Mandarin Immersion Parents Council

Information for parents of kids in Mandarin immersion education

recent posts

about

  • iPhone and iPad owners: a Mandarin blog for you

    There’s a techie in Boston, Lin Ai 林爱, who’s got a great web site devoted to Mac-based programs for learning Chinese called 中网 Zhongweb. Definitely worth checking out here.

    Welcome to 中网 Zhongweb

    Welcome to the new version of the site. The old version is temporarily available at zhongweb.weebly.com.

    中网 Zhongweb is a site for people learning Chinese (Mandarin). I hope to bring you tools, tips, and techniques to make your study more fun and effective, particularly if you are studying on your own. Language is a gateway to culture, but the focus here is definitely on language-learning, rather than cultural notes.

    Warning: Regarding computers and mobile devices I only have access to Apple hardware and so normally only review Mac and iOS software; I am not equipped to talk about Windows/Linux/Android products, but some of the apps have versions for other platforms, so I hope you will still find some useful information here.

    Mac / iOS / web developers: Have an app for learning Chinese or a general purpose language learning app?

    Publishers: Releasing Chinese textbooks, readers, or other learning materials (print or electronic)?

    Contact me about having your products reviewed on the blog.

  • St. Louis Mandarin immersion 很好!

    Language immersion schools make strides in St. Louis area

    ST. LOUIS • The moment was brief but telling for Lydia Hsiuling Chen as she watched one of her students accidentally step on the foot of another as they headed out to recess.

    “Dui bu qi,” the kindergartner said quickly as she continued on her way. The classmate, looking slightly annoyed but accepting of her apology, muttered his reply, telling her it was OK — also in Chinese.

    It was a natural inclination to use what was an entirely foreign language to them less than two months ago. And it was an early sign of success for The Chinese School, the newest program that began this year at St. Louis Language Immersion Schools.

    “They are not just learning Chinese, they are living with Chinese,” said Chen, who serves as head of the school.

    It is the third language immersion program offered at the public charter school in the city. Schools that focus on French and Spanish are now in their fourth year and are popular, with total enrollment more than doubling from two years ago to about 800 students this year. The schools, which are tuition-free, have a waiting list and now a second campus.

    Please read more here.

  • Houston’s first Mandarin immersion program going strong

    by Mia Gradney/ KHOU 11 News

    Posted on October 23, 2012 at 5:11 PM

    HOUSTON—HISD wants voters to approve a $1.9 billion bond issue to rebuild and renovate schools.　 One of the schools that stands to benefit is an old campus in Bellaire that has a very new and foreign concept.

    Children of all backgrounds are learning to speak Mandarin at HISD’s first Mandarin Chinese Language Immersion Magnet School.

    “It feels kind of weird because I just learned it and I’ve been here for two months,” said Sarah Salazar, second grade.

    Yet seven-year-old Sarah understands everything her teacher says. Her teacher speaks only Mandarin to the students. The curriculum is the same as any other school and the children appear to catch on quickly.

    The majority of them have no prior Mandarin experience and some have yet to even master the English language, while others are on their way to speaking a third.

    So why Chinese?

    “A lