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October 15, 20050 V! Y8 V6 Z; d; A7 ], ]! T3 ^
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING
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CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
- O$ W: X+ z0 q8 D4 e* }5 T6 pUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
, S4 N& Q, g6 r8 S/ u n& o+ }- hSchool, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas
9 }- [4 a3 n4 T+ b5 E) ?dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese8 G3 W' q! A: }; D* U# j G7 ^
flag hang from the wall.
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1 a% q( ~) [: n7 E; g2 |One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one( M. Z1 i3 V2 h! E# b
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders# X6 X* `% B% o( y
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker
" K* S/ C4 ] O- j1 {1 h, gboards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
* Q9 @7 c! r, V. Uare already choosing it over Spanish.8 M- h" y. K+ g0 l) F
6 w# s( N; O4 L5 B6 @; Q"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal% X: X- M b6 | O* A& A
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city) k3 J/ T# Y. B/ Z. [% A
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in." ~" M: w5 P1 z" n0 `% e
! ]" p- U$ ]) j# w0 f) x7 RWith encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,
\* A8 p# b4 _* n: Pschools across the United States are expanding their language offerings0 _. @* a, w- e3 Y
to include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention6 X% a' p8 {: H9 P6 Y& N: w
one of its most difficult to learn.
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( H# ]$ N, d X+ `2 SLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
1 V2 j! ]* [2 w f4 m; J( Mpublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
9 a0 V' q; m. H2 l( ]) Zstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
, n2 \6 L; x) ], H) x$ ?* ^Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of
3 k4 C5 g3 n8 P' H4 x U( tTennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on8 H2 w8 K' x- `% k0 {
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to5 ~$ _- ?, r& C$ h' V# `2 R
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.! S6 |3 t# c6 f' ]7 h$ h* q% f% o8 j
6 z' n) o4 u' D3 F$ ~9 W* M% J/ s9 UAfter 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
2 Y" I! r f+ g. K4 s7 q- ]6 Q: jChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
- }5 V) R' I5 `) n3 ^( x5 O4 jstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
( o$ H( M1 x! [develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing
, @5 B6 \ R6 S7 x; K- Ucurriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
( c9 h) Q# N3 l% H7 }# i- zof the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.: J9 n/ b! ~* H. m
; H" H2 g( c5 `"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of/ l! k f! l! l& U& i8 f
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education1 Q% e( `8 L# m& o7 C/ _
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we4 r. m' h* q7 B, W! t
can."
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9 X3 w+ z" U- x* NThe number of Chinese language programs around the country, from; |5 v) ~3 y7 q
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10, O @# d1 l' j6 z/ T
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
: k9 |$ s# W( fInstitute in Washington.
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; b) f6 W& j1 [. P5 g"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
% M: e7 R8 ]8 A) ]1 s% |$ Raren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.
* ^6 w$ E3 m0 H9 M% PMcGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical5 y8 e' C6 u8 \0 X+ T$ ^4 y
longstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
1 N1 d( V$ m$ S M7 K0 Mready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a1 b# r9 S2 ?" i K7 T4 `
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
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Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
6 Y. e. Z: c/ r" `secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
c1 [' Q. T& K, a. S j1 f! scities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of+ J h' N2 l3 J; i
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or5 e' i! D$ w- `& z) l
on weekends.
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$ T4 c# C4 Y8 V: ?1 rThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public
' ~+ h) O1 u) u0 i, fschools during the regular school day and primarily serves
6 K% r7 h1 E" N2 h' H2 Pstudents who are not of Chinese descent., o" m; R7 o. n. I
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said5 p- e( X! U1 O6 q9 w/ ^. y' D% y
