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October 15, 2005* ~9 E$ f, ?% V9 j3 N
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity- v. z) V# R; k# E! n0 k! f7 N$ \
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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+ P6 Y9 b6 ^6 e8 {* L4 FCHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
+ L& x7 t( c+ bUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
, z9 F) t" W' Y- XSchool, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas! w r1 ~% z8 y g- D* b3 \- b
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese
% r e# h$ Y& Y2 N* N+ w( g$ ~% Kflag hang from the wall.
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One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
- A$ S- r! Y8 W* }: \another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
; B: |+ o0 \8 \practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
( a0 F) q# j+ dboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students7 Y9 i6 f; M. `$ j6 p: y
are already choosing it over Spanish.
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2 O, A' J) C) ~* K"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal x1 J$ M8 P: p4 B, \# l/ h. A) Z; G
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city8 o# n! }) _: q9 a9 u ?
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."% ]1 r& j8 L! [2 X& W8 i
" {8 Z4 A- B% o6 P5 sWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,& @" @- \) O* z7 d6 b4 Y
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
% c( Z3 Y \# ~/ I! O; Cto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention8 U7 Y! y& [# }& l
one of its most difficult to learn.
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- A( C% z1 t nLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
. ~+ h, y% ?+ N- o2 Zpublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students3 e# C+ [+ m/ v
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
7 ] v) H# ?8 R* A' o% b2 O1 \7 w9 O( yLieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of" u/ |0 C* c# z: t8 S% |
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
( t: n, v6 I5 B9 _2 ?' xChinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to) {4 e6 b/ ?% C& i
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.* E/ \9 a/ K: }4 c% G9 e/ [+ J
$ g% F" U: N4 T( Z) M# P% \After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
/ ~8 d* B z" p9 A; e8 MChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country( x' m$ H, B: |! R, d4 k: U# W# Q
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
! w8 `7 \) H9 {6 Ldevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing: Z" P+ Z: @9 g
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
4 X0 R6 @& J) cof the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board. }# H( H2 A9 D7 n8 F5 T
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"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
4 F; ?, Y5 _( {" p, A, Jspeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
9 t" d' U3 G5 }: l- O, ~" C" S6 c/ WConsulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
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The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
+ ` A: F7 f& D# W `7 L- V% uelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10
8 g' j7 P8 V* {- h; M+ F$ Ayears, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language8 t+ X% a. J# E( U
Institute in Washington.
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"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages. @+ g0 A5 P; i% O& O
aren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.) e- x# Z ~. N2 d/ R- d# v9 W
McGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
1 |$ O7 N: g# G1 j' \/ [longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be1 U P/ A- A/ G" C) [* {7 {4 ?
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a
; f5 T) n* a. s3 R7 h- d% echallenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do.". r' q& n4 t$ ?
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Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
9 z! m. T6 R. m# J0 n k! L( _7 Q3 Fsecondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in% w7 T9 a d7 i
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of
, C; O9 T( S) i2 K* q" lChinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or
4 m! S5 p, D9 Q. y" ~& H8 o" e& zon weekends.: E+ B G, M% G9 d5 z) X; Q
$ n5 q8 t+ x2 D% u. M8 O* JThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
9 D1 e B. r! J( v0 h$ d' rschools during the regular school day and primarily serves
! d+ U! h$ w; k4 Dstudents who are not of Chinese descent.
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said' A2 x, r2 G1 B/ o/ K
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
9 D1 x6 T7 S N k- @competition. ; }+ D9 t: K6 E- h# M! v% m
! d) Q L) ]( d Y2 A* R; |3 v"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley3 m! ?% |, `& O" C
said. "There will be Chinese and English."4 ~+ G0 z0 B: \: q
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly% t! U$ W1 F1 {3 L% H: |
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse L0 f. S$ N) ~& F$ v" N
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from7 t) z0 Z- c9 L. j6 p
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
' p8 x7 u f* D7 e: E9 Wwho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
( M+ m. y/ W4 Y" d; P! ithe school system last year.
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7 e8 o0 L; l" T7 O" ?The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this6 s" s- p- Z6 ?
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.1 k1 Z0 q+ q3 z ~* L2 M, K. u6 G
9 ^! N0 v+ _3 ^" `# ?"They have a great international experience right in their own
: p1 ]) M* a3 ^( k2 }: iclassroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago
! s2 L$ M3 I, M& z8 E$ C! ?; _% RChinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to6 R* G5 r0 S/ j
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet% w* V* s$ o7 t, Y
on an equal playing field.") q3 X, G- q% L. L/ U
6 ~) Z! p& B, ?, P& z0 xSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese. C1 K( \: a: ]
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign+ x% o: _. ~1 [3 ^* A3 ]
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks
; W/ h' S# i6 yChinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An( ]) y) l( X9 @6 d0 K7 i
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in$ y( u0 F6 {4 l$ Q9 h
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
! q- \% y# R/ pinstitute says.
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Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth3 d" j8 q9 C, a
grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before# p$ Z% T' f0 T) ^4 ?( h
deciding whether to take the class.
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
# H1 V1 z- m- S5 ~) u2 _- Otold her daughter.
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0 w0 j8 ]0 y% o* `Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
9 s% j4 _5 T5 }3 S9 q+ ?1 _class.. _$ v4 e$ g+ h" H9 g5 z
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
3 V8 E( U b- A- F! u e. ^6 `+ o1 L vstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without0 P. E- G0 U N* n+ \. M" s
occasional frustration. K% h$ i. j. o# ?8 N1 R
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a. j* K7 B; [" v' @4 A2 J
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
0 a4 }* E0 H1 p2 c1 R' m$ ]3 v$ ttaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
9 H7 S9 K' z, O6 ^4 T' jChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.4 O1 i j) N% o: s: N' I4 k
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
& ^& W; L% W! E% ^9 {% T0 dsaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn/ J' E, D* B% C
as many languages as I can."
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
# q8 \' K# R, Lskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
" G# ?. _2 f% _market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
# Z o5 U1 k) `+ P# vthat," Ms. Freire said.
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9 t* }1 R ~( V7 F: _+ U8 VMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program! e7 ?; ]5 }5 M }9 r- ]
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each6 b' u9 K% T0 o
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking
5 w1 L/ H3 e7 C& N; itime from classes like physical education, music and art to make
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
7 c$ L) G+ s0 M/ }8 |Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American1 F, J/ Q/ @$ {! S0 b: E; D3 f
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.2 \4 E$ D9 B9 O* u
: a- J$ B# z$ u9 y m6 B"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified" E3 l; p& i, V1 V2 Y' f, K
because of that missing certification," he said.# F$ m! t5 {$ m# s. r
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
7 `% X; C" @4 v. ?said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia& d: J. K' D: |" ~' t
Society in New York.
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4 B6 x- H3 ^- F$ Y) A& OSix states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the2 { N, y2 A+ H- G
Chinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from! s9 \& f% M. O( y$ V
the United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
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8 D8 r: C y9 |2 j, e"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
3 j& r' @7 f9 }% T$ down."
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