 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
October 15, 20059 o7 |5 c( C6 Z4 e& f* `+ q( z
Classes in Chinese Grow as the Language Rides a Wave of Popularity0 H3 r" r; x& }8 Z
% R6 n/ s' l, _8 U+ _5 V; e. w
By GRETCHEN RUETHLING0 p6 x' P$ P a. ]. S
1 r2 |; o% ?( G9 K" m. {! w. H- I
CHICAGO, Oct. 14 - The future of foreign language study in the
7 \3 H- N* [; IUnited States might be glimpsed here at Louisa May Alcott Elementary
- r; ~4 b) v% b9 D& F' p( R# ]( hSchool, in a classroom where lanterns with cherry blossoms and pandas- W; ^7 E% c8 c d& Q. G1 E
dangle overhead, and a paper dragon, an American flag and a Chinese( I0 P! I0 P. X! I# v0 P( N
flag hang from the wall.6 Q5 x* d) d7 t$ a! L7 o
7 t& n$ h8 q6 w6 YOne recent morning, a class of third graders bowed to one- U$ k2 d; k+ L* ~, A
another and introduced themselves in Chinese, and a class of fourth graders! _1 ]3 P* I4 S4 _
practiced writing numbers in Chinese characters on marker' v7 p T Y$ V2 \9 l# \
boards. Chinese classes began at Alcott in February, but more students
+ O7 b* d2 q, f: m! Dare already choosing it over Spanish.
$ t7 \0 L* P6 \6 K: _0 J
/ H2 ^/ P8 ~' j! p* e8 E+ n4 y"Chinese is our new baby," said David J. Domovic, the principal
' G1 t6 C" S2 P- wat Alcott, on the North Side, one of 20 public schools in the city
$ s0 p7 c/ o9 f1 f0 v/ N: hoffering instruction in Mandarin. "Everybody just wants in."
. ?' A7 V9 x; T" p q$ H) r1 ~+ ~5 D1 o/ t1 n9 S7 T0 t, r5 x
With encouragement from the Chinese and American governments,+ K* A* g0 \5 d6 t# U' d' f
schools across the United States are expanding their language offerings) z5 c: G( ]6 V- F. o2 u' b
to include Chinese, the world's most spoken tongue, not to mention K* Y* Q* z0 ?9 W
one of its most difficult to learn.& i1 ^2 l0 q1 y( }1 E/ D5 z+ J
; H+ z% ]$ P, J' u% o7 E
Last month, the Defense Department gave a $700,000 grant to" i5 n1 d" ~6 ^# D7 t% ~$ M
public schools in Portland, Ore., to double the number of students
6 }* v8 F/ `$ P) Fstudying Chinese in an immersion program. In May, Senators Joseph I.
) R0 X2 N( ~% \, _! i) ]Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lamar Alexander, Republican of
`8 N, B6 T1 @: V' J& eTennessee, introduced a bill to spend $1.3 billon over five years on
+ g; \& y. K+ P" n) P& cChinese language programs in schools and on cultural exchanges to9 _+ o3 E' Q4 |
improve ties between the United States and China. The bill has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.& k5 d* w3 l2 m! l2 z* D/ c
! ] F# c9 f, t( G' kAfter 2,400 schools expressed interest, Advanced Placement
2 v4 } G: V w+ r# g zChinese classes will be offered in high schools around the country
E5 L4 l7 S' z0 W0 Hstarting next year. Beijing is paying for half the $1.35 million to
1 }% `9 l1 {" R6 f( Q- Y% r, D6 G0 f" Rdevelop the classes, including Chinese teachers' scholarships and developing8 N6 V) ?# L5 a1 Z8 {# ^( w
curriculums and examinations, said Trevor Packer, executive director, A) g( m5 e, T" R7 e9 H( ]
of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board.# m5 H, x+ W @ q" S
/ U4 l/ I' J0 U0 ]; K
"Many Americans are beginning to realize the importance of' j5 R( f3 z0 E! q
speaking Chinese," Zhu Hongqing, consul at the Chinese Education
6 b3 A3 D" a* z, Y ~- m' l: N2 `Consulate here, said. "We need to provide as much powerful support as we' {" X6 h% V; Q7 X
can."
" p# @. L3 Y3 n/ Z0 }3 l6 u& B' b; v$ l: ^
The number of Chinese language programs around the country, from2 H1 T5 n" |- o0 o+ X/ m# g
elementary school through adult programs, has tripled in 10
! V' A$ z6 I+ P& s) z6 Ryears, said Scott McGinnis, an academic adviser at the Defense Language
! n& u/ g* ]- W* SInstitute in Washington.
