Asia Society Publishes Chinese Language Program "Start- Up" Guide Amid Accelerating Demand From U.S. Schools

In response to unprecedented interest from schools and communities to meet the growing demand for instruction in Chinese language and culture in the United States, the Asia Society has developed a new guide to help educators plan, launch, and sustain new K-12 programs.

Creating a Chinese Language Program in Your School: An Introductory Guide, provides practical action steps for schools and districts as well as school board members, administrators and parents to take to establish a high-quality Chinese language program. A new comprehensive companion website, www.AskAsia.org/Chinese, provides data on existing Mandarin instruction in the U.S., teacher and technology resources, a Chinese program locator map and detailed program and background information for policymakers and the media.

Development of the guide is an outgrowth of increased recognition by officials in both the public and private sectors that school curricula need to include instruction in Chinese language and culture, along with other international studies, in order to help the U.S. maintain its competitive edge in the global economy.

The release of the guide comes at a time when Asia's rise is being recognized as one of the central facts of the 21st Century. China, with its tremendous economic growth -- total U.S. trade with China exceeded $245 billion in 2004, second only to trade with Canada and Mexico -- is fundamental to this shift. In recent years China accounted for one-third of global economic growth.

As China rushes toward superpower status, American schools and government officials are growing increasingly concerned by the lack of expertise in a language considered critical to national prosperity and security. The most recent data from 2000 show that only 24,000 students in grades 7-12 were studying Chinese, a language spoken by 1.3 billion people worldwide.

However, while the number of students studying Chinese in schools is small, there is rapidly growing interest. A 2004 survey conducted by the College Board revealed that nearly 2,400 high schools nationwide expressed an interest in offering the new Advanced Placement Chinese Language and Culture Exam to their students.

Besides the new AP course and the guide, other developments in the field include:

--  New programs by the College Board, the State Department and states
    such as Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, Kansas and Kentucky to bring
    visiting teachers from China

--  Growing interest by universities in training American teachers of
    Chinese, including a new certification program at Rutgers University in New
    Jersey

--  A model K-16 pipeline project in Portland, Oregon designed to create
    an integrated system of Mandarin that can be replicated nationally

--  New commitments to Mandarin instruction in large urban districts such
    as Chicago and Philadelphia

--  New uses of technology such as an online Mandarin course being offered
    by Kentucky's virtual international high school and CHENGO, a games-based
    software program developed by the Chinese Ministry of Education and the
    U.S. Department of Education
    

"Interest in learning Chinese among American students and their parents has grown dramatically in the past five years," said Vivien Stewart, Vice President for Education at Asia Society. "But schools nationwide admit they do not know how to start and sustain a Chinese language program, and there is an acute shortage of certified teachers. Americans have been the world's most successful students and entrepreneurs for the past century. We have to envision a new set of global skills, which include understanding world languages and cultures, to retain our edge in an increasingly interconnected economy."

A 2005 Asia Society report entitled Expanding Chinese Language Capacity in the United States outlined key steps the U.S. should take to build capacity in Chinese, a language that our nation can no longer afford to ignore. The Asia Society's new guide will help educators design and deliver Chinese programs.

Asia Society

Asia Society is the leading global organization working to strengthen relationships and promote understanding among the people, leaders, and institutions of Asia and the United States. We seek to enhance dialogue, encourage creative expression, and generate new ideas across the fields of policy, business, education, arts, and culture. Founded in 1956, Asia Society is a nonpartisan, nonprofit educational institution with offices in Hong Kong, Houston, Los Angeles, Manila, Melbourne, Mumbai, New York, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Washington, D.C. On the web at www.AsiaSociety.org.