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October 15, 2005
8 b& f' U( Y% jClasses in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity+ w4 r6 e0 l* f* e# r {
, s! b) r5 L+ k {By GRETCHEN RUETHLING$ ?" u; U" D. i, B
! o) p7 Y- i8 j4 H! o! SCHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
9 K& }" u+ X% S" WUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary' u" B$ ^; n/ l
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
% A2 P9 u+ }. H& H3 m3 q% o' p4 v! Ndangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese
/ p. H6 b" P. s! M0 O0 e# v' mflag hang from the wall.
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& {0 w: N3 r f1 p5 aOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
8 f) m/ D- t" T$ Janother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
) {. ?8 D% D: n7 s- g3 m# F# Tpracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
" [0 U' C$ y0 aboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students- _! p4 I# |5 D b4 {+ @
are already choosing it over Spanish.$ S s) n, N1 j- f, D& W
3 O1 O7 T( ?3 a: \2 g7 L9 u- g z"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal/ `" X U, g* c' H
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
% n! E- O: \$ o4 @offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
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With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,4 e* C, A' b$ ~3 ]& F, y
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
, P9 W. u1 j9 X+ y" hto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention) u1 ~+ c1 ~4 B0 r" h; W
one of its most difficult to learn.
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Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to( Q+ @0 i+ A F$ y- `0 m3 y
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students% L- K' j7 v% n. W2 p2 f
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.7 W& \5 c- a% B+ R7 w# ^
Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of0 ?; |- Z) q2 o/ D Z( E1 V2 X
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on/ N: T* T1 `& i2 [# k" u- g
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to4 v' _- e6 }+ d% c7 _ P3 T6 e
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.7 c3 V* E( W* j+ b; X
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
4 p2 L' a `# tChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
5 V5 C9 G9 @7 e+ r* }6 X; Y' p* ?starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
& \, H- V% B: c( N& Zdevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing0 [2 F' v- S5 T$ X
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director% y7 I. n: i8 U, }$ G7 B1 _9 L. Y
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.- Q% P" }+ n3 h$ m; U7 @
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"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
" p: G, R& U3 }& y: {. }speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
# M7 c8 O: O0 C3 M' n" u1 g( SConsulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we# Z$ S; O* {( ?7 n# [" S
can."
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
6 w6 U7 ]2 E/ h( s. {, |5 Uelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 101 y% w5 C; j" d0 W# L
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
, V4 _' C5 z& G0 X! VInstitute in Washington.
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$ M, y) t0 [( R2 b7 p"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages0 n6 o/ |* M8 ^% @5 q: X
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.+ Q% i% {& H- G
McGinnis said.
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( \/ S; q3 V/ Q7 O- c, k- S# s"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical* x5 L' d! _- P$ L
longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be L; f/ f& g' A& r* }3 W
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a6 U& l* ^+ C7 ]1 b8 E3 B8 w
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
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8 f# H) C% w) q. JUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and9 r) q8 c$ R4 c+ u$ L
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
! U" g7 L$ y2 m! [cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of" z# Y* E9 z' l# N* C3 m
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or
6 t4 _9 A2 O8 ]8 a4 T# P7 Ion weekends.5 |. C. K" m8 B" i( N$ @+ [
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
2 L0 y1 H! q: }0 y3 ]schools during the regular school day and primarily serves# q ]' ^, z. ~8 T# y% ~
students who are not of Chinese descent.
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4 G( ~3 v0 i0 b1 E+ V- kMayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said3 S) U, S" S# M
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
1 _, n/ D f+ v, t5 K9 R. b* Rcompetition.
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; Q& v; J1 Y9 N% a% N! W"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley) @: [3 P6 X; l8 Y
said. "There will be Chinese and English."2 H. x, K+ n2 s8 K
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
1 F2 {8 z/ W! K/ ^( O) Tall-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse" |4 l: i5 L9 v: m' e% n
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
% J' b) H& H( k5 ukindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students; \' k8 ~8 M0 M- N
who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
1 H* ?; C: Z V) G* s. ~0 y: r3 fthe school system last year.6 t' Y" ^6 n; X7 [9 R: G& l* Y: j! V
3 M U Y" I6 e" Z" d. @# AThe program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this
. R+ \" r9 s/ Y& w0 ]year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.
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5 Z* R# H0 G( p- Y0 b3 B ?"They have a great international experience right in their own+ w* T, u( W! ], c% B( s
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago
: [4 K3 i0 d4 H/ p2 \7 _3 y* K' pChinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
9 l4 @0 P. b* D# @& p: _. }8 e) Phelp students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
3 S# i6 g3 v" ]" G) L) non an equal playing field."7 f* Z1 D& @* ?3 z% V' u( E) i
! l0 b# ]; z! G% V# _ h2 P: xSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese8 Q- k2 L# M, @' G+ ]6 ~1 b9 b
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign
- z( @! b9 h9 T* V$ eService Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks& q/ I. `) F, ]
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
8 j* C6 M- K9 r" f1 H" taverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
" n& t0 g" C9 b j1 \, j/ {5 lChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the& o3 `/ e( L9 M( ?% `" J7 V# G
institute says.$ }8 W' M9 W0 F8 ?
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth/ x1 H3 u: h# X0 Z6 l( t, C' W
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
' |) C2 G; {8 X9 mdeciding whether to take the class.$ z! u' I$ v5 q
+ L( `, S; m; A9 U8 u& m"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she' L1 ~$ m$ h( k( A) l
told her daughter.( j+ A: o5 O( T9 a6 i" j
5 c* v7 c4 ?3 I3 g8 `. ISahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite6 x& r- U$ Z/ f& Q- f9 g8 h! @0 z% J
class.7 ~& r2 |3 B# i! K# a* z
* [& r% J" h% N7 r+ E9 M7 [2 qAt Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are, v! ?* P( K; }
studying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
: T) u c% ?) H& {occasional frustration.2 D% {; j( a+ [1 T
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
1 E' E1 m, Q* \recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.* M# a, @7 }# l+ o# F; B
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
& E2 Q& P) k2 F- _1 dtaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with" E1 z( k g9 t( t" [6 x# ^
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul% E2 a1 Z; Z; H) r& F% T& U+ ^
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
; s3 o, ^* H- B+ Q$ G3 mas many languages as I can." t6 j9 A& t6 R1 [* {5 d- _: { Y
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the* D( @) I( f- O% f5 ^8 [
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
3 J6 z* L- d2 r9 b( v+ \market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
v) a+ g. |: H2 z; Gthat," Ms. Freire said.4 d0 o3 ~6 [2 y) F3 B
0 Q0 w% \' X8 x; [% c, EMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program4 z/ k2 m) s8 n( b6 c3 @8 E |
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each p' g9 t. o+ } ]' [- A. s2 [/ Q
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking& q7 k( e9 ~1 o
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make
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; b* X& r& @+ u/ T SChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer- g; L% \9 d8 l# q$ t
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
) @! H; p8 W$ t: \college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.
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7 x% J7 q- g4 A6 Q4 ~' o"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified
/ u. Q) h' y! J! v2 N4 ?0 |because of that missing certification," he said.3 ^# ? G1 A# ~/ q' H, i
% j+ m) `& S! f& [The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,* w) m% H8 }+ f
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia F/ ?( J7 m6 G J1 i# }5 C) n
Society in New York.
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
" H# n2 Z, _2 J" uChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from& G6 {; U7 H* [3 O
the United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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1 e8 L, s3 Z4 w) ?! b"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
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