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October 15, 2005) b% O' g5 F1 _7 Q8 s8 [/ a: w% T3 b
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity, @, _) ?% u6 i- g) B5 s' Y0 F4 m
9 S% S0 T% c* [9 Z/ S
By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the: s! d# @3 N0 [
United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary1 K* g; o# e: ^+ X1 w
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
7 T S' U1 ]" j- [dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese
4 G3 s% a7 }5 X! H2 zflag hang from the wall." Y: {8 F" {8 V3 J( E) u- N
2 X" X: o. r- S5 b) C4 dOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
& z6 [* u! N" m: k, k; Uanother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders# E+ s8 }! _4 v1 x$ `# s
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker0 J* y* R( L+ w* D5 A
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students. u. E9 X' c( m' }
are already choosing it over Spanish.% Z2 c7 e; S( O
& K3 X1 |% O: ~7 S" S) @4 L: Q"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
, }; U/ ^+ F& l: o* g; w( c" d8 Mat Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city4 \7 n% g* Y# z, `: s V( ] i1 q
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."( u6 d" r7 q2 }8 {
0 w' s) P2 [$ t) PWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
- O' O2 Z3 H' Yschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
" s: [3 t0 }0 u' z" K) s7 Sto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention0 H# }" T1 J- g/ d3 h- V @! Z8 t. I
one of its most difficult to learn.
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: F) b# l8 e \3 y6 lLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to8 y3 r" n& H6 q, Y$ t" Q3 l
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students' S8 A4 E: a; ?. L
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
# \6 T& i ]! [Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of
% C! q! [" }2 c) m* BTennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
' t6 A7 Y3 R% M0 x2 j$ f- {% \Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
/ N0 P: A$ x, s7 \% M7 w6 Oimprove ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.9 B+ v1 k: O5 j7 J7 p9 I
$ o: @$ }4 R9 E0 m0 O8 e6 aAfter 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
# j3 t3 o9 M% V0 G6 @& P6 W( s' l8 ZChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country! n6 f- c3 I! f) H' ?/ |
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to# {* {3 n2 g& Q; t- m+ [% _
develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing
1 J% P$ u N# n6 O9 l/ d1 K' s: J7 kcurriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
5 t. V, u% ^4 M- O" pof the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.
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3 u, B' m0 a. ^% m1 z# y: Y; C"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of4 d) O \" S6 e! B
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education$ f! l2 d1 f5 k) [8 N" x
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
3 @$ {. t3 _ s7 G# Uelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 107 ]) W& ]: q F! q- c. p( F/ n
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language6 l$ V7 _6 _: C. p3 S2 e9 w) L$ x
Institute in Washington.' \" S) A/ I) W( U3 I2 w) _$ y( D
! r3 h- S* A0 |* M' m8 h"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages6 H2 f' n# {, u$ S; \7 R
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.6 w! c3 R2 z( O9 w* a9 b& Q
McGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
: y- }. [8 Y( u& l2 h4 x4 Olongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be8 K( p# a$ V. j) @
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a8 S% \4 X$ q$ U. G' M$ @( d% J
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
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! p, } J& ^- k+ S) @& i' fUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and+ r. `$ C. e K0 ^2 r5 I# R
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in/ Z/ `: E* p: F: M0 U
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of0 e7 \5 T4 D& {' R: `
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or$ {6 E+ _+ h @6 F3 A( x$ s+ Y& P) e$ j% k
on weekends.
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
8 v* d9 v; c4 p! p2 Y# ~5 |; \schools during the regular school day and primarily serves: b) d0 U4 O3 o. C) l0 z) B2 ^6 ^' b
students who are not of Chinese descent.
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said8 [3 f9 f1 ]- _5 H2 `7 J
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the% @+ F' r6 T3 G& A: z
competition.
