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October 15, 2005" e3 j Y1 _8 n* m. O5 m! C% I
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity
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0 @. Q; q+ J1 ?2 o! c% E- I$ YBy GRETCHEN RUETHLING0 o% w" o' k; L/ D' c
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CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
1 ?' z+ Q! Q. G& tUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary# J& W+ i% x# P- G, d3 i' }$ x5 y. O
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
0 G( i- o0 h T$ q$ Y$ Vdangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese2 `8 r. E0 s8 y" O( [; h: n
flag hang from the wall.7 S( v- G$ P, W2 Q1 M, I
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One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one) R* Y9 Y5 k" U0 E% K# z/ x
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders, m. y8 h, o; y5 f: Z0 E9 W+ q
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker8 R/ j* w+ m$ |. G$ R' s
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
# s2 P/ c9 s" care already choosing it over Spanish.# _( L; K0 e2 P. d) f6 y
4 K$ _$ ~4 R' v7 ?# \% L$ S; }' v"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
4 v5 X" m2 H; ~4 O4 Hat Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
4 |. s& d! L# f7 f( r. q! ?offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."/ m. `2 t/ p2 F3 \1 U, S9 S
$ p% G& I% N* ]8 Z0 Q7 m3 gWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,6 [- s* w: D$ c) N2 v* x6 |
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings. F+ m, a/ N; }3 @8 s# Q+ [, h1 }
to include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention0 P: F3 L7 T8 p n
one of its most difficult to learn.& E; R" G% R; B0 F* G8 L
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Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
. B; Q5 @4 N; f/ Mpublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
0 s7 l" a6 T3 u( xstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
9 L/ b" _1 o( [7 B) l8 y9 v+ j; DLieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of, Q" G& w1 Y1 V! k
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on" F7 ?/ e3 `$ F
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to+ {1 O& z9 q" A- T( g2 M
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.8 m/ @% r/ y' C% t# @, \
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
; J6 K- l* I( A Y, w y. N# n$ UChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country' r7 c$ o) B) w. `& u
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
0 d+ U. h3 w( K% ` T! n0 J. idevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing5 ^5 V7 K2 S2 b) a! t
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
- V2 N& T; N7 A% ~# m; K6 A% sof the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.
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, b' B# P5 e) r& y9 Z9 E) R: G" Q; D"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
f% M( C& x- N4 {0 espeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education5 w5 y" V- y0 r$ p/ K6 f- {& k! ^
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
3 C1 l& E! \# P" f# N# Q( K: Xcan."
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from& z& Z/ _% [# s/ N# t7 j3 N
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10
4 L2 h0 k0 A+ o7 l) q- Qyears, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language+ H7 _# ~/ U" F6 w' H, J
Institute in Washington.
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"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages( t! [& c1 V) n% v6 \8 A; v
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.% h4 T e/ w% o) \7 s; G
McGinnis said.) j2 Z9 n/ c) v. e5 L
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
/ r6 J3 Z0 E5 G4 h8 qlongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be7 Y& [+ L0 x6 j, h- y
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a, _+ s* t& S- F7 n4 }4 q2 y
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do.". ^8 u& V/ i& {8 [' H: t
' T' F& F7 z% ]- V8 D8 PUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
, Q+ C6 Q5 ~7 v3 S5 V ~5 X$ ssecondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
: R2 D( ^ j$ N2 w+ V2 k( `' icities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
( Q5 y& f7 G' p0 N2 K( EChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or
z7 t: x! @/ R9 aon weekends.$ \9 |2 w% @8 D {, w; l2 Q% S
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
s0 X$ D; @# }schools during the regular school day and primarily serves0 J0 [3 G# Y1 s# }' @' s3 K
students who are not of Chinese descent.9 E& l/ ]( s+ e0 h3 }5 K
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
7 A( Q! _' S* Jproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
( C0 h8 g; q z3 kcompetition.
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6 l9 \( I! Z; ["I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
6 K6 l5 h7 m7 s' [7 p7 jsaid. "There will be Chinese and English."
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly F# c8 `; Z& j8 j5 r9 p0 h4 c6 k* f. U
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse& Q' ~- h0 q9 J# g% M4 d3 v
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from M6 ?$ X+ I) V8 e
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
* ]1 [9 Y8 v5 s% J# F: qwho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
/ R( e* t5 E* G& mthe school system last year.
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this
7 r1 X9 o3 ^$ g9 @ P- ^5 Ryear and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.
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"They have a great international experience right in their own1 [& x" L0 o; H. Z& a! |( L
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago" I/ U1 U5 K; m$ P) _
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to8 U1 y- H1 l; C* N( j
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet+ T, K+ G6 E: ]
on an equal playing field."& `) |, H. C1 y- j4 f8 W% c" R( [
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Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese5 |: m* z- o/ T" ^ M1 A
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign6 Y8 {9 G- j$ ]# @
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks$ i7 N0 G6 }) _* `. X9 b$ e( O( d
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
3 @6 ?' S: ^& ~+ ]& u+ Z$ l \# Zaverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
! g" Q( a$ ]9 Q& WChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
* }, c" H8 E/ H' Rinstitute says., t: i% `! I3 u6 A
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
) ^% Z: Y8 p# {/ d, C' Vgrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
/ |; n* s1 Q) i: k* O" sdeciding whether to take the class.; Y3 R: Y4 {8 v. u
* Y* a k6 m8 B4 b- _6 {"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
2 [. c1 M" v% J# B: ^3 R+ S6 P9 Otold her daughter.
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2 y/ [: u4 `7 x* mSahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite7 J. H- U; o9 x$ n1 ~- y" H P
class.. G* y$ [' H: K! N% I4 @" y
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
6 T" I* b$ O6 f& ` l" rstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without }" @7 }) q- S+ C. m a
occasional frustration.
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8 e# T" F5 `5 [* @# b( q"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
0 ^" @8 Y& L9 drecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he$ n4 `. V" i- P! ~" S
taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
" k( s; _& i* A0 [4 MChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
+ p4 P: H3 t1 {" u) r8 isaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
6 M- d* B( N( L: t( Has many languages as I can."
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7 ~3 R$ c& W' X) v9 AAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the$ O& j# x) |& t3 I
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
3 M3 l* {2 i/ \! e7 u) E. Rmarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like+ J+ K7 b0 P$ M) q8 r
that," Ms. Freire said.
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program5 |* e: s1 f9 g4 ` o. k9 W, ]; a
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each$ ]) U1 r4 o4 B1 ~/ |; \( V
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking" e; n' u! ?1 g% I
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make+ U9 o. H, O- }/ ^
room.
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
_6 u# O4 h# t# XChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American: M2 k% r# m# P2 i" W1 A. H ~. I
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.( r& D+ r O) P E% s8 j: R
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"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified# k; c9 f7 u3 a! C8 L+ T+ p$ J4 I t
because of that missing certification," he said./ I( d$ \0 B2 _
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
% S9 W8 K7 R4 S2 f, z; _- Esaid Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia
! a% ]! e$ H, r& wSociety in New York.7 j" Y* I8 q* {+ a% B
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
& h) j+ W4 i7 v3 WChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from6 x2 `8 q6 U, N. N
the United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said. `! P3 u: p* k, S
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"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our# |* J2 @0 Y+ j- H
own."" c: k: D% j- |7 W% p# A
2 H ^9 f( v. `' x: V1 d6 Y- DCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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