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October 15, 20053 N1 N( s" x( }. l. p5 n8 j# F) K
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity! I" h5 X. K, y2 G
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING4 r: }& u# j: [% F E v( E4 S
+ Z& P: v2 G1 m! I) X' P7 w2 eCHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the! o1 D! h9 G) L. v2 F& h* q! _
United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
% \' S, K# i0 @. ESchool, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
9 z7 L4 x4 ]/ S5 ydangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese" M" c0 U7 @2 y! j. i( I/ F' n4 E
flag hang from the wall.$ o0 N& w7 u, f8 G
2 i0 A" K7 b4 K2 Y; hOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
( b8 t9 y2 o0 s8 K/ A1 J) r* O canother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
* {9 r3 J' o' R8 Lpracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
; s8 j. b- m- ^6 T+ Aboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
) g* j( F$ }! U( s( oare already choosing it over Spanish.
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"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal, t! I4 ?% G% Z, v2 u: W
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city& p( o$ f7 _6 b' l* E
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
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2 |5 p- T* {/ l) Q/ U9 w( H2 YWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
9 u( o$ B+ F9 Wschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
2 e$ ~) {9 o, p$ M; ~4 U% kto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention
6 y% S4 J" h8 E1 q# h- `2 |8 bone of its most difficult to learn.% |) s9 i2 L/ R# B1 b' h. q' c
* }% ^- l+ b9 h5 G: L# M! JLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
& ~9 r# @( t. _. W, Q# R8 Kpublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students' x( P9 p5 K. H a& }/ h
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
# {! |% g; K8 W4 c7 k2 `Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of- q, f* r+ m% A/ N% v- O
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
6 k' u' e5 F+ b2 ~3 ~' qChinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
}% p2 C7 _* kimprove 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
- O i8 m& ^1 fChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
9 ?* o9 U3 W. e2 I, Mstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to- H! L$ W z9 Y+ y- K
develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing
1 Y& T; z- k& Z1 |0 Zcurriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director6 `3 p( K( t/ u" I4 g* O
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.
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; t$ p9 x" n( _) l"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of$ u+ T* D; A# q8 v1 B0 c
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education8 s* A4 m7 E5 L, `' J$ U
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we8 l9 m3 I) A$ V
can."
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# v% Q7 h: c* XThe number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
" A4 ~# b; Y7 r( k' j% e6 j9 H4 D; pelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10( ]% d4 l, S; u2 B3 }
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
) k: E+ v5 J4 c# m) c( TInstitute in Washington.
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( ~4 x8 }' F! l4 l0 m0 X8 s"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages. l( U! N# P7 b) a3 F. Y
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.5 i# t4 b) U9 H$ k* i
McGinnis said.* p. ^. C' x9 `
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
/ m$ b. k9 F* @8 plongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
. i% O& J7 s/ X: |ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a3 }; m% x: l: w9 c$ h5 C" T m6 t7 ?
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."$ r. _7 T1 X8 q
$ j) _) W3 u. P! S8 tUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
& z$ w- B% U& O' T: H) [secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
: o+ n. b( l" k4 }. {cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
+ k# d- Q* g, _3 x/ bChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or3 U( Q/ A" X/ o& l7 x; K% _
on weekends.
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
# [* ?8 h2 F) P1 G. {9 g, _" L& g$ T: Wschools during the regular school day and primarily serves
3 ~3 r& K. {3 K4 V( hstudents who are not of Chinese descent.
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
/ J& D/ u3 s& d) Uproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the: E' `/ O) u5 N2 {" j
competition. / H( z. k8 U# [% O6 V& B5 \/ \
) `2 m v2 U5 N/ o6 C"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley0 R. s4 A# \1 [0 C: m/ P7 m
said. "There will be Chinese and English."
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5 Y* W' h/ C) G$ [7 V& `6 J7 zFrom an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly1 @, m" }2 I. ]0 \6 `# P
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse
0 J# x2 W/ W5 O, y& O: d3 R+ @schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from2 @) `/ N) d$ t, b4 \$ g
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
1 N# z6 r% G, ^6 Pwho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to! ^! r9 v# Y1 D8 e4 L& u, l/ O- t
the school system last year.# C! v6 t& H3 F" n
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this8 Z6 b- l$ }: K/ H% W# B* W$ l
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.. P( k0 |% e. p% \4 k( z# J
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"They have a great international experience right in their own& q; Y5 i l7 n& P" C" e* J
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago
* x! C) P- G. b1 Q( p5 bChinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to( [; {8 W5 V+ o$ ?. j
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
7 _4 x T1 t* i" u& B% hon an equal playing field."1 x& b" w; @: u1 r5 f F
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Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese, {7 x ?/ \" x
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign
% b: }4 u+ k* z5 l" P* uService Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks
) P, v$ x( }3 \# l, V/ e; IChinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
% _0 r! O3 I& z1 @) w' E6 caverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
4 n% S6 I- ]" n' b8 [- ZChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the- M4 Z, Z7 f O& k+ Q9 G
institute says.3 C8 Y% y7 r' i6 b
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth7 r9 `4 m: }5 F. D$ Z' X
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
+ Y/ \( k7 w" v. fdeciding whether to take the class.& P. N. F3 o* T0 z' s$ F0 W0 Z
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she: u2 a! g7 \2 l0 ?" F, \: v& k
told her daughter.) C; P2 G1 r8 ^. F2 ?
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
. k3 n! r" k0 oclass. w6 `: h8 m% G4 [2 W
) V# O3 T. Z% d# y# Q YAt Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
- x! j9 `0 z M0 p6 h" _. K& dstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without( B! o; W& N' ]1 e! }% ]& [
occasional frustration.
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a; n" q8 |) y1 k' |2 _
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
: R; z& R% z X' R2 z3 }5 otaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
* d8 N5 o' |$ X! CChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.( M( L7 H- J9 A0 K9 s5 G: M% g
9 G& S* Z- \* V6 @' x7 k! T* Z"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
/ `# `* I7 S4 Gsaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
. ?6 U0 h( J$ h* vas many languages as I can."
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
; ?& `* b; d. n7 I% p! @! |) askills would help her son be a better competitor in the job1 e" n, B$ F' K; v4 x2 o8 q
market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like, H/ u0 a" I6 U/ V# J: n4 e3 a
that," Ms. Freire said.4 T7 a, E4 F, j* S+ a
Z: U. x" _$ m4 y8 EMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program8 O& A7 U- k& ?' F, j
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each$ `, d/ u* e& w7 _8 S
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking' n1 _+ T% R) R" z
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make
A7 s: J. {3 |! q, i1 Wroom.# F* M* T1 s& A" m
7 d6 d% h' W I m9 e% d6 ?$ p4 NChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer+ K( o5 }6 ?9 ^' T
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American% A6 b7 ]+ z% b* j+ w5 B N
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.- D- X" r2 W! ?4 q3 ~' {! g
1 ^! f. ^! p* d! C/ v( s"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified3 q. L, h$ {7 L4 t
because of that missing certification," he said.7 d% ^" u! x) B6 m/ @% C" }
1 @% A* \% D& M8 Z7 O( [The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States," q) Y2 k; k! U! j A$ e- m
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia
5 i$ D' Q' s f( |1 p% USociety in New York.
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: a* \1 u# \: l/ S# oSix states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the6 a. }. s2 z' A- g, n
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
/ V" l8 Z8 z2 |) h1 }6 ythe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
' O+ _% O+ d/ Q6 a* i' hown."
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