 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
October 15, 2005
% h! w' L: A5 r6 B0 \9 eClasses in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity# ~- i+ W" `8 Z. }
7 G; e* `+ g! I: C8 y6 Z8 |. _By GRETCHEN RUETHLING7 o6 S+ Z, c0 s, i% v
3 E* A n; v& D" o$ d3 H& b0 z6 vCHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
1 F- Y% t2 [* H# L& DUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary% L2 e$ @: Y* ^
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas- C# r! k0 n+ G3 r9 b+ V
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese# {7 M8 {6 r5 _) g$ W
flag hang from the wall.
, J1 t$ b/ H7 h2 e" g! K& }6 N5 r: k5 Q/ w; F2 d
One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
4 E) g# _- m9 k5 W; k7 C6 panother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
1 F/ r$ y+ c6 U& Epracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker3 j% }! }2 {3 N e1 T+ [5 L4 K
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students- q; s, i) H$ K/ ~
are already choosing it over Spanish.
$ M! A) U' U8 w1 S
, i9 q5 f. d M, T) z/ C& ]"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
0 ` U6 s* u( h2 X+ S3 u8 S% ^at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city4 N7 x2 `& p R, k' `2 Q( s# O; l a3 d
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
- q- g Y% ^' }. E7 J( T9 r7 I0 ~- S7 M' T4 d- T U
With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
% {7 A$ Q" _- t j2 @4 T& Nschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
5 j& d3 ?9 g; y6 ?8 U" W% zto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention0 T. P$ m M* B1 l- {
one of its most difficult to learn.
$ l9 C! c1 ?2 b9 O, v+ D* k/ `) }& Q( G7 ?) P& O% s) c, v3 K0 c
Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to" |1 {0 N$ A( p2 b
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
& c |0 n9 ?% a6 t( m- tstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.6 D" U$ R$ R# f9 F, ?3 @
Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of7 c" N+ G- x6 u6 u$ q* B; |# K
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
3 ]" _( y9 q& x) S+ o, xChinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
# z, x: _4 U$ W! k$ z6 oimprove ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.3 ~2 o2 | _* y+ ~) m* W- i
/ ~. \: P) V+ h! T2 m8 NAfter 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
* T0 k9 O _: wChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country: o/ | S; t. a& Z& v1 a
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
0 H: n! k3 m2 Bdevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing1 h$ P9 s% P9 E6 U# W3 C/ N
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director# `* M) K# z' d; L- @- `& @
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.. H9 R( w9 _/ e( U
" {+ u' H: }: G" w1 t2 G" k" ? Z"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of) ], G& W+ I& S1 l- h8 P. C
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
* b2 y. e, Z" NConsulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we3 s4 W: i6 H! P# j0 W/ c: t
can." 4 i0 _7 `& l6 _' U3 k& }7 Z5 j
( r# e4 x& w- z8 R6 M
The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from' s8 R7 W1 n. ?! _+ J' a
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 109 @) K0 K" K' W* F$ Y4 S
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
s3 u, T9 O. U9 K, v! F' cInstitute in Washington.4 o% F$ v3 C3 B0 D
4 `4 o9 C+ N0 G s7 q3 a8 z
"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
$ v! c r3 a& Y0 f, z; T4 Maren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.
5 U7 P% x( v) u# L2 z( _McGinnis said.% H# [$ o! n: i* z
# S$ W# U1 D# ?9 L# S" D
"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical0 `8 q: s( G& L" p0 c. W- a
longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be6 D- I+ I! A* d5 Y
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a% [/ `7 ]: _# s7 z5 H
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
* b- r) r0 s5 K( z/ Y& ^- p
8 u6 b- r z& \" zUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and8 B$ o- a' R0 l9 t; H2 [
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
6 V, h- J/ t8 Z+ G" gcities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of S" z9 L3 A7 w2 C0 d& E" a6 d
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or- ]( x0 T5 o9 Q' L
on weekends.
7 U/ R5 ?( {$ z( L" x) F# `1 G9 U7 O3 W( L% ]
The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
$ G* {7 }, |) n. @* }schools during the regular school day and primarily serves4 Y# D. h4 M+ {% p' K
students who are not of Chinese descent.
1 h. [8 N& E: k" h" X1 B$ g! F% R4 R2 K' U
Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said/ O. ~9 z; h9 R/ A p
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
& G$ j1 G+ c, a: Q+ T% T6 \+ ycompetition. 0 Y4 d ?& D3 q9 l9 U5 L O
/ x& f$ o5 e U% o T9 d"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley" T4 O f0 ?. v9 r
said. "There will be Chinese and English."
8 V, O2 R# f+ E- k7 Z' E. S, f' w7 U
" k% I: \6 {6 u: FFrom an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
4 T) c0 j. A2 T8 A7 Uall-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse5 V" p! G. U9 {2 o0 U' Z6 B1 D* d1 x
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
5 V: S8 y% P, X- ^5 Bkindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
S* {( x) `. b1 O$ awho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
3 s6 U" g' B' O" B8 t5 N ~8 w* [the school system last year.