- C3 D, f" @8 W( Y; r) u" a9 \7 N% L# z2 ~
"Chinese is strategic in a way that a lot of other languages
/ G2 I9 \: Z f- u: Raren't," because of China's growth as an economic and military force, Mr.2 c+ M+ w: m$ S; E5 M
McGinnis said./ J' z0 b, p4 K+ i- [! F
- T8 g# }, [/ h) i
"Whatever tensions lie between us, there is a historical
( O) g$ t8 @. o' \- O7 Z6 E3 r6 Plongstanding mutual fascination with each other," he said. "Planning to be5 Q, N8 v# u9 t. Z2 _. t
ready to engage with them rather than only thinking of them in terms of a/ ?, D; i; \. C9 b" r* d- s u
challenge or a competitor is the smart thing to do."
9 k& w) D9 A; a# n
8 P7 M6 g% C) x+ K" g3 R) vUp to 50,000 students are studying Chinese in elementary and5 t. i! y2 L$ h& a( ]. f; F
secondary schools in the United States, experts estimate. Many are in
* X2 n ?- [- [7 Xcities like New York and San Francisco that have large numbers of9 p! B% I" Y! c
Chinese-American students, and many take lessons after school or
& s0 H1 V! n ^, y# z7 \on weekends.
) U o1 O) E3 S9 o0 b3 s: Q( u% b3 E( ?4 ]! Z, A5 T
The Chicago program stands out because it is entirely in public8 w+ n7 Z+ F1 Q' U8 g, {9 X& U, N
schools during the regular school day and primarily serves# K( D/ f/ ?6 P: H2 }
students who are not of Chinese descent.
' A# o4 \7 o y! \+ U, Y j2 J
0 U' C: L* u) b# R/ VMayor Richard M. Daley, a vocal supporter of the program, said
$ p5 D- f0 |$ c6 w& G- r8 tproficiency in Chinese would be critical in understanding the
* E0 U# ^7 e; b) zcompetition. 2 P: m. k3 G. m# R
# j* e/ f: m8 @% V% S% D
"I think there will be two languages in this world," Mr. Daley
; h5 }/ }$ N8 U- vsaid. "There will be Chinese and English."8 X6 w4 o* N9 `
0 L/ I8 E S7 v; I
From an all-black elementary school on the West Side to a nearly
9 f" x2 l% U! u$ b1 f* a; ?all-Hispanic elementary school on the South Side to more diverse
( L. W6 Y+ w6 N- g: V! gschools throughout the city, some 3,000 students from {0 J7 U; S" K
kindergarten through high school are learning Chinese. The Chinese Education Ministry has called the program a model for teaching students. |6 M& @6 v) }5 J; Z0 \
who are not of Chinese descent. The ministry donated 3,000 textbooks to' w& k9 B: Z4 [8 [: U, z, V+ Y
the school system last year.
/ M/ G- e/ |" p; Z$ F7 u1 |0 p7 X* Q2 r' }- m6 i7 G' m) r
The program has expanded from three schools in 1999 to 20 this w$ X- G+ }" R3 j
year and is scheduled to add five by the end of the school year.
" w; j5 S# _5 h% L' a4 R
8 S7 G3 G! Y6 ~3 l0 f7 N: {"They have a great international experience right in their own9 V; L6 h8 Z6 o& _* J
classroom," said Robert Davis, manager of the district's Chicago# ^, r: k3 ^9 I6 \2 B; s! M9 k
Chinese Connections Program, which seeks to develop skills to. F* S `3 u. a9 U+ m/ j
help students compete in the world marketplace. "We want them to meet
, C4 U; \# p7 P7 t; }- k: C, pon an equal playing field."
9 o; c4 r" L8 n; y+ T! q
- T H5 |$ L2 _4 n P: u1 xSome parents here worry at first about how relevant the Chinese
* }3 _1 w& Q$ r' t) D$ sclasses are and whether they will be too difficult. The Foreign( i$ K, h. I9 E3 J$ k* _" n! d
Service Institute, which trains American diplomats, ranks
; Y% Z# s; R& |/ P9 C% PChinese as one of the four most time-intensive languages to learn. An$ n/ _( r' s( k: S" P4 \; S
average English speaker takes 1,320 hours to become proficient in
' Q; D# \% Y% N {' }+ LChinese, compared with 480 hours in French, Spanish or Italian, the
3 U0 S K6 h! Z4 P' F0 N# Z. hinstitute says.. h/ p2 v- _, Z0 H4 w* H w$ u9 v
! v# ^6 P2 ~3 D$ v6 A
Sevtap Guldur, 31, said she and her daughter Sahire, a fourth
y. M0 u: c( W& D! C6 fgrader at Alcott, looked over the unfamiliar Chinese characters before& |7 a r% C. U% W& F' H* ?& K
deciding whether to take the class.& r5 N% b, J. m0 N* q; u: X% Y/ a
) C1 s/ [+ |& L9 W* ~7 ]
"If you're ready to learn that, go for it," Ms. Guldur said she1 B8 S) m4 U3 {) e+ a6 n
told her daughter.