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"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley& l8 J( r5 A, T' d# @" q
said. "There will be Chinese and English."& f5 b3 _8 e0 A4 d7 r) x' j8 }+ ~
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly! Y$ P; T) j% K
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse) e0 B# s" E: ^
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from: _- S+ N) P7 p4 D; l; w
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
8 v9 ^ B" u: Y3 k/ Z& J+ F1 [who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to9 u: A& z$ S! T2 y( d0 @
the school system last year.
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, b; q; A5 r9 P) XThe program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this
9 W8 y \: O/ i0 W9 B! }year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.1 |0 `9 J% J: @" {
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"They have a great international experience right in their own
' L* Y& c' p/ W' m7 M$ b5 ^* mclassroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago
& a5 F& D* L U4 x8 [8 }$ P" }! dChinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to* ^+ }3 O2 { H N" R7 v
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet: P9 k# k. U3 Y
on an equal playing field."
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Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese, w$ F: b* C: B) e9 @+ s1 C9 n7 M
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign
2 G. A% f1 _$ b2 e" c. ]+ PService Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks
6 H: Q1 c) K( V7 P4 z9 WChinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An3 ?: K! p+ U6 P( @- ~. R1 A4 N
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
# g4 k& |. w9 S7 M3 j3 rChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
0 B; |! i5 t4 V2 E9 J( d8 Zinstitute says.) }/ n$ o$ I; S' N+ G9 Z" G
2 k/ T+ ~& `9 |Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
# ^% U4 K1 O6 i" A4 b& Q% g8 X S* M5 Fgrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before/ F: }0 `8 t7 h) y5 x
deciding whether to take the class., J6 Z. V1 s* A/ h/ ^- x! x
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
5 \& ~1 L" Z8 }+ }1 D$ M" Ftold her daughter.1 C" N; I9 |; y. F0 n" o' c6 j
: {' I+ i9 N9 Z( PSahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite" Q! \3 X' M3 I/ `. e
class.$ o- m: d7 `1 a; e
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
0 s' u3 N$ q* v* p" c+ O2 Qstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
( X' d4 {% M0 X: V' J- [) {9 ?occasional frustration.6 V; K0 b d3 i, K
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
3 h o' S# K5 o$ p5 X0 ?recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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: Z4 M0 d z( ~ }. p) p) I# DRaul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he8 B8 Y+ Y& `! ~3 c$ r
taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
/ _3 T9 q" k6 c8 Z" bChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
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( ?3 n7 n' \, q) Z0 K* A* d"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul! x; _' S a, ~. j# N
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
9 `( N- d0 H- u* oas many languages as I can."
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3 I* e! f& o1 l% S7 y; X7 rAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
, I0 N" D6 p" ^: N* B7 i7 Xskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
4 D! i: H+ e2 W1 u# P$ Z$ Qmarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like/ J/ x5 \/ D) E7 N5 n
that," Ms. Freire said.2 G& v: G: o) f0 Z1 b
: e1 F( b) f; _/ J6 ~* A1 @9 LMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program9 J8 Y+ X7 a8 [3 y j c
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
0 p8 g: k L- }, {# J% Dschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking6 p! p; l, ?' b. S2 Z
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make
0 x8 Q9 W) C" o: r' Froom.
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* y" L" y& ~7 j( ~; _+ z; ~1 k; IChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
0 R. a' a0 {% A7 S- jChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
) g* b: @" b0 r) O0 Zcollege, 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; b H, I2 e6 R p* K
because of that missing certification," he said.
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,& Y3 L/ }! |, l! W" A0 p0 Q# S* ^
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia! _' M" E$ s B' r% x4 {" O: q
Society in New York.' L5 W- k4 z C0 }
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
1 m: y" x6 ~3 wChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
- \/ c1 S/ [5 R* }6 q& c3 Ithe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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" r! g i5 j2 s9 v' E* b"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our4 O9 T, A+ r/ c1 ^; x& ?4 c {8 x- u* i
own."
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6 d9 E* j+ W6 T+ pCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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