Bold strokes on language

zh0716 · 发表于 2006-5-21 01:49

Bold strokes on language
KATHERINE HARDING

From Saturday's Globe and Mail

EDMONTON — David Rody-Wu is talking about the weather with the rest of his kindergarten class. As his teacher, Diana Andrews, points to a weather chart, the other children join in the discussion, volleying effortlessly between Mandarin and English.

It's a kindergarten class that is anything but typical, measured by Canadian public-school standards. In Edmonton, however, the class at Meyonohk Elementary School is an example of a system that encourages second-language learning, and not just in French.

“It's easy,” six-year-old David said later about his ability to speak both Mandarin and English. His tiny classroom is wallpapered with the children's drawings, the alphabet and Chinese characters.

The Edmonton public-school system has been offering a bilingual Mandarin language program, one of the largest and most comprehensive outside of China, for more than two decades.

Running from kindergarten to Grade 12, about 50 per cent of the coursework is conducted in Mandarin, from science and language arts to culture and arts. The curriculum is standardized.

About 1,570 students (2 per cent of the school district's total student population) are currently enrolled at 12 schools across the capital city, with close to 15 per cent of the students coming from non-Chinese families.

But while worldwide interest in Mandarin has exploded as China grows as an international economic and political superpower, only one other public school board in Canada — Calgary's — has adopted Edmonton's model.

“You've got a situation where language policies in places such as Ontario have been timid and unimaginative,” said Jim Cummins, an expert in second-language learning at the University of Toronto.

“It's kind of ironic that the province with by far the most enlightened language polices is the most conservative.”

Most Canadian school boards that teach Mandarin offer it either on a limited basis (from kindergarten to Grade 4), or as an after-school or part-time course.

In Ontario, it would even be illegal to offer a Mandarin bilingual program. According to provincial law, only English and French can be offered as either as a bilingual or immersion program.

Stuart Wachowicz, director of curriculum for Edmonton Public Schools, said second-language learning has been a priority for the board, which has 79,127 students.

He said it is critical for students to start such programs young because studies have shown they have a cognitive flexibility that disappears as they age.

The board offers bilingual programs in seven languages, including Hebrew, Arabic and Spanish.

Like the other alternative programs that the district offers students, what helps make them all so successful is the board's 31-year-old open-boundary policy. As long as a school is not full, a student can attend it. In fact, more than half of the system's students do not attend their designated schools.

It is innovative and consumer-oriented approaches such as these that have earned Edmonton a reputation as having one of the best public-school systems in the world.

The district, which also allows school-based budgeting, is widely credited with listening closely to what type of programming parents want for their children, according to the U of T's Mr. Cummins.

He said Edmonton's large bilingual program got its humble start in the 1970s after parents requested that the board make Ukrainian instruction available.

So, if the Edmonton board has so many lessons to teach, why aren't other districts lining up to learn?

Armando Cristinziano, the Toronto District School Board's program director for languages, said Mandarin is by far the language parents and students request the most. However, he said offering it as a bilingual program would not only be illegal, but also difficult because there are ample requests for many other languages.

“Equity is a big thing at the Toronto District School Board, so which language would you choose?” he asked.

Currently, the country's largest public-school board offers training in more than 45 languages, including Mandarin.

Still, the Edmonton board's Mr. Wachowicz is surprised that other school districts in Canada and the United States haven't followed Edmonton's lead by offering a comprehensive Mandarin bilingual program, which got its start with parent demand in 1982.

“I don't know if it's because our program isn't very well known, but we receive very little interest from other districts,” he said. Most of the outside interest in the program comes from China, he added.

Chinese Ministry of Education officials and politicians have made several trips to Edmonton over the years to study the program. They have also partnered with the school board, including running a pilot program this spring to test a learning-assessment tool used in China. Called the HSK, it's the gold-standard Mandarin proficiency test.

