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October 15, 2005
/ ], h1 ~1 r9 c* \& F8 ^8 Y- YClasses in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING9 v2 x6 d4 n# R b8 S+ w- ?
. j- [' D2 G2 ?, n. u! ^2 n# p4 m& |CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
! `1 p0 e. [ KUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary' P# @. t0 b5 E' f3 u6 K
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas. n+ n8 t! r, M( h3 l2 t
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese
% q2 t; S5 z# Hflag hang from the wall.$ T5 p& l9 f. c4 k' Z5 \
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One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one$ u( \4 B- v4 \) u' t% f
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders0 }, E1 O% a- Z0 r3 u' y2 i7 i
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
( `! w7 l y) z Xboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
0 `! E& b; Q2 b4 t4 D) c) j0 qare already choosing it over Spanish.8 z, _" b- B# i+ |3 y1 l
0 A! \, \3 a+ ^3 w3 E9 I9 T"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
9 G/ L2 o( d! i$ i( N$ vat Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
2 `3 l4 ~) s: n0 t2 t7 z/ Soffering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."( r! `/ Q4 G" T9 S% Q7 i' c* o
8 ^; u- z! h6 O5 l( }With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,/ B. ]. Z5 C( `8 L0 Z& t
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
6 @, a. {/ Y" e2 b6 z' lto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention! T. T6 g0 X/ h; W$ }; b
one of its most difficult to learn.% H+ |# S# Z1 d( A0 o5 Y
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Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to4 r: F6 M! Z. m3 p
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
9 Q) u. z& Q+ G$ W4 {( C2 @9 g. Nstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
; H! [; i1 D0 Z% x9 OLieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of+ u3 {1 R* ~; t" S) w0 T$ \
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
6 r9 b. U, w6 }' }4 h+ [% ^Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to2 [" g+ t' W! K; Z# A2 ^
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
/ Z: ^8 F! o7 ]' \. QChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country/ r/ [. G" S- E4 I' _: R4 ?
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
3 p3 _6 d& R9 u! Kdevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing# B6 r: m& ?& q2 P9 S* @
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director2 \ t7 z0 Y6 @5 n( A
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.- Z2 p( t2 w/ Y4 r% q) D" c; T
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"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
2 a! o8 e' G7 k* Uspeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education8 K* C& g1 m8 h. F( j! Z+ o. v
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
: l% \1 D3 n/ C. p" [can." 0 H) g( N. B4 T4 s; K: U
9 U5 g4 L" ^+ q1 p9 ^2 \( e8 a: MThe number of Chinese language programs around the country, from( K2 a( s: Y4 {& h! [9 O
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10
q: P9 q) M9 j7 f& O9 e" @years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language% h/ e8 S# D* i& N
Institute in Washington.: W9 F% R/ C% K& n' p9 \
$ z; m0 x% |- u' z8 v n; R" U* B"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
* z% V% Y) b: i$ r7 D9 k2 |aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.* H" ~" N7 `) i0 W
McGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
% a1 v( K6 Y+ l4 y/ \3 d# Ulongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be7 a z* F0 g/ X
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a
, F9 s' c/ y K' t' Z1 y3 hchallenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
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Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and B& t- U1 i( B2 Q4 [
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
0 s$ d [' B; w8 q8 p r+ acities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
8 |3 L3 H3 M( ?7 p: U5 ~Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or6 I0 I* O& T% d; U
on weekends.
