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October 15, 2005& x" m) _ \# i% b
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity- l1 i( I1 D5 d8 z2 c% o
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING b" R3 a8 T! ^7 Z7 P5 P
. V- z; D# D [CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
- e6 A+ l/ M1 f2 [2 ?United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary0 D! n8 z" B& W1 M+ z8 @
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
! a2 U3 G7 P) C* f( T* H: idangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese( b2 ^8 n0 P8 k( G" s: K1 _
flag hang from the wall.
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" D1 {7 ^8 Q# K$ |One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one$ o. j0 a9 F5 P8 _7 C3 a
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
5 g8 D) w" {4 N5 Upracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
) L% T' M0 M" c2 h2 {' tboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
3 m c1 ]- x K- d3 e) \! B, lare already choosing it over Spanish.
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. d' r* D# I7 Z- B6 h/ ~' v" \"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
) j. `0 M* y; D& N' n/ A, D2 ^ qat Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city: I4 T3 p" s6 ?" o- i+ I
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."' e ^: U- N I
& h5 F+ R/ v2 ZWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
* R# y+ n8 v; h+ Q- Tschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
" ]) i5 n& V4 ~ q* h+ wto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention
$ V6 i a) e& U6 Yone of its most difficult to learn.
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6 K& o0 P) P F2 CLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
! ?. L: p; W7 ?- j4 W- Hpublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
1 {' K0 m4 V+ N& C3 ~# t0 Zstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
; {; o. ~% j2 r+ Y5 y- M9 FLieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of
% R; M8 ]( A0 E; t5 L# [2 d- PTennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on+ @" S4 u1 {( E9 |( \2 X: ^
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to0 z' U- u7 I0 Z" s% e
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.& e/ g9 K3 r0 i) R% |
% I% h8 S2 [9 V( h3 K) JAfter 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
7 U8 f3 v4 L( p( AChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
) H! d0 J2 r3 v, b6 S% v: d0 Jstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to8 C# _, p7 ?% r
develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing p8 B- ]. s6 |3 O& o) e5 o8 X
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director" g- |9 J7 O( Y+ ]% u3 d! @
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.
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4 H5 b3 ~$ L# ~- Y! O: P7 s"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
) R4 F4 h! X8 u. Sspeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
+ u0 R; Z, |. P: UConsulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
5 P ?- U5 y3 l a% i. I) O; {can."
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
8 l+ J) s( X7 ?- F+ p7 M* x( R# Nelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 103 \3 \; a' O5 k& K1 m3 b; H
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language! |$ T' t! d" O9 x; U5 p
Institute in Washington.5 |; L ]" M; E" J! R
+ x2 q& ^! u+ i3 c& i+ @"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
& }+ B; p2 g( Q6 r. [: ?) waren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.& ? R7 J% w- x
McGinnis said.( z4 P* p6 Q" Q2 y8 Q
; z# j! h! e6 J% J"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical. b' I3 |5 K6 Y
longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
* F: @9 H3 g! U0 X( x& l, h' S# zready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a. K4 W' \/ ^9 c8 E {4 d6 o4 f
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
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Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and' T" Y+ _& O, l1 B1 z
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in: S; A/ k7 D* b2 ~: t$ d
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
" g6 `4 l6 m8 T* k" j$ H& I; o" T4 tChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or8 a0 M' m9 D$ c6 B
on weekends.6 z0 _$ _1 ?' [# Z9 y
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
6 S+ f# \) L9 a: Ischools during the regular school day and primarily serves" C) o0 q* @4 M/ u$ p
students who are not of Chinese descent.
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( C) i! P/ O* ~3 s& qMayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
; e9 B: ^9 Z! Y6 R9 z8 ?$ Hproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
# I! ]5 m" v9 f! y c- zcompetition. 5 \# A5 p* X0 v4 G7 e
/ F+ ?) T1 ~ O, V"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
2 ^5 B3 l6 D9 \& ]said. "There will be Chinese and English."