Mr. Wachowicz said that while there are a lot of start-up costs with a language program such as Mandarin, maintenance is not expensive. At Meyonohk Elementary, for instance, most of the teaching materials and books come from Taiwan, where the prices are relatively low.

“In reality, it's no more expensive than teaching mathematics or English or science. It's certainly far less expensive than teaching physical education,” Mr. Wachowicz said.

Peter Wong, 48, has two daughters enrolled in Edmonton's Mandarin bilingual program. He is also the president of a volunteer parent organization, the Edmonton Chinese Bilingual Education Association, which supports the public school board's efforts.

He said that when the program started 24 years ago, most of the Chinese residents in Edmonton spoke Cantonese.

Mr. Wong said that despite that fact, the decision to go with Mandarin was made after the community was canvassed. The parent volunteers phoned every Chinese-sounding surname in the Edmonton telephone book.

“It was a forward-looking decision by these pioneers at that time,” Mr. Wong said. “It was the right one. This is a language that is changing and shaping the world today.”

While neither Mr. Wong nor his wife speak Mandarin (both know Cantonese), they are excited about the “doors” that the language will open for their daughters, Jessica and Heather.

He said the association is always trying to promote the program, but has found it is often just as hard to get the attention of Edmonton parents as it is to interest other school boards.

“It's a struggle,” Mr. Wong acknowledged. “Some parents, especially new immigrants, just want their children to learn English.”

Julia Elaschuk, principal of Caernarvon School in Edmonton, said the Mandarin bilingual program was once so popular that there used to be a draw for spots in the kindergarten class at her school.

But, she said, in the past five years interest has waned slightly.

She said the Edmonton school board is going to have to appeal more to second- and third-generation Chinese parents to enroll their children by extolling the cultural and economic benefits.

Florrie Purdon wishes the word would spread to more non-Asian parents like her.

Ms. Purdon, who was raised in rural Alberta, and her husband, Peter, enrolled their children, Emma, 13, and Liam, 11, in the Mandarin program after hearing about it at a dinner party when the children were preschoolers.

Ms. Purdon said that through the years, she has often received confused looks from both non-Asian and Asian parents who wondered why they would want their children to learn “the hardest language on earth.”

There were several reasons why the Purdons enrolled their children, she said, but mainly they wanted to open doors for them. Liam is now in Grade 6; Emma is in Grade 8.

“With the economy the way it's going, I keep saying ‘thank heavens.' The choices and opportunities they will have will be tenfold over another Caucasian.”

Liam said he enjoys learning Mandarin, even if his parents can't help him with his homework.

“I get extra help at school,” he said. “It's easy — sort of.”

Back at Meyonohk Elementary's kindergarten class, Ms. Andrews was preparing to end another school year.

She thought back to September, when this class began.

“It was a real dog-and-pony show,” she recalled with a deep laugh. “Most of the kids just want their mommies, so imagine how hard it is to teach them another language.”

Many of her pupils entered the program this year not knowing Mandarin or English. Most can now write at least 50 Chinese characters and speak basic Mandarin.

“They've really come a long, long way, but this is just the start. This is just the start.”

zh0716 · 发表于 2006-5-21 02:07

Bold strokes on language
KATHERINE HARDING

From Saturday's Globe and Mail

Edmonton schools take lead with extensive bilingual program

Andrew Spencer from Calgary, writes: So, finally we have bilingualism that matters. French bilingualism, which is in global decline, prepares you for a job with our swollen civil service; Mandarin is actually going to become more important for trade as China flexes it's economic muscles.
Posted 20/05/06 at 2:37 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Cam Harvey from Cowichan Bay, Canada writes: Congratulations to the Purdon family! Their children will be well placed to take advantage of the opportunities made available by China's return to the global stage. Learning a second language, any language, is not easy. It requires persistence and opportunities to use it regularly. China's continued growth and influence will surely mean those opportunties will only increase. As a Canadian based company that promotes overseas language learning, we feel that the continued globalization of the workforce will result in an increasing demand for multilingual speakers. While French is, and will continue to be a key global language, we need more Canadian familes like the Purdons who recognize there are also other languages that we need to get our children learning from a young age.
Posted 20/05/06 at 5:39 AM EDT | Link to Comment

