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October 15, 2005
, ~& |6 {5 ^ y5 B9 QClasses in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity& s7 [4 H3 ?3 _5 u/ f: }" r* l
0 c# S& L8 g4 l R Z0 q! SBy GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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% d; ^9 f/ P9 l. \CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
( H1 a ?1 A1 ]. PUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary9 j( W" n) h) h; h# R& c$ a
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
' w$ B6 P4 g* b o" T5 A d+ jdangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese
9 T7 j, V0 m/ u, w: Sflag hang from the wall. q+ T3 w! A/ B
3 ~) h9 ~; [4 ^: V8 O1 U6 e' uOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one Q, O( `3 y. E* c: ?0 q0 Q
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders* t1 K: ~9 R6 Y8 Z& T
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker+ z* h8 C) a" n8 b( J" ^0 X
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students) l |8 R! o7 q j* k% Z3 e( P
are already choosing it over Spanish.
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"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
# g1 O7 a5 A# [at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
7 G9 H: j0 B) \4 w( V; xoffering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in.": W# y+ ?4 g& ^7 x+ b. o
" g1 {# } d/ B8 Y& z' H) x0 {8 hWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
' P. X! h1 C- Z0 tschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
4 d2 i2 U$ Y A: o0 B8 K$ Tto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention
0 S+ P- _! \) M Yone of its most difficult to learn.0 `; X/ y) \8 R) d
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Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to4 @3 f1 u0 ~* R, C7 T6 A
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students+ S" ]7 ]( g" M, w% ?
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
/ u( C+ |' f+ b7 L6 hLieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of. P0 m f& R4 K) B& C, U- @
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on, i0 Z' `+ t6 i. k( A0 N7 t
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to0 n' p% D" s( n l
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.6 @3 E. E: B6 b6 U1 ]# d) }* k
$ m; f, x: S4 C0 {After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
/ s9 k; i! u5 s X y( LChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
0 `0 `" T0 I9 r. ?" y7 y# ystarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
6 j) k" s: u' V' V- Z5 C* bdevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing6 \) C. w$ Q7 o
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
- O' X2 z' i" k' S. e2 H; cof the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.
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" B1 p7 j+ w( U# n+ }"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of/ P( x4 L8 D- ^5 C( m
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
. b3 L' g$ \, J7 cConsulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
$ q3 `4 {* {7 u! s8 ]4 `7 \can."
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: U" f2 @9 l' G+ [* ~The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from3 {% D* e; s* v5 a& |. S' u, m! B; M
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 101 _, F$ v: N# E" c
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language" G, p7 m2 M v% _$ f: a
Institute in Washington.6 ?( S3 q* _0 A
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"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages/ k$ ^" Q; u! [0 |
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.
5 X/ Q" A8 p8 {McGinnis said.1 c0 B: E2 u3 C" A0 w
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
7 x0 y8 D3 R: s) K0 k: d8 Clongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
' M2 o ^9 ?1 `9 W% R$ ?- }ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a
$ W4 c5 Y8 r/ n4 ^; jchallenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
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) b% L. |. \& {8 NUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and; e1 q# m* s& K) e' O5 q1 r8 C
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in; B$ x8 F5 r9 m6 K% v+ ?
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of1 Y6 H% G b0 x: |3 X p
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or
; Q1 F. o1 e; h' T2 n* t `' jon weekends.- }1 }- G! p+ J$ W; o
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
2 k* h, S* S- z; [. c5 Q* |& qschools during the regular school day and primarily serves. |4 e" R* F3 z; R& h) r) r
students who are not of Chinese descent., M+ I, g2 S6 R" Q
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
7 \' c c% p4 H" J8 i1 z- H0 G' Sproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the5 @: Q0 f0 y+ G7 S1 `- G g
competition. 1 `3 J4 P7 }% a, Z! I$ `
2 } E" i) O% x% n"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley* \6 z& {" c9 o
said. "There will be Chinese and English."' m6 y( r! g& s& [0 m/ O
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
& }7 |" C5 E( a7 J& `all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse
" ]$ G' @1 J I7 ^& }4 l4 ~' k: Oschools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from$ s. P: U# M+ Q8 D3 A
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
: c8 y3 M7 b- A7 C* {who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
6 G6 `" L7 r$ d$ s3 z5 Mthe school system last year.
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this" t Q, A H3 G4 I/ j4 D4 p7 L
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.* b, c8 T0 c& x3 J0 a6 U+ B
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"They have a great international experience right in their own+ y" z, M5 N- }
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago0 Y; a1 Z: K# V5 l7 W
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
& ` J, H9 a6 ahelp students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet6 H0 h" N1 d9 e
on an equal playing field."
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Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese
: A* v* j* n; D: ^2 S8 iclasses are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign
4 c8 z2 C$ t- BService Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks! L; t! R! B u/ D: h/ p
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An/ ^) `/ W3 B# V8 X) \
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in# i, B6 @8 y) @
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
- ~% [2 ]8 ]' |7 Z' G* L6 `% A Jinstitute says./ C% ^5 f9 C& z: d9 k, P
% |; _4 T* p; p2 X# Y* lSevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
) o" f8 r, r! |6 L0 ygrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
) f0 }* K6 O) i H/ X8 w9 bdeciding whether to take the class.
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she2 [& [0 e3 ^! o8 X
told her daughter.
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite4 p. b( @! g+ C$ N
class.
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6 v8 A: Y" m2 Z" P6 {At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are1 d7 o' o+ L# u% x, e' T1 \
studying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
" b2 M4 U* k7 i! P. ^occasional frustration.3 K1 e7 N5 L5 j1 h' K; k
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a, k* A+ o5 I/ C) v$ w+ v
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
. B! v- A3 E: Z* U) Ctaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with: W1 H, T4 |; d9 B6 y& F. z
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.7 o; \$ f% G2 x s
! K. d, W# V' ], J L9 Z* X"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul2 A: |8 a2 z/ h+ l/ S
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn7 s. W- @% b9 j/ ]4 S5 p5 ?. a
as many languages as I can."
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: ^' y( ^8 R, R H) B% JAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the7 R5 B: d) q" \$ n! d: p
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job7 r, L% y7 u; X* R' A- T* G) m
market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
" P( K1 u R1 a( i othat," Ms. Freire said.
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program& @* L: F5 a6 N+ `" @. M
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
0 d) V8 p& q* cschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking2 q4 {, U4 \& P2 i9 Y" ?4 z4 F
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make! e* A) r9 R9 ]& p( v
room.. ^2 J, Z* K# y3 w- G# m' D9 g& ^
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer/ D9 @) Q/ h+ [+ U4 j/ y
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American) ^0 j1 {- P6 t
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.: |+ K# B" V3 l9 e* n/ \( p
# b1 m5 d" k! ?. b& u- @"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified# s) C0 u8 D: t* }* W6 W% q1 z' B
because of that missing certification," he said.$ a/ \) T) y* @; ^# R9 C6 g
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
# {2 b" ]* f) `! }; Nsaid Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia! |7 K( w0 z& q, x- d
Society in New York.8 P0 y4 }/ i$ p. A% A6 a: \- |
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
* O& P# [9 p7 ~ ]3 `( OChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
: R) N6 }1 w4 e E z4 Pthe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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' z# N1 k- h, b* C0 u"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
3 Y l Q9 a0 x( fown."
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8 ~' Q4 c G4 r" Q5 p: i$ WCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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