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; B0 o2 Y2 W9 E4 U3 \( I* ^From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly2 K& M5 o4 B0 U& w' G% m; h5 l
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse1 e/ D$ T# S7 }% i, ~
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
( V. f; z# Q4 tkindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students. O4 f# c5 B' a) m' Y l
who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to* I# R3 M) O! y* N$ _8 R
the school system last year.0 x+ Z# o7 d$ k2 |7 t; ?
A/ W2 C" w- B0 E1 [) GThe program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this$ Y0 N, ?! O0 B* _' z9 m8 ~
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.2 c2 ` V8 y, M1 X$ ]- O8 x
8 r' I- [: D) w"They have a great international experience right in their own
1 B4 E Z* T) X$ kclassroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago
5 H$ D! |' c4 l; u; @8 @% i9 j! `Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to; _: z& j$ M' ]
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
- d$ F" m1 q6 c, h: w0 _; p* C% |( ton an equal playing field."
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8 u$ K" `6 M1 Q0 c Y7 f$ HSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese5 r9 X3 A$ T7 ~- l4 A
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign" Y1 j% ^$ }, A4 e/ E% s
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks. q8 Q$ ?+ z. C2 S- y/ P0 I* O& ^' m
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An& L$ r8 T" p' P3 Y& L! b
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in& A: m/ c7 N. W7 G5 P* ?4 Q
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the3 d& x: `5 o0 G+ B; y) ?+ U
institute says.
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' J4 j% r5 k. E1 J( z& CSevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
2 N( w% R# u2 t$ f$ U1 t6 ?3 H* Pgrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
' n, L0 M& W, @4 V/ ~; w& }deciding whether to take the class.0 z& X9 V5 U, S/ K
8 M, n/ _/ ]; u/ A* V"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she: `# I$ @. I$ R: W/ k3 f
told her daughter.) m$ j9 X. ]3 D6 M% [1 x
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
- |; O4 K+ U% Q% Qstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without# M6 _( t5 u# B1 U4 p) R( a
occasional frustration. H6 s% ]! Q C- W" u# l
1 ^! Y0 `1 V5 y$ _"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a; t, E4 S* R/ g3 Z5 H7 T
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.; |- w: m6 t3 \( _/ d
9 A# e+ p, O3 z5 g; ?Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he* W, L; S. C/ y1 O1 l( }
taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with! k- {8 q; I- q; h0 D1 [
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.$ h4 A" D# z7 g" c: d
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
: @6 E; D, A) O# {" \) Z! |said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn& Z) G7 F; c- ]1 t# ?7 m/ X
as many languages as I can."! |. C! D3 |# T4 B6 ^
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the( V' p; l& ^) B1 N- ~9 }
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job' P& z/ l! Q" S# l- a/ p1 u
market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
$ N5 j% v* g7 m \7 I' M) cthat," Ms. Freire said." E% l- ^& l7 Y" k {
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program3 n5 o2 e5 |& V$ p+ T
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each0 X6 r" @3 c' d* a& h
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking& J' D" o n0 `) l
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
+ r C: [# N8 R* x& f1 x% m6 h: QChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
+ ]2 f+ Q6 C% i, h- s0 Y9 Jcollege, 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+ m: l) [% E2 j
because of that missing certification," he said.8 U1 q' f8 F$ t6 M# _
0 S3 J& v- s0 X& q' ^8 z& NThe shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,0 t' M- U+ D5 i) x
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia
% ]& f3 v$ ?+ Y. h) G" {1 l1 ~- tSociety in New York.- J6 H6 V8 F% X9 U+ G4 |/ A
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the6 T6 b$ ?/ ^! e2 Z1 x
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
9 y c/ L! d- O4 Q5 V% jthe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.7 b- n& V. Q9 ]* t
9 \8 `" v0 _9 }0 O"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
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