R. Carriere from Maritimes, Canada writes: What a great program! The Chinese economy will force several to learn their language as many worldwide in the past learned english to better do business with the Americans. As for my French friends in Quebec, your language has become irrelevant in the big picture unless you need to do business with those robust snd booming economies in Haiti, Martinique.....
Posted 20/05/06 at 8:10 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Charles Raymond from Windsor, Ontario, Canada writes: This insanity of having only French taught in Ontario schools has to stop. Ontario is doing a disservice to our children by focusing on an increasingly irrelevant language.Give parents better choices for their children.
Posted 20/05/06 at 9:25 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Michael Aquilino from Ottawa, Canada writes: I find it quite amusing that people are finally waking up to the extraordinary benefits of learning a second language. This initative is not new; we have had the possibility of learning French for decades, yet it was met with such stiff resistance that it continues to flounder.
Posted 20/05/06 at 11:08 AM EDT | Link to Comment

chris jenkins from Rock of the Westies, Canada writes: You bet, I would willingly have my son in a Mandarin course. Please no more FRENCH. There is no future for French in Western Canada.
Posted 20/05/06 at 11:12 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Raymond Frizzell from Pincourt, Quebec, Canada writes: I would recromend that English and French be taught mandatory in all across Canada, until the student graduates from high school. I am very happy to see young children learning something other than the official languages, this will offer them a great resource if they ever travel. I do think the children should have a choice on which language they want to learn however, it shouldn't be just mandrian, an aboriginal language would also be good for our kids to learn. Linguisticians have always said the earlier a child learns a language the better, and I think by reading this article this is true.
Posted 20/05/06 at 12:35 PM EDT | Link to Comment

Cynthia C from Toronto, Canada writes: Looks like Ontario, especially Toronto is going to fall behind and become less and less sophisticated. All because of "equality." Get thee to a finishing school, Torontonians. Oh wait, that's illegal, since we're focusing on proper European manners. Oops!
Posted 20/05/06 at 1:20 PM EDT | Link to Comment

ancing girl from the Okanagan, Canada writes: I wish we'd had the chance to learn French this way. Even if there weren't enough teachers for a full 50% in French, a few hours a day from kindergarten on (rather than waiting until the age our language learning aptitude starts to detiorate) would have us understanding more than just cereal boxes.
Posted 20/05/06 at 1:39 PM EDT | Link to Comment

Bupinder Gill from vancouver, Canada writes: If people were smart in Canada they would be learning Mandarin, Hindi, Punjabi, Cantonese as in ten years with America in the dumps China and India may well be the players in the global economy.
Posted 20/05/06 at 4:10 PM EDT | Link to Comment

Patricia Knowles from Ottawa, Canada writes: Canada has two official languages and that is English and French. Not English and Mandarin. When every single Canadian knows the official languages of this country is the time when Canadians learn alternative languages. Doesn't make any sense if Canadians go out and learn another language when they haven't fully learned either English or French. Many jobs in Canada only hire bilingual individuals and the workplace I work at is one of them. There were many qualified and even over-qualified people whose resumes were turned away because they lacked a language (in this case French). Children should master both languages for their own good. It should be a must. Canadians should know both languages. Not focus on some other foreign language that will probably have no effect on them.
Posted 20/05/06 at 6:51 PM EDT | Link to Comment

板儿砖 · 发表于 2006-5-21 14:33

加东还是牛叉。学中文居然违法！

加西人都说学法语没用了，至少在加西没有前途。加东人却坚持，加拿大工作只需要英法双语。

有同事就说过，东部人都认为，加拿大除多伦多之外，都是乡下。看来一点不假。

zh0716 · 发表于 2006-5-21 23:00

Bold strokes on language
KATHERINE HARDING

From Saturday's Globe and Mail

Edmonton schools take lead with extensive bilingual program

Read the full article Post a comment Skip to the latest comment
Andrew Spencer from Calgary, writes: So, finally we have bilingualism that matters. French bilingualism, which is in global decline, prepares you for a job with our swollen civil service; Mandarin is actually going to become more important for trade as China flexes it's economic muscles.
Posted 20/05/06 at 2:37 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Cam Harvey from Cowichan Bay, Canada writes: Congratulations to the Purdon family! Their children will be well placed to take advantage of the opportunities made available by China's return to the global stage. Learning a second language, any language, is not easy. It requires persistence and opportunities to use it regularly. China's continued growth and influence will surely mean those opportunties will only increase. As a Canadian based company that promotes overseas language learning, we feel that the continued globalization of the workforce will result in an increasing demand for multilingual speakers. While French is, and will continue to be a key global language, we need more Canadian familes like the Purdons who recognize there are also other languages that we need to get our children learning from a young age.
Posted 20/05/06 at 5:39 AM EDT | Link to Comment

R. Carriere from Maritimes, Canada writes: What a great program! The Chinese economy will force several to learn their language as many worldwide in the past learned english to better do business with the Americans. As for my French friends in Quebec, your language has become irrelevant in the big picture unless you need to do business with those robust snd booming economies in Haiti, Martinique.....
Posted 20/05/06 at 8:10 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Charles Raymond from Windsor, Ontario, Canada writes: This insanity of having only French taught in Ontario schools has to stop. Ontario is doing a disservice to our children by focusing on an increasingly irrelevant language.Give parents better choices for their children.
Posted 20/05/06 at 9:25 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Michael Aquilino from Ottawa, Canada writes: I find it quite amusing that people are finally waking up to the extraordinary benefits of learning a second language. This initative is not new; we have had the possibility of learning French for decades, yet it was met with such stiff resistance that it continues to flounder.
Posted 20/05/06 at 11:08 AM EDT | Link to Comment

chris jenkins from Rock of the Westies, Canada writes: You bet, I would willingly have my son in a Mandarin course. Please no more FRENCH. There is no future for French in Western Canada.
Posted 20/05/06 at 11:12 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Raymond Frizzell from Pincourt, Quebec, Canada writes: I would recromend that English and French be taught mandatory in all across Canada, until the student graduates from high school. I am very happy to see young children learning something other than the official languages, this will offer them a great resource if they ever travel. I do think the children should have a choice on which language they want to learn however, it shouldn't be just mandrian, an aboriginal language would also be good for our kids to learn. Linguisticians have always said the earlier a child learns a language the better, and I think by reading this article this is true.
Posted 20/05/06 at 12:35 PM EDT | Link to Comment

Cynthia C from Toronto, Canada writes: Looks like Ontario, especially Toronto is going to fall behind and become less and less sophisticated. All because of 'equality.' Get thee to a finishing school, Torontonians. Oh wait, that's illegal, since we're focusing on proper European manners. Oops!
Posted 20/05/06 at 1:20 PM EDT | Link to Comment

dancing girl from the Okanagan, Canada writes: I wish we'd had the chance to learn French this way. Even if there weren't enough teachers for a full 50% in French, a few hours a day from kindergarten on (rather than waiting until the age our language learning aptitude starts to detiorate) would have us understanding more than just cereal boxes.
Posted 20/05/06 at 1:39 PM EDT | Link to Comment

Bupinder Gill from vancouver, Canada writes: If people were smart in Canada they would be learning Mandarin, Hindi, Punjabi, Cantonese as in ten years with America in the dumps China and India may well be the players in the global economy.
Posted 20/05/06 at 4:10 PM EDT | Link to Comment

