 q. ~6 j' F
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language0 V8 B, J2 E" n% f( B
Institute in Washington.
6 W4 ?( V% X6 ]% a }4 I! y/ E0 f; u; J- M4 i( [
"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
: x! L' v* U7 T. r3 k8 I! V& q% Yaren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.
& t' `8 G% F( T4 \; RMcGinnis said., u% }% p, A, r- U0 b3 i' U
: T; Y$ g: e' k! d4 }"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
- U( `# K' z3 H4 [ Rlongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be) U7 r1 L# Q. t9 ]3 [
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a5 `9 k, H3 T. M* G* W8 E
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
2 ^& n3 m" D7 m. X, }/ L2 K+ i& c% S* b {2 q
Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and- v7 v4 C) ] Y$ J: p' F- \. B
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in$ }% X' c4 q% x5 X+ H: ^1 [
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
# [4 v- z6 C! K; C' E; kChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or
3 ~( D/ a5 t" ^* [7 ]" m' pon weekends.
. @9 J3 {0 U" {0 N* z) K# n8 o4 d2 M8 N* j3 e8 K8 L% V6 e
The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public4 n# Q- i8 v: g& A/ C( U
schools during the regular school day and primarily serves! M4 d/ w* G" \5 J) v
students who are not of Chinese descent.
( k6 u0 l- \2 |$ G' W/ n: H/ S7 i& i; w" K+ S, m( r* F
Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said* Q7 B$ f$ B% j* y4 l
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the+ |! b* Z8 \- L$ @ P8 M4 j
competition.
2 p2 N2 U8 m! V; S/ R
% |& H+ u$ Z5 L# |5 }6 Z"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley# U" r$ b4 q' H' z0 ]
said. "There will be Chinese and English."
% z: O" w1 |6 @, p% Q9 c/ b( E
3 G3 Z. n* h9 M' j: _From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly/ ^9 }4 p, Z; d1 r
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse
* X0 U+ U/ D/ y7 K8 g3 C/ eschools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
# h( v: @$ S/ v9 Y% gkindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
) d3 {" l8 l0 y# U1 |who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
5 q! u* h3 y9 ?: g% M9 v* fthe school system last year.
( k& Q% k" U: c2 v( j; d7 G# A! S/ \8 {2 N0 e- a, c, A
The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this! o( y5 n; ^9 T& o+ F
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.3 R: ^7 C6 t# ~- K
1 p- Z6 W" Y$ T' ]1 }. g"They have a great international experience right in their own
( W& U% M! U! ?1 E8 _4 z7 _classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago
2 G- d9 A b; ~8 aChinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
7 g& \% |9 P2 Q8 f; N5 [! u+ @help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
8 x" x' I. A' `# K0 Qon an equal playing field."
D& A; j5 B: X1 p) m1 p
( c5 w, ?8 H" q- E/ e& GSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese
+ @) K$ X- u, \ { A+ @classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign6 c8 D; F/ c; r: i/ a1 ]. m
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks
z' [* h4 k' ]3 e( T) xChinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An6 K, ?5 T* ]; S& ^% ], r1 ?
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in. q; ? D% [ m; o8 T0 s
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
& c5 G# ~7 }$ @, o% N# q& J' dinstitute says.. `% o8 X( m* ~& ~
g/ j/ N. i: E
Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth* f/ U$ j. Y( n: K3 I+ E
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
7 O# ^' B/ `8 s4 H9 n7 Edeciding whether to take the class.
; o1 C$ V9 \" L; T! r9 B7 Q' d
* x1 L" K! m, W: }+ Z1 O"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she9 L0 r3 `7 D$ e2 E/ f
told her daughter.
, n! v& G/ e4 }
) @8 b5 U# e! |/ r, e' |. R* |Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
1 C& j$ U! u5 w5 Y6 W1 g" I4 x6 Xclass.6 s" e: D6 z; ?1 P3 S4 `( M6 Y/ _
8 C1 ]- C' u# _3 d
At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are( n4 L$ f; Y+ e2 T: n
studying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
. V# c: O: q% Y5 L/ coccasional frustration.9 r% b* v# D4 k: H8 E
8 o0 L! z9 v7 q& o' g"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
6 h" K/ d) F4 m9 Z+ frecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
6 _4 q, k% I. A! ~- J. i. [5 [+ ?; O! v
Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
4 F! t3 C$ h/ g! o, S: n* Ttaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
) I0 t9 p; {! y8 oChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.. ~) x: F6 k- G+ b, Z. w
! ]2 n5 @6 {0 ^: J5 g$ n
"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul; M; X& a9 D: }, V: |
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
! Z6 ^6 K( y, ~( Was many languages as I can."6 h) ~* `% a* j
# p! [9 D# R' t: O* ~
Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
& r# S. S; l6 Z: c! e# w% Zskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
' g# j) A4 e4 vmarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like' u7 i( K1 }, ~, v0 w, ]
that," Ms. Freire said.2 F, V% X, j" k8 P
! @+ r& s) M1 ?4 A+ S
Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program) b& i, W: r2 m! O, l! U* I
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each9 P5 q4 o- k% l2 n' s) N: d
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking5 |/ e; U( }# T
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make/ W; o3 o8 a# H. b t* O3 ~
room.
, j; y" r7 C/ N* f3 J! S0 r" \5 u* z: K8 V- v {2 K/ i
Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer; g& A" N0 a" d% b* e3 Q
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
4 N! m: W- I+ R" rcollege, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.
1 w: {5 m' t# R0 |; T- M+ x$ R y& e, m: L7 }+ t4 R
"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified9 L2 ~. D9 P& Q+ @* h/ B" Q
because of that missing certification," he said.
8 U- _- E1 l3 [# m: R
5 x1 }. N# s+ C5 C% T6 _& p: EThe shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,# X0 z/ W+ z& g9 u( H/ |! y
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia0 l& @# P8 p' l, B/ e
Society in New York.4 H8 {$ m8 j( V. ~/ _$ x
& J4 o! b1 n% H! z) w
Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the2 ?( N( l: P' Q6 w& k
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
% K8 M) Q! w! b& U0 ]+ Othe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
5 N" t# t- M) g) ?
6 L' `& J% M, ^, C/ b"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
* L0 g) l* G D7 F$ O- B5 ^own."
+ g3 G$ [0 l& Q3 a1 C
2 i1 s/ M4 L, ?Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
|