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October 15, 2005+ [* j( a! M* @) {0 R
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity) p9 q w @" d# ^$ G# T
$ r/ G: g" `0 B: ~- iBy GRETCHEN RUETHLING# b) r s* G- F, F0 a8 W8 M# n
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CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
' Y( v1 r% Z* }1 C( X! E" {United States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
/ N1 k$ n* d8 WSchool, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas' I1 U# `4 w4 q' B0 Y: n
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese
/ C0 r* m+ t; [* `$ v% J! Oflag hang from the wall." W# c5 M, k l7 h+ d8 }/ Z
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One recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one; z* K1 k9 i, q
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders
7 q+ b0 v1 M |# {2 l: wpracticed writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker6 E8 {2 i. g" {) H
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students% u2 V( M4 p T5 d& w
are already choosing it over Spanish.' X: u3 N. e$ Q& {5 Z0 Z g3 N4 r9 l
$ Z! K- `& E( R) V5 S! |, j2 N6 P: c"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal% O ^# {% h$ T {$ I- ~! C
at Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city; I8 ~9 [/ m* ~2 m
offering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."1 b. `* [( b# \6 N$ j
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With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,; |4 E. Z6 Q$ g0 G( h
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings
1 G4 _2 Z% g* R0 u2 n+ `to include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention. k9 @& |- D2 q
one of its most difficult to learn.
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% a5 N7 V: p- k0 C3 H: c; lLast month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to
( c" b1 U3 n9 Z) o4 Epublic schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
: h- _1 z _+ f5 ^' g! bstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
; w% |- Q C4 f" _% K' J7 eLieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of5 C: H3 T& B9 o4 x3 l' Z9 {
Tennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
7 _( }/ U( J" q$ CChinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to
1 Y- {) ^5 s: A9 zimprove ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.6 z R. O8 D3 E$ E+ L3 g( v
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After 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement! \% L+ r2 R4 H, k I
Chinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country- D8 J( |1 ~! `
starting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to6 W3 d( D1 X& b* m+ u0 U. u( |
develop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing
% S" G6 [" j3 V7 h) ^6 H$ mcurriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director" s* d' t1 p. I! f/ m
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board." g3 }5 C3 S, v( I5 c
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"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of
- u7 r+ _, s; | }, tspeaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education5 B5 V' U+ a. k3 n
Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we
0 w5 w& D" r3 O8 Zcan." + U" g5 ?: i& H; A
* r! ^0 G' s; `The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from3 |+ B' z! N4 Z) O
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 105 i2 D0 F; g4 q* r/ ~
years, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
/ n- A( I. H! ^% y0 S7 `1 A+ y) pInstitute in Washington.
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"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
5 Z I7 [" W, R F% aaren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.' a8 u9 ]* Q; C: w5 m7 ~- G
McGinnis said.
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"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
+ E* ?( G, \; M K, m6 Jlongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be# q/ ~0 }( J. `" D) O
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a
8 a4 h5 r2 v) L$ g/ q" ~challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."; Y j! p! I& A3 o' i& }4 r
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Up to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and
( \6 h* h' e2 j6 O# w8 k) ^secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
/ h8 r7 Q4 m5 R( Kcities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of$ l4 A/ m3 l- C' e2 l
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or+ t X& j. j$ }+ K( n8 d# y+ \/ T/ j
on weekends.9 K0 ]: G" L' B* c' `* f
( u, S# T6 n3 ]3 x& U) _% q0 aThe Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public9 A# R* M2 }, [1 N$ u
schools during the regular school day and primarily serves
( m9 U6 Z* o2 h& U5 zstudents who are not of Chinese descent.
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3 Q) T3 A6 q5 m! y; H) ~Mayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said$ b# d' B; \" l$ m9 n
proficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the- Y5 d+ y) x* j) W) W% @3 q
competition.
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6 {2 O& |0 C [& [1 T"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
, d- z, @! K! Q3 Rsaid. "There will be Chinese and English."! H4 O z9 F5 g5 B
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From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly, ?( l I7 T a! n! I& k
all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse# M0 b0 d, R6 ]- @ y8 p2 q. V& l
schools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from- z5 r% Z) {) T5 G/ x; U3 X
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students' \0 ^* O% i1 D) m2 w s9 @
who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to
: C( Z6 h l' e4 j. Pthe school system last year.
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The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this
1 ]. ^: N5 G6 |+ b; p4 Uyear and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.4 ^0 @1 |+ l# A" _) H. V! S# H
" K5 \ m) X0 ^: G1 s8 X* A$ `& G"They have a great international experience right in their own
; m7 o- c# N4 u4 Tclassroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago) g& X Y" `+ j5 y$ c% ?. T% w
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to% x- v7 z: ?: c9 q& D$ G
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet5 Y5 k# ?5 T0 l+ w# ~9 V
on an equal playing field."
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Some parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese
( p1 T1 @) i) Xclasses are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign
8 a, ]" x* @8 e/ U! Q1 A4 x% t# n, FService Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks& I$ g( l) I* D/ x9 P3 X) w5 o
Chinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An
) m- A% I/ O' H7 t) r t; t: Zaverage English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in4 t7 j' k$ }$ V) X
Chinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
! V2 \; [- L- g& X1 f5 Tinstitute says.5 w8 x# r8 F2 @- K8 J. I
( V1 j% B" i9 h! tSevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
, p8 G0 Z6 W1 q: U3 d8 u4 \grader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before2 ^3 J. d$ v7 M
deciding whether to take the class.
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"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she7 N$ T h. j% Z' N; R7 _$ _$ X
told her daughter.
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Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
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% x& `6 k' B6 ^/ l: H% R AAt Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
/ Y" V/ a' z) `% I( Astudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without- f- i O) t; c' s
occasional frustration.4 `- I! x$ e, X6 I( r% c
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"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
4 i* N! B# _ U3 f4 _. Nrecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.; B1 @( P, H4 \* R% ? t4 k
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Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
/ h. H7 B8 m% P4 k' o( Rtaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with
. ~+ S$ g# R' t# g, k/ QChinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.& H5 u) ?! s- t" e
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"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul# f$ m! `& T( _& o) J
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn" w7 X3 |) }3 s& C; ?
as many languages as I can."
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) V7 X5 T% v: nAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the Q* \. f: j/ W0 B2 j8 N
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job# U" z9 F7 Z! ~* Q
market. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
8 J- G1 Z$ I k( L8 v* nthat," Ms. Freire said.
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Most of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program* b- J" P" B0 y7 ?+ x
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each2 C9 @! m C) V
school decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking
& B( y( h/ ?+ u u9 O" m0 ?# g# etime from classes like physical education, music and art to make' f+ ]2 n# ^" q$ F0 y
room.( p% |" R! b# k0 o4 G- ^& g
0 c$ S' `& M+ LChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer3 w9 R1 c/ b! A3 `* }4 |
Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American5 m7 w; F. F5 c0 Q
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.& |# T, v5 X: `- A2 |
2 e/ X. L0 f4 y+ n, |) v& K"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified6 `( {' U' s4 m. P
because of that missing certification," he said.
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The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States,* R; q# k l2 d, e4 i$ S" }5 ^/ Q
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia p: C4 Y9 E4 ~1 x
Society in New York.
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Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
4 m1 J2 N: m) t+ o7 eChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from
1 j8 y0 r# z kthe United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.8 \# q9 F& p m2 f8 U- t$ D- ?$ u# `( M$ }
% h v! _' x4 \; c% i"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our
- J1 h, K- Q6 i$ [own."
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8 L3 q2 k% |0 L8 j, F/ h& kCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
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