Patricia Knowles from Ottawa, Canada writes: Canada has two official languages and that is English and French. Not English and Mandarin. When every single Canadian knows the official languages of this country is the time when Canadians learn alternative languages. Doesn't make any sense if Canadians go out and learn another language when they haven't fully learned either English or French. Many jobs in Canada only hire bilingual individuals and the workplace I work at is one of them. There were many qualified and even over-qualified people whose resumes were turned away because they lacked a language (in this case French). Children should master both languages for their own good. It should be a must. Canadians should know both languages. Not focus on some other foreign language that will probably have no effect on them.
Posted 20/05/06 at 6:51 PM EDT | Link to Comment

p m from vancouver, Canada writes: I am amazed at the parochial comments from Ottawa. Mandarin is the most widely spoken language in the world. It is the language of the fastest growing segment of our society. It is the language of the largest, fast developing economy in the world. And the people want us to learn FRENCH!, a language disappearing from the face of the earth. And it is NOT the most difficult language to learn..Cantonese is!!
Posted 20/05/06 at 9:54 PM EDT | Link to Comment

Gabriel Solomon from Xizhi, Taiwan writes: I'm learning Mandarin right now. It's much easier than English or French. One could easily learn to speak Mandarin studying half an hour each day. Learning to write it though, thats totally different, but still fun!
Posted 21/05/06 at 12:18 AM EDT | Link to Comment

bill wilson from Taipei, Taiwan writes: We used to live in Ontario. My children were enrolled in Fench Immersion when my wife and I decided to move to Taiwan for a year so that our kids could learn Chinese. We have now been here 2 1/2 years and the kids (now 11 and 13) speak amazing Chinese. With Asia's vitality and growth (not to mention population) to be soley focused on French as a second language is so 19th century. Congratulations to Edmonton.
Posted 21/05/06 at 3:01 AM EDT | Link to Comment

m mac from Peterborough, Canada writes: Both my children are fully bilingual.Mydaughter speaks five language and my son English and French.Both have said that French aside from visiting Quebec is of no use to them.As their french is Parisian they sometimes have some problems with Quebec french.The teaching of manderin is comendable and will better prepare kids for the future than the present system that pushes french only.It is a big world and we must adapt to the changes or suffer the consequences.
Posted 21/05/06 at 3:39 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Patrick Chan from Vancouver, Australia writes: Why no one ever learns Portugeuse??? With Portugeuse, at least we can sing along to those delightful Bossa-Nova tunes... and, pick up Brasilian women when traveling to the land of the Girl from Ipanema.
Posted 21/05/06 at 3:56 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Michael Karlin from United Kingdom writes: #11, while learning French is certainly an asset, Canadians must prioritize labour market demands over some concept of history. Spanish, Mandarin, Hindi, Japanese, Arabic and French are all global languages as English and should be engaged depending on what your field requires. If you are working in a field where French is usually necessary, learn it. If not, learn another one. Finally, we should not discount learning a foreign language just for kicks or to expand our culture.
Posted 21/05/06 at 5:10 AM EDT | Link to Comment