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5 p) j0 R# Q; _9 |% TThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
8 F. T! U* r1 x4 [3 U4 }schools during the regular school day and primarily serves
! m# p* i6 n5 P9 p9 R2 B/ ^ j" a: nstudents who are not of Chinese descent.8 a' e# O. |3 l9 }+ Y
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
; [; F- a# M$ O& @; L5 d7 dproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the8 B' G$ \# M+ ^2 x
competition. 2 P/ u% @$ \0 N1 u6 }! E" S$ r" |* Q
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"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley$ h2 \" h/ g3 O# Q% R
said. "There will be Chinese and English.") b8 O' u! f% O2 [4 c
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
/ ?( z8 G2 V: p! m- d: p( eall-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse8 M% c8 v0 N1 u0 f. x: T- M3 J# C. K
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from! r2 k/ g# r8 c3 M+ W, ?6 o' e4 K' j
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students. u/ x/ |. k! W
who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to2 ]. P3 I7 s P; i. w
the school system last year.7 s7 m; L, q7 @0 y' ?2 P6 v
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this
' j1 h# A W1 j# N kyear and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.8 m/ i7 i' w/ |! b% ?
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"They have a great international experience right in their own
0 w! x- u- D! c2 h& Cclassroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago
' y7 k$ m: D* s* H3 k& \. |. z" L! eChinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
" H9 P# f9 T1 | U* }7 {help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet/ y4 Z4 a/ j4 n% p# \5 r+ h
on an equal playing field."
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Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese, @# Q0 i; ]- w. d. h; G% M6 q* i5 t
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign: L" h1 z$ l; ?
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks0 q# `8 }4 e& N) D( e! {* X
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An; Y7 Z& B2 b: \% i% Y( {5 v
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
; | C1 N) U/ `# b; O4 D1 QChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
. s% ?# c# J+ e# minstitute says.
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V" G' N$ u/ Y+ D/ k% d+ GSevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
/ ` v4 Q& f/ R4 @grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before7 c# x4 S% j; u
deciding whether to take the class.
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" `7 s% P, b* ~$ z! A5 `& U"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she/ d3 c% {' d1 n1 k$ M( M! l* {/ P. d
told her daughter.' X. @; s* t1 q6 @6 l5 v7 p$ J$ k
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite: J: o' }% x; _6 w% L! `
class.8 r z- B8 u& k9 Q- r* H: Q
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are, Y% @% J$ N/ e7 }: |
studying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
2 i5 u0 L: P: }( H0 ~occasional frustration.
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
+ C7 c6 v% L9 W5 brecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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2 y$ w5 }" g% N; W3 ^0 W( {0 NRaul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he F! @, r! W0 H9 z1 J
taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with: p* T& [7 e/ K5 O1 \- B5 G1 N& P
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.& u5 Z, X3 {5 ~( I8 a
+ e$ p) z: a4 c! s"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul; ~2 |2 X- ~/ d$ f
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn; j( B5 z/ a% t4 u) Y2 S I
as many languages as I can."3 h# G3 ~& d! N5 T; A( g/ z6 x2 S8 {
7 i9 ]3 Z' A6 G8 M& qAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
i7 w/ ~* C' K7 K2 lskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
. t- A' V* `$ _. O! }& g: o, s8 smarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
1 ?6 @3 }, u, Z! d2 i& T9 ~( V2 Wthat," Ms. Freire said.
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program
- y% }' z& @: j1 n! n9 xhere offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each" ^# n* A( }( e1 \. y' L0 X
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking& L0 J0 y) @5 K5 \9 {
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make9 c2 C1 z8 }) V, ~! @ ~
room.
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
% K! X0 D! k) O3 L/ x, T2 MChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American7 O6 U% }# g' |) C' I8 [8 E
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.
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* L2 N" x, i$ d( m( h! F' m. q"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified/ @# H8 b; u$ l3 { _( z
because of that missing certification," he said.& }% e/ W0 T0 B) N
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
) P0 }3 Y% L/ W( I/ Q4 s2 Zsaid Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia w; ~% t& O- L) t: m
Society in New York.8 Y( y2 T. p. A
8 c! [9 e) f1 B# g B- V) BSix states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the+ k, ^2 [8 ~1 G( C
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
* |- t1 ]6 @0 }7 H$ U4 Y4 x Ethe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our. w, \4 q8 G4 t% l4 W
own."$ a. ]& j* H- W8 Z1 h' W0 `
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