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October 15, 2005
3 {. U$ k" o+ H+ B5 L, ^Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity9 X+ G" |1 h8 c0 j g1 d8 B' N0 z- k
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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9 H5 n& E! j. R* b: h" F, {+ PCHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
6 E; B" n0 g6 b8 L% NUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary" U/ l* q4 u) \/ z& R1 J0 c
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
8 [# G2 {; }% n5 P$ H8 Adangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese/ r4 R% ~3 `8 V# A
flag hang from the wall.4 p/ q+ p7 x4 H8 M$ P
3 i: j. U' G' V+ oOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
w4 N" N/ s) R- C0 T3 z5 q3 hanother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders$ J9 J8 c, e) {! D V# M- d
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
8 m+ M' B# W- B8 ?' [+ V$ K- W8 wboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
/ T$ W3 i) b! M! Y# G$ pare already choosing it over Spanish.
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9 k) y3 J' |$ J! X$ |$ R3 \"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
; K: I: x, m; G' I1 _at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city( Y0 y5 r* s4 _' H' Y2 ~5 Z
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
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9 s: ~3 I5 R( O; G2 B2 Z" m! IWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,5 }% }5 a+ j% F; \9 v6 H' X
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
4 r$ L6 ?( R9 Q S, Rto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention/ h2 G6 o9 b" c. [3 o
one of its most difficult to learn.' H+ R: p- K4 }: o
$ h7 \- I, |2 T( z/ S, Y1 iLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to! |+ P v1 X Y$ D- x0 i8 W7 F
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students3 }& x# q; p3 b6 y0 `
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
5 Q7 x3 w! l" u- T# m' FLieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of
/ p% D' L8 f7 T# VTennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on5 m* ]4 v4 F- G9 c
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
9 j* S% B- ~' u' g6 |improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
- l @. b# o/ N7 F$ B# F" AChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
9 M- L* O4 H, U% gstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to0 W9 t' s4 C- A! e
develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing
8 U1 b( l" W8 b m2 Acurriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director6 X# d& h3 C3 p r( [' K
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.' e; {) Q$ G0 w! h
% J1 t" V7 Z* B* {"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
5 [; y5 o5 [7 x- L& Y# ~! c' Gspeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education# f" \5 p# D7 Q; w
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
2 h1 D& E5 T. N6 l! D% [can."
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# ]9 n" T" D8 c' JThe number of Chinese language programs around the country, from0 {4 v0 J+ U1 I1 v+ y+ j, {# a
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 107 O+ A+ r) |( c. h+ W, U# x* H
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
' x: f+ i) L N* M* l& XInstitute in Washington.6 r! n0 D! w8 e6 X+ h9 r3 O+ a
/ T* y! m4 b3 ?$ b- \$ U4 }. ~"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages+ c: ?1 G, E5 v1 u3 o4 ^
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.
. @/ `( X& L n FMcGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical& c. q% H7 ~" f7 o/ X! _
longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be6 N. G3 p7 x; o1 I7 {+ H0 |
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a" I# X7 H6 L* h4 P# K0 S1 @& u% f
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
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& y- E: C) s, A" hUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
$ [4 I% h* p, isecondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in* Q5 N1 j/ P i2 E- |7 _
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of" R7 W; B# Q, V! S4 w, K h) j
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or4 d( Z5 ?$ }2 C3 r0 m m
on weekends." {/ {1 A9 N& J7 F' a$ l: L9 G
6 d' q% n& a( w/ FThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
/ J: U! x/ U3 h- u% f6 Aschools during the regular school day and primarily serves; f) m5 o6 W1 O r P
students who are not of Chinese descent.# `# _/ j. x; h6 F) {+ q
Q3 m; V0 i, S, yMayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said2 m: l ]; E, f; m) b) b1 V( ]
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
3 F; o3 j* K7 z1 k0 G q- h7 Kcompetition. % V2 ^" j5 Q( M* c6 q# |
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"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
6 I! I3 |9 q" p% ^' K8 \% u& t3 Lsaid. "There will be Chinese and English."' R' y0 O8 H0 p9 D' D
8 C; |, q$ \! t9 Y+ B. V. hFrom an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly& I; {( L1 g# b" |% r% A
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse0 Z5 l' a. j0 i, O3 v
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
+ U. |$ b/ [4 q5 Q+ [) u4 pkindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
7 c& v7 `/ _5 fwho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to: u8 O* \, z/ i" Q& S# |+ y; S
the school system last year.% C+ E0 l# @! t: i
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this! w1 a8 F# L8 _7 e2 C5 J3 z6 i
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.
