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October 15, 2005. ]& \$ F% f! C0 C1 |' L
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity
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$ x3 B7 j5 @0 ^7 W' |By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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& \. g1 T% N2 b0 ?' PCHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
% ^3 Y1 Y8 {+ t" _4 m% t+ s5 J7 UUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
6 w9 T+ a& l T' [* [School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas; V. a4 R7 b, [! u& e$ O0 ]- p
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese
/ i0 U1 x" |3 G2 j' qflag hang from the wall.
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! d( q& K' U6 ]* q, POne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one, j1 O: X4 c: l& h" h0 O' a) @
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
0 a* T8 B* G# wpracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker, h7 h0 z! D8 s) ]* {6 [3 e* c8 H
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students, a0 y" ^: L: p, a2 s" \/ _
are already choosing it over Spanish.
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"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
2 s. M% n# k1 H$ h" Z. oat Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city* Y, @; C9 {5 U6 \2 |
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
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With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,9 N7 f1 f0 R3 E2 f0 c3 i8 I
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
& c$ O O' J# h8 e! \; L3 J% `to include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention
, ^1 X9 l$ h$ q+ P5 }one of its most difficult to learn.
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Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
! l m1 x3 {# M8 _; M" Hpublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
+ {3 i; ~" B; {/ t# Gstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.2 K( y, ]! j d- r O
Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of7 W: N- {2 {$ V3 \4 e2 ^* u2 {5 r
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
- E8 N R5 I- g3 yChinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to+ O" Z$ F$ C' v8 a) l( k1 [
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
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a3 C% Q( Z- b: ]. a i( v) ~After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement# W/ |0 x: p; l0 X' G
Chinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country. W3 x1 W$ v, U* l: }
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
1 u) _1 \) z: }1 r2 C7 jdevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing- O! e# a+ B' }0 h8 f1 @
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
4 {/ F; V5 [/ h+ H* q9 L4 zof the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.; z% V( I' `" e" [
* }+ y7 L" R0 {$ m: F/ Y! _3 j"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
* f* b* n, \5 P1 Dspeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education2 G8 y8 z1 |# P' N
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we- { O1 A9 Z) f8 y: C/ ^4 y* _$ s
can."
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from, ~& N! B; S' h- z# |+ ?+ T8 }# A
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10) |& }& C( }- {4 u: I2 K
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
2 l' ?0 ^; [/ {Institute in Washington.5 s' m8 u7 B5 v- \8 e
: r2 ]$ r! c5 i/ W. v"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages) O; u' h7 T, d, A# h8 i
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr., G+ g" y$ C7 x' h3 V
McGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical, F& _6 g2 ^" s4 u, Z' U
longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be+ C' z8 g! n% T, |1 F
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a
5 [1 H E- U* {challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."! e. J/ {" r3 Q1 O5 q7 Z
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Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
5 F0 K. H5 J7 \- o! i% vsecondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in9 {" Y' p" D. |; L& P( n
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
6 J& D9 m( ~% ?8 R5 Z) iChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or6 i2 i' R' R% x6 M. W) w5 L
on weekends.+ Y8 Y5 ?2 R% L" M {2 u
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public; }3 X# O3 F( K$ A% P5 d
schools during the regular school day and primarily serves
6 E8 ]! G1 C7 d# @students who are not of Chinese descent./ r" B7 f- ]+ f8 \8 @, n% X3 }. Z
6 }1 x7 p( u0 `# r0 w7 FMayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
6 M+ F8 k" @2 E/ ]/ l/ c" x% Q) nproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the6 c2 C: E' \( B, G; S
competition.
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"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley; O+ g P/ N7 @/ \
said. "There will be Chinese and English."
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
. t J% a( v& [/ R8 o Sall-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse4 O! }' W$ h8 V% f! F
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
; Z8 l; L! V) O. Y7 A8 Bkindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
1 A0 m5 ?7 g, g/ U+ }/ ~- N1 x/ fwho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to! R% ]' X8 t& M- K+ J
the school system last year.
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this
/ O$ Q. g1 K7 J; T. Y7 k Wyear 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 own! w5 v$ }6 k$ v* _3 S" g1 N
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago
/ r6 A' k X- U! N3 f* TChinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
2 k3 q8 T7 L* [, W$ yhelp students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
1 ]/ t1 V5 J$ S; c% u& r4 ?on an equal playing field."
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Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese
! i, ?/ _# l. M# a$ T. k7 U3 l3 Yclasses are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign5 Q9 z% U$ Q$ C- a5 A9 n' k% W4 j
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks& H1 h& e; b" ?* P Q
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An/ t' C, Q( ~+ `- L& k5 I# d$ y X
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
: A3 l* `% f% Q/ [/ @* p2 \; u, IChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the: G! T2 I- O5 u1 C( h2 c: H3 o
institute says.7 L9 c4 Z+ |2 a0 g1 d5 [- r
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
8 S, E, t, a0 t! m) Igrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before6 m! d6 N. J) o P0 j. b/ `
deciding whether to take the class.
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9 F& Q `: E6 _" ~& p) {"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
, R# n: Z! ~: j4 G" _! h; Etold her daughter.
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
W( J1 x; }7 Qclass.
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are2 y2 H7 k" g" f# L- \
studying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
" ~) l9 ]+ \ A) poccasional frustration. J+ f% C" X. R }6 y& r, f4 @
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
; X; w+ [8 A9 B7 ~# S, Krecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class., a) u; S% S0 t* l- X( X/ ~' ~
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
' f/ Q, o' `, W9 g; ]0 K, A7 Itaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
# Q" z1 k+ {% R- T8 C6 p' PChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.4 A* Z" ?8 } m R% T7 d2 _3 B7 H
% X* r1 A7 K8 V. G; S( E"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
) u J3 a/ Z' k N( O/ ~" ] m: Asaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
2 \/ B5 I; `' _( U/ uas many languages as I can."0 v( [7 M0 f# i
+ J9 R8 |0 z5 X, o2 {5 G' D" v0 T8 dAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the' r* a& J9 S& i$ T5 z" N
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job7 O2 Z) R( @! M7 u% y% H3 b7 ?
market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like- K5 d5 _) r q- w: n& a
that," Ms. Freire said.
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program
/ K/ D/ |8 A6 e; J% Q; ehere offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each5 f+ v4 B# G. a& G
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking! `) Z% w& y2 s+ m' b
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make
, T4 g3 n- Z. _2 K# l" yroom.
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
8 C& B# n8 Y% }; kChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
/ Y& p( J3 U% d# H- ?college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.3 y: K- m4 k3 G4 U( j' y/ Y: E! b
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"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified
. o: ~0 E0 [! t3 }5 D: x! K& wbecause of that missing certification," he said.
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g4 @% w, L& V: t1 A/ r, B. {- }The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,7 q2 e0 `2 U- b- U6 H6 y
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia2 U8 S1 J; x: a1 w) x& X
Society in New York.8 H. a5 u- N `5 q4 g/ x
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
/ A: l( y3 P7 H! _- I5 `' u6 f7 pChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from0 ?% s4 h# V1 T. q" h
the United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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1 S9 F- E. k1 c; n$ q"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
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! l; ^; b8 L+ e) s1 C* F I9 B GCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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