BUY: A Parent’s Guide to Mandarin Immersion
A Parent’s Guide to Mandarin Immersion
is available as a print book on the CreateSpace website at
https://www.createspace.com/5001864
It’s also available on Amazon at
However, please note that Amazon takes twice the cut that CreateSpace does (though they’re the same company). So if you can, I’d ask that you buy it from the CreateSpace site.
There is as yet no e-book version. Unfortunately the .epub format does not support Chinese characters, so they come through as black squares. There’s a fair amount of Chinese sprinkled through the book, so it doesn’t work without Chinese. I’m looking into do a fixed-format ebook (which wouldn’t work on phone but could be read on tablets) for example, but haven’t quite worked out the details. I’ll email when it becomes available.
Beth Weise
Chenery Street Press, San Francisco
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A Parent’s Guide to Mandarin Immersion
An in-depth guide to Chinese language immersion programs, for primary school families. The book’s 31 chapters cover how immersion works in the classroom and a history of language immersion in North America, including an overview of Chinese, the benefits of bilingualism for the brain and the academic possibilities immersion opens for students. Also answers questions about what level of English and Chinese students typically achieve in these programs and what parents can do to raise them. Discusses the reasons why schools choose to implement Mandarin immersion programs and why parents choose them—often at odds with each other.
What the experts are saying:
“If you’d like to understand the dynamics of Chinese immersion education in the United States, look no further. Beth Weise is a prescient and astute guide through this often confusing and misunderstood world. Beth details the development of the field and offers practical advice. Her book is required reading for parents, administrators, and practitioners — a major contribution to the field.”
Chris Livaccari, former Senior Advisor for Chinese Language Initiatives, Asia Society, Chinese Program Director, International School of the Peninsula, Palo Alto
“Weise combines journalistic writing talents with longstanding interest in Chinese language learning to offer current and prospective parents an engaging and informative guide to Mandarin immersion education in the U.S. Whether your child already speaks English or comes from a multilingual home language background, this handbook serves as an excellent resource— chock full of news and information about how to get the most from your child’s Mandarin immersion experience.”
Tara W. Fortune, Ph.D., Director, Immersion Projects, Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition, University of Minnesota
“This book addresses issues of concern not only to parents but anyone involved in Chinese language education. It provides amazingly complete information and statistics about Chinese immersion programs—from the history of immersion program to the most recently establish Mandarin immersion schools. Painfully honest, it tells us about school and school district politics surrounding the establishment and implementation of these programs. Weise’s insights and the resources she lists make it a “must-have” guidebook for anyone interested in Chinese immersion.”
Dr. Christy Lao, professor of education and second language acquisition exert at San Francisco State University
CHAPTERS:
What is Mandarin immersion?
1 Welcome to Mandarin immersion
2 A history of language immersion
3 Mandarin immersion in 2014-2015
4 How Mandarin immersion works
5 How immersion programs are structured
6 Immersion and your child’s academic career
7 Is Mandarin immersion right for your family?
8 Being bilingual is better
9 Chinese 101 for parents
Who chooses it and why?
10 Why parents choose Mandarin immersion
11 Parent profiles
Sarah Beth Chionsini: A Cantonese immersion experience
Carmen Cordovez: Una familia trilingüe: Español, Inglés y 中文
Frank and Mindy Han: A Chinese-speaking family in Los Angeles
Jamila Nightengale: Being Black and bilingual
12 Student profiles
Madeleine Adams
Day Chionsini
Anya Hauptmann
Katie Stern-Stillinger
Questions and some answers
13 But will they learn English?
14 How much Chinese will they learn?
15 How to get more Chinese in your child’s life
16 Chinese literacy issues
17 Getting your child reading in Chinese
18 For Chinese-speaking parents
The schools
19 Why schools choose Mandarin immersion
20 What you should look for in an immersion program
21 School profiles
The Chinese American International School, San Francisco 1981
Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland 1991
Portland Public Schools, Oregon 1998
Minnetonka, Minnesota 2007
Los Angeles Unified School District 2007
Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School, Hadley Massachusetts 2007
Utah’s immersion program 2009
Washington Yu Ying Public Charter School, Washington DC 2008
Deutsch-Chinesische Grundschule, Berlin 2011
Mandarin Chinese Language Immersion Magnet School, Houston 2012
22 Immersion consortia: The support schools need
23 Going to school in China
24 Going to school in Singapore
Once you’ve made the leap
25 Tips from parents
26 Things teachers and principals wish they could tell you
27 How to start a parents’ group
28 You know you’re an MI parent when…
Final thoughts
29 Moving forward
30 Our family’s story
31 Afterword
Resources
32 Resources
33 Glossary
34 Bibliography
Mandarin Immersion Parents Council 