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/ s$ p4 i9 F* @/ P- R"They have a great international experience right in their own6 V- Y6 K6 a& L3 c& @) G
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago+ K8 h! E2 ^' W/ _
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
3 y/ _$ @7 S: O) J2 |0 Khelp students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
# ^0 H) o+ Y% hon an equal playing field."5 ~: O1 D/ d2 [: n9 P, r
4 K3 {/ }! D) tSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese
" O- d8 Q; m+ w1 `1 u8 nclasses are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign
3 g0 b7 u# x0 a4 j' F" l# E3 \2 DService Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks0 ^8 S; c/ h6 h+ |' g
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An/ a0 o) }# k: }) D
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in* f+ @- N! h" [+ N9 a
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
$ D. x: r# D5 ^+ Q: cinstitute says.
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth0 i6 Y8 I6 P- W
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
5 h; k3 H! v! w! }# j \2 b3 l& Cdeciding whether to take the class.. M: [7 E! `; ` k; Q- U! s& }
! j. V& K) m1 D3 ^' W"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
( U/ h+ X/ i: |) J% g: utold her daughter.
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9 d, V! B" Y9 O. q& P2 oSahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite+ Z. i" I$ t- H! t) K
class.
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
p ~6 t# I! U$ Xstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
( _+ ^2 j' u" o" j R. n8 u, ooccasional frustration.- J+ s0 p: ~- z1 T: s6 w& r
: `: Z$ g: F3 M# P: |"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
1 u2 E+ m8 h- }& t0 R0 v# urecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.) c% F5 M* B( X- x! V2 b
: r. T% e5 n1 m1 i5 dRaul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
8 p% s: A- _) |2 otaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with u2 q% L& N/ V: J! }0 U
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.% [4 @1 ^3 h+ w/ f
7 Z4 e; ]: J8 E) [# C"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
5 ?2 y" a7 a4 X* o% R& Vsaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn( c1 e2 c4 o- t) C; B
as many languages as I can."# \& ^1 R5 y6 C# P3 B5 ?' z
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
' P& e5 k3 f6 D; n: `" F! H+ `skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
1 Q$ R: F( I) D. O C3 ^market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like, z2 V& B1 L" G9 g
that," Ms. Freire said.3 K* R$ g4 M& E" [/ ]* l
4 X' E4 ]# i; z4 S) ~Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program
5 n* H: M% D9 |here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
' `* J+ [; H2 Fschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking0 E% D& L- g r
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make, R5 O5 ^. I2 A+ ^; U* Q0 P
room.
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
# w' d- E6 I& F- GChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American! n9 P! X# R3 w
college, 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
% s5 T7 H, [) g0 m3 U4 k" Dbecause of that missing certification," he said.$ V& U" D8 b; u; \. y) L
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
4 n- V& x3 Y' A3 ^ ^: o4 m, zsaid Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia2 A3 @* X/ H$ N0 W- r0 z3 e3 b3 s
Society in New York. a6 c" _% ?- _2 B* \! A9 l
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the9 N# u! N# D. W; b0 k2 M! s8 y
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
0 A7 L$ A( h7 Y, @' Kthe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our: N7 D8 w" G) s' P6 F* s9 z
own."2 [2 O; l. T: m1 P" e+ o2 M
S* E$ K( a2 ^1 o: |Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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