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
1 N( Y8 E, ^1 t8 @& [8 j( Ecompetition.
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: o0 Z, C& v, V% S6 n$ D"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
9 F4 }9 E( R, msaid. "There will be Chinese and English."- |+ x# i+ W; b9 L
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
* N) P+ j3 o* Q4 g5 c. m' vall-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse
6 s8 t8 K# \3 u: Qschools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from
3 g7 O }: d. l6 p0 Dkindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
+ _. A- H- K' B2 ]; _$ j; w9 ]who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to: l* w V! Y/ ^* E) U
the school system last year. Z+ e0 x" @5 i
3 g, o5 A7 H2 r H6 S. \% |, `The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this4 g0 ?0 v" [$ R# ^
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.' |1 @. L/ {- q3 _. t
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"They have a great international experience right in their own% ^/ Z! i" z) E' r3 ~
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago7 n g8 g/ {; P7 F n
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to
. X/ S0 }; H, ^7 U# x- T+ i1 |help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet% T3 c. @/ c; y
on an equal playing field."5 J$ p5 y+ E6 }: j; K$ S0 f- T
2 z' n* e9 {5 t" U: rSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese( t5 A c! X7 V# r7 H7 k& g
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign
; |5 \3 j/ V! h6 x+ ~ ?Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks! E0 X" z0 H; k8 m
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
2 B6 L) W7 e) }" Maverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
2 J4 x$ V2 f8 S# q2 gChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the" b9 I0 I* J& q
institute says.
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A* G' O) a+ {; n9 @7 dSevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
6 E2 w6 y: C* Q$ h8 E* ?grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before
$ J5 @' \8 D7 i. a4 c1 t- Jdeciding whether to take the class.
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! u: b# `3 B7 R$ q+ x' @2 N"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she, G l8 K, h! [; g" Q+ D
told her daughter." t7 z( g; P; @" h7 l
8 p" E, F; W; g+ z! OSahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite4 s8 s% c, K/ r" M, S' Y. X
class.
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
, X( H( P1 i& dstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
7 g- U) x1 `5 Z8 F3 ]+ f* W [occasional frustration.& O7 o# v3 f7 C
( m, ~7 M0 r5 r( k$ R"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
c, z' ^. x( m8 Nrecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class., D# J7 S8 r, u2 N0 D2 G$ K
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
8 @5 [# i9 }$ [, N2 K0 Z! j- jtaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
6 @7 }' E$ o( E" V( s+ ZChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.0 q$ m; I/ x- d# o6 k, z" D5 }
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul
) q+ Q- ~) [- rsaid. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
9 Q* K0 k. b) Z8 ~7 T. O0 ~% nas many languages as I can."
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Adriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the
! I/ B) E- f; K. I E( @* tskills would help her son be a better competitor in the job2 T" Z) y! Z* I8 h0 N9 x: Q
market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
: D1 P, f' Z- z) @that," Ms. Freire said.7 c. k; o6 O5 H+ F. D! X& w9 u
1 s, o: h" M* `8 N' }6 [ d8 l0 FMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program
$ r* s" a8 L$ \- s# W7 ahere offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each6 z6 b8 y: T$ L, ?6 {" S" e# N) H4 `
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking4 e8 H8 M. v9 Z3 K
time from classes like physical education, music and art to make8 s( E+ L' y: E& j) L9 [
room.+ y4 |( A0 i: u2 U
+ k( ?, v6 @; h' f4 x( H9 Z3 s) V# E0 pChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
; F2 x% A8 x# d; K- e" O1 jChinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American4 x1 [3 _' a9 i1 R5 \, |( s
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.
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- F( T* E$ |$ L4 J: s+ T"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified' B8 l0 Z# W2 M0 v5 V* [, w$ h
because of that missing certification," he said./ E# V% t0 X4 H- G4 K% s
4 S6 B' W i4 O9 y: v: Z9 hThe shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,
* k* Y7 R O# u, ^0 [2 m# R- k6 csaid Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia
" _% m0 z+ f# F, ISociety in New York.
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
3 g l1 j* H zChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
$ ]( u/ r7 H6 y+ u, l$ l2 _2 L6 Athe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.0 T5 M- Y9 E' I C% [0 ]. f: P
+ C1 G ^- ~) P1 E$ K5 r r6 p7 v6 R"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
( g$ h% G1 z2 x! M3 hown."
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- A0 [; b' s, N; t" g! ICopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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