B C from China writes: I wish I had such language options when I was younger. However, that said, I don't believe that Mandarin is the 'magic' key to prosperity that many think it is. I've studied Mandarin for almost a year, and am currently going on my second year in China. English is the dominant language of foreign business in China, and will most likely remain so for the foreseeable future. Mandarin skills will make you different and more markatable (like any language) but think of it as support to one's major skill (technology, engineering, law).
Posted 21/05/06 at 5:44 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Dave T from midwest, Canada writes: Post #11. Your comment about children learning both languages as a must is nonsense. You obviously have not spent a lot of time with children who face immense barriers learning even one language. I have seen first hand what happens to children who are forced into French immersion based on some mindless yuppie parental ideal when the child has no aptitide for it. What you get is a huge mess because the parent has no insight into their own kid. And I am speaking as a grandparent here!!
Posted 21/05/06 at 7:23 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Dong Wen from Ottawa, Canada writes: My son was born in Canada and could not speak much of Mandarin, our family mother-tongue because he went to an English-only childcare. We placed him in a Mandarin-English before and after-school program in a public school when he started JK an SK two years ago. He is now fluent in Mandarin and loves writing in Chinese. The Saturday Chinese school could not have brought him to this level. Both English and French are important. But schools should be offering some third language program to allow kids born here to acquire a third language.
Posted 21/05/06 at 8:47 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Esoterik . from Edmonton, Canada writes: Canada is a billingual state... everyone should learn English and French. We should, however, expand the choices of languages available. It's ridiculous that in some countries people speak 3 languages, whereas most of us can barely speak one well. Let's start up ambitious programmes to bring new foreign language graduates to come to Canada to teach Japanese, Mandarin, Russian, Hindi, Arabic, German, and Spanish. Not only does this make Canadians more worldly, but it would act as a catalyst for better business relations with the world.
Posted 21/05/06 at 10:00 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Stude Ham from Outremont, Canada writes: This Edmonton program may be doing a vast disservice not only to Canada, whose bilinguilaism is rooted in both French and English, but also to the Chinese people themselves, whose major language dialects include Cantonese and Mandarin. Why did the Edmonton board decide only on Mandarin and not also Cantonese? However, what I find most disturbing in the above comments are the traces of significant anti-French biases. There can be no justification for such biases and it is to be hoped that the Western education system will wake up and include French language training in all of its schools.
Posted 21/05/06 at 11:18 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Karin Pasnak from North Vancouver, Canada writes: Never mind Mandarin, they don't even learn english properly. The kids leave Highschool and don't know how to spell in their own language.
Posted 21/05/06 at 11:35 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Robert Boyd from Windsor, Canada writes: #11 Patricia.It's not every Canadians dream to become a Federal Government drone or parasite.
Posted 21/05/06 at 11:48 AM EDT | Link to Comment

P Rioux from Ottawa, Canada writes: If Canada were ever to really become thoroughly bilingual it would have happened long ago. Post 11 ignores reality and insists on denying opportunity to those who are competent simply on linguistic grounds. Will such people stay in Canada or seek better lives eleswhere? That attitude will guarantee that Canadians become even more insecure and less well off in years ahead.
Posted 21/05/06 at 11:50 AM EDT | Link to Comment

Terry Erickson from New York, NY, United States writes: Our children began their academic life in the (outstanding) Edmonton Public School system in French immersion. The option of immersion in another language has always been one of the strengths of the system. When we moved to the US, our son came home from school with the comment that he only knew 2 languages. The school they attended required a 3rd language in the middle school and the ability to learn a 3rd language for our son and daughter was enhanced in no small measure by having had the immersion experience. In our experience, the process of learning another language is always a benefit and in the 21st century, with the ever expanding global economy, to have Canadian youth fluent in multiple languages can only enhance the economic growth of Canada.
Posted 21/05/06 at 11:57 AM EDT | Link to Comment

george carere from toronto ontario, Canada writes: the west is a pest -read them our constitution-let's not pit language groups against one another based on ignorance-are we not all bored by this in canada-we all know our rights as canadians-come to toronto and see one of canada's most successfull french language schools-the toronto french school-let's move on we have canadians dying in a foreign country ...gggcarere toronto
Posted 21/05/06 at 12:17 PM EDT | Link to Comment

bse madcow from Toronto, Canada writes: i hated French when i was a student. it was difficult and not very fun. on top of that there didn`t seem to be much of a purpose to it. i thought i was no good at languages. however, for some unknown reason, i decided to try Mandarin when i got to university. it was so much easier than French. i loved it. and it has given me the confidence to go on and tackle other languages as well. perhaps one day i will study French again. i think i would no longer find it so difficult because i now know that i can succeed. let people study ANY language of their choice, rather than turning them off of the language learning process. once students have experienced success in learning a language, they might be more receptive to learning French. furthermore, it would allow them to understand how a knowlege of English grammar can be very useful.
Posted 21/05/06 at 1:13 PM EDT | Link to Comment

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