+ A. o! ?; ?7 q9 Z0 V; P/ h1 q$ m$ q( E" S3 b+ ]/ x. ^9 H, m4 I
The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this0 s: F: [; `! m. f1 T! o4 N, \
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.
% r' a6 H8 x/ n: J2 A U. @
& y) @1 l7 l0 ]7 C8 D i( w: }# e"They have a great international experience right in their own; K9 |1 i- @/ S( @. E# G
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago# [$ g/ h5 R3 V, E! M& K+ ]" U9 f
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to( K& d6 w7 B1 `9 n
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
K2 @5 `: ^, p, j3 t, i) E/ con an equal playing field."( m+ \! z! k! j) f* I6 f: Y
) ^0 ? J8 |/ V( @
Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese9 ?0 y8 v3 N7 o6 h% J/ |+ p) o
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign4 e5 S1 L q, p/ D
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks3 G0 B4 |4 X6 |1 m9 {( |2 ]
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An% v& B4 m C U9 p
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in5 k7 [5 ~8 @; o. A9 ^. R
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the- l' \; _8 z6 d, C; b p) M7 U
institute says.; V* F) o2 K6 A" E& x8 G& d
# }, C1 `1 ]+ W7 y# O# t# U
Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth3 _' z% W9 w# S) a. g5 R) h% M
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
5 H6 e' q1 [8 C9 Rdeciding whether to take the class.
& c c" |$ `" @1 K( s5 n& D
/ i' ^ w- O* d7 h. g2 \: L: c+ N"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
' a5 h/ i: q# [7 P! L# `told her daughter.
2 O- v1 z" ^# S: n% N
; l( k, w; m) r" `6 ]Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
# [ s# U9 e0 dclass.9 Z* Y7 v2 {3 `: W# H( R/ N
: Q' t6 j5 I$ U) F% }" PAt Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
1 V& j/ a$ d+ n3 v; Astudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
1 M1 Q+ k. c; S% }9 v9 [! @occasional frustration.
( q& |$ k0 e3 P& W) y
5 \1 y+ H1 e' e! @8 V, v# q" K"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
, G1 F/ j# z+ P0 W* l9 m$ S$ zrecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.$ o0 @6 B+ {$ L2 R
) c$ X' y' a2 U0 R; W
Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he8 O- T, V% F- [5 a5 e# E; B, s0 n
taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
9 C. Y% f0 E7 u: rChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
' f0 S: L. |5 i3 _4 Y! j. }
/ ]" y) V# h( `/ M8 e2 ?"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
3 Z6 p3 T# \' ^; C: e2 ?( Z8 Jsaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
' ~! X) i6 w4 i0 Q2 d* |" jas many languages as I can."
) H9 g4 I) A# `6 T$ M% ~
$ ?. N: {% J( J# v! CAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
. `. d4 r( C' u/ Q, E* z) D9 @8 \/ pskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
' R# \8 o$ T" A0 U# Fmarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
9 h% ]0 i }; m* N0 w6 Vthat," Ms. Freire said.
& }5 R4 V. g, C; _8 E
$ f# Q" j3 t9 L$ J" C5 jMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program" W6 U6 q4 ?0 w% Y5 z ^1 A
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
0 s" ]" n C, j! y6 A& ]4 w- V$ lschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking1 [" f* T) n# E/ @' K
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make; k) B2 v; j% ?& ?* T' q2 ^
room.$ g- m- V9 O" Z- q
8 r7 R O b5 P6 f/ ? q- U- dChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer3 \0 P$ Q2 g, {) @7 V2 n0 c
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
; u5 T, A7 I, N6 b4 H& ucollege, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.
( |6 v! ?6 [% F, C& l4 q$ Y1 _0 E' C+ Q1 x& m; f
"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified. q; Q5 M: n4 D7 d7 g( E
because of that missing certification," he said.$ l1 w$ O: \/ m! @; D5 H" x
0 D# R. Q4 D- M# e: A( |; t0 c1 gThe shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
7 |9 x3 J6 M4 ~# [& Jsaid Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia. h, B& v2 _! d
Society in New York.
5 B# y* d! v- H/ Z3 v! F3 i6 M! v F* ], m/ J/ I1 ]( t
Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the# B* Q4 Z# z3 i8 i/ I d! B7 E
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
0 i$ H: K: D! G' P* kthe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.) N( x$ S( g- ?- Z0 K
1 g g P& E/ C, g' w8 y) M"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our5 J, a# ?+ P! O$ X( N. Z
own.". y: S8 q9 N' p, R1 Z$ |6 Y( Q
+ [3 O$ Z: W' z/ ~$ hCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
|