. Q# C: i+ }# u" I, |9 s/ o$ B; }9 m) T
Sahire, who is fluent in Turkish, said it was her favorite
7 V& E0 x/ f# o$ m" k3 V; B# \class.
3 r& H7 { d0 u! i$ T8 G8 _' `/ j
At Alcott, 160 students from kindergarten to fifth grade are
g% o" J9 `) A/ k4 bstudying Spanish, compared with 242 taking Chinese, although not without
# t) z5 F6 Y1 o* ?occasional frustration.& R t( ?3 B: S) N% } O; H4 e0 f) |
6 E/ X" _. Q: Y- l g1 S
"Do we have to do it in Chinese?" a third grader asked during a
: O" G/ A9 X5 I) |0 Mrecent exercise, perhaps missing the point of the class.
& F( g0 U' g' ?$ N! c, M: n9 `- W1 w
Raul Freire, 9, a fourth grader fluent in Spanish, said he
$ t/ r" ~6 K" q, H% Jtaught words to his mother so she could better communicate with! Z" A8 @, H" z1 b5 B/ J
Chinese-speaking customers at the bank where she works.
9 v1 ^ Z* I* Q0 [) z. j& F' f7 x& X! j- |
"Mostly everybody in the school wants to take Chinese," Raul9 C1 ~# g. X" Y' ~$ E, v; g- ?
said. "I think about being a traveler when I grow up, so I have to learn
: p8 L2 X; I+ T/ k9 C2 e. |1 B1 was many languages as I can."( f! e5 w- t) t) N( ?& m: r
! ]8 U9 n6 o' AAdriana Freire, 33, Raul's mother, who is from Ecuador, said the$ A o5 {# d" ]1 f1 D! a
skills would help her son be a better competitor in the job
0 G4 T1 z& l! c- K$ Imarket. "I never thought that he was going to be able to do something like
' x8 R+ o& A8 C+ T- ~# R0 A4 w8 H* gthat," Ms. Freire said.
" b% P5 x' w, D% g c3 f% ~2 p; n2 Q
% I; C$ ^( z) ]- C0 V" e- E5 ZMost of the 10 elementary and 10 high schools in the program4 j! H2 _: M, M, ?7 u
here offer the language four times a week for 40 minutes a day. Each
; p* b9 ^" W) f0 [" Q& S$ Gschool decides how to fit the class in the school day, with some taking
* O8 B+ w8 F" i f) @2 Ptime from classes like physical education, music and art to make
: c# m- R" Z9 iroom.0 ?* o* z3 I6 B% c, e. j' q( H( ]
2 I I# ~% e* k- C' rChicago has a waiting list of schools that want to offer
* F( x6 {3 q& T+ i: [Chinese. The main obstacle is a lack of teachers certified by an American1 R. Z6 q, N, m& a
college, a requirement of the No Child Left Behind law, Mr. Davis said.2 M" ?5 Z. I ?$ `. x
* `# i/ Q$ G1 F7 }( U' g
"It's hard when we can't hire a teacher that is qualified
# K6 V( T. @9 bbecause of that missing certification," he said.
* J5 `+ I. y" [' v% B, D4 o/ x$ T" ^
The shortage of teachers is common throughout the United States, U1 `) y8 R% @+ X0 P" j
said Michael Levine, executive director of education at the Asia# Q0 h/ \/ @' S" `
Society in New York.
3 R( I$ F+ o2 J6 {* N7 ]$ e/ f# V! h9 o6 i4 x( o# U: p
Six states have signed or plan to sign agreements with the
' a0 b' R% I% a' I3 g/ qChinese government to import teachers from China and send teachers from9 F! a; J* u! }( U
the United States to China for training, Mr. Levine said.
+ U+ U; x5 A" D0 b/ w* R' V3 W* w/ z& b- I
"Eventually," he said, "we're going to have to homegrow our. j2 a2 j$ b% j7 P/ f: S0 J7 |7 _, E
own."6 P' f! Z3 n& S! T4 v1 i* {
! w% M& {8 ^) I& J0 uCopyright 2005 The New York Times Company |
|
狗仔卡
发表于 2005-10-18 09:28
提升卡
置顶卡
沉默卡
喧嚣卡
变色卡
显身卡
发表于 2005-10-18 10:30
楼主
发表于 2005-10-18 15:23
