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October 15, 2005
0 k1 N. U( w! G, wClasses in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity) [6 R4 [! s8 v% z: H" \/ d
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By GRETCHEN RUETHLING3 U, y1 Y* a3 R2 [
2 { ~8 J o7 S+ X" o3 HCHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
v# r/ Q- _: p8 fUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary6 Y1 e1 l7 n2 _# v* R- U; V) Q
School, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas5 F7 b$ W$ P$ \& e( J- k4 b
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese, _+ v0 ~7 E5 f. @
flag hang from the wall.
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2 e* m* D2 x: C+ H2 g! jOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one
+ H1 \/ z$ P* Nanother and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders' B" O) u! G! f: @% t) ~9 f
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker$ q' j* s/ s/ l% G4 C' h$ {
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students* m" K1 M6 R$ J5 K
are already choosing it over Spanish.
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5 k z2 r: |; e9 V/ o" n6 B"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal0 u5 O5 R+ n1 C0 o# A# O
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
( u6 D! A0 M8 r" c0 V2 V) boffering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
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With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,% b& i$ ]$ X+ E& ]
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
0 m9 y( e0 I) Z8 Z- g+ j2 rto include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention, a0 `, z ^. M. \- Z3 K' R R
one of its most difficult to learn.
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- A; I+ c5 `( L# cLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
. ^5 s& V2 a4 ^5 [, A N4 c! Npublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students* N, o/ q% h9 y. N
studying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
8 K, [ `0 d; A) `: g3 B; ]Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of
" k5 s% Z+ t) \8 p& o8 U6 LTennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on9 ~8 Z2 ^. }% N* m7 ]* ]
Chinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
; E7 e1 O( Y- Q- |, X( r% Dimprove ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement- E9 ~, w0 d/ n# L/ {
Chinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
i/ c& }9 {" b7 U. rstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
; p4 @7 V& ]- q" ]$ B8 Sdevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing" S, ]) ^! h# ~2 n% q( I
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director
4 l, x) L, r# H$ e( ?of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.) j& j e. K, \- X( j
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"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
& l2 V; H }# e! i9 {speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education! c2 ?) R: E. O* r
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
3 ~ x8 s: ]4 H5 u7 X+ d9 ]+ ycan." ! I# r( b# X% ^7 J( L( ~
6 \- a$ d1 Q" H7 Q2 MThe number of Chinese language programs around the country, from
$ L C% R% P8 ?! i) c2 `* W. B" Nelementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10
4 N- k2 e' e0 {: F+ M: qyears, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language* D+ S) `* p* B/ ]3 n2 X) F: v
Institute in Washington.; Y1 q; O8 K0 e
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"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
6 W) t( V0 u D1 r. naren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.5 a! f. y" f! U8 h9 ^) I
McGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
, T* F) z- `3 y- s- e6 \2 ylongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be
0 l( C% i3 |6 sready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a
. \$ D; p7 b& [, q! {- B* [challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."' p( o/ N& R8 c3 s o
- w* g. u' K- S# c' d% J* jUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
- b7 V! _; @1 [4 W9 C4 ?# `1 Esecondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in) I/ N6 h# [! q; k; X! _
cities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of% Y$ T! y7 I; l0 k: |/ z6 @* l( A
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or
" {* z& C1 H4 b- ?* Gon weekends.! C% q8 E) e9 p4 m- a" z
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The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public8 a8 p; b% n: v |7 j9 J7 F
schools during the regular school day and primarily serves# K3 U% U8 b% e7 @, K* X
students who are not of Chinese descent.5 w0 P$ e; j$ N
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Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said4 J! Z4 d8 X/ _% V9 T4 r1 K) h; B
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
5 G8 d6 E) [8 B# wcompetition. . g! f' o( @2 A+ b: Q
, d# i: ~5 \0 ?" T"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
* U+ Y) F! @1 O9 L X3 E' Z( P isaid. "There will be Chinese and English."
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. f/ U: c% f( S' WFrom an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
& \- H) {8 H# Q% D5 q* |all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse1 A% w& h+ Q8 i' d+ n; Q; B
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from' i2 Z( R/ |( p, n; F9 {# Q
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students
/ r6 d8 n" P) I! lwho are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to4 x$ W% J) y* e9 d- W6 `) @/ V
the school system last year.; q m# i% t2 e% g W4 n. L
" H' q4 a8 a, _The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this
0 ~* S' M. f+ ?9 tyear and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.- S4 i$ G5 Y4 Z/ k* o% H( B
! H$ m4 ^- h2 i7 Q8 r"They have a great international experience right in their own
3 w7 M4 `! e" c# Fclassroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago" r: x: b# a( I) J& v5 x) o; [
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to U# |9 D. B2 Z0 T. W0 y, X1 y% P
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
" ? W0 U# A) u, }+ b' T1 K2 @on an equal playing field."3 q: ~1 w. R) S: @
; Y; ^- _' x3 ]4 ]# t | TSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese3 W0 ^& q# t7 x, ~/ x
classes are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign
% F$ Z" r" \4 |$ G) Z: S# v2 v3 b: dService Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks$ c' F3 ]- }3 o- N6 a: V. V
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
7 b& W; G/ |5 H9 b. xaverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
8 B8 c }/ U8 k5 tChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the7 Y8 H }, h4 j; f
institute says.- w! q3 f5 e8 B: M$ j; g: t
7 l- O$ |* H) a( X9 o. JSevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
) Y: |" V1 o, S6 Z) y& Ygrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before0 j! n) M( e6 F8 N# w9 i$ ^ z
deciding whether to take the class.
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! D7 X* n( ]/ M# `: h% i"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she
+ J! e4 a, c6 u7 w8 y) ztold her daughter.
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+ K D3 j3 J1 n& h! v& r) ISahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
# n( c+ f% q# K1 M# A8 f; Sclass.$ V$ f8 u7 s6 G( P: Q! `6 ?; ^9 h
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At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
0 l! A8 v9 F0 b7 @" ustudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
' w! B: L( h [3 ]occasional frustration.
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a2 r, {" b, i9 A2 w; l) r% j( B" L
recent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.! E0 E7 N$ c7 e7 V/ _
. r7 ]* p% V9 b% mRaul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he- E; H" x- |2 p' f+ t) H
taught words to his mother so she could better communicate with& ?3 ~, w& |7 k4 j. Q. t% f9 y
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul) R s; k2 x" R `% q' O- [. H
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn; g) B# G. y! ? M! }3 H% ?
as many languages as I can."! d( l |# n0 @. u4 S
6 f9 s; [+ u/ Q- L0 i& ZAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the: r1 U) T8 y9 ^. T8 b, z8 i
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
. F Z9 z C; j% q2 z- Qmarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like2 {5 B" m0 I* N9 h, Z( i0 P: |
that," Ms. Freire said.
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program! u4 q2 i( ?( Q$ W2 N+ @9 S9 c3 W
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each& h" J2 `" G0 ?* r+ A
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking
; p" w# ?$ T) g$ r. ztime from classes like physical education, music and art to make& n. k( o$ ^7 r/ W9 t+ _3 I
room.
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Chicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer$ l" u0 l* r1 v$ J+ V# j0 Z% e, H1 _
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American
: }9 f6 g* n9 `3 ~' Pcollege, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.& d' d0 t, }1 [+ O6 M$ Q
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"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified
6 m) e: F `: e/ I6 q* k5 Xbecause of that missing certification," he said.0 D @) e$ x' m* ~* K) x! t- s1 S
V3 q' X! k/ F+ d0 Q$ x$ AThe shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,& L9 r6 B0 l' R/ H; T& H ~
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia" X; g! B% G/ u- }
Society in New York.) Q9 s- `" I2 ^; ]1 Z
: r" v' u5 Z3 C! d' o) j' xSix states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
+ S9 {9 I8 E0 q5 LChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
: m, \2 a: L/ h1 O/ ~! u) U8 Ithe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.& H- h- X2 _4 {$ A3 |8 b5 L
5 a( \' E. i3 r- D% N"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
, d( W2 V4 P0 W4 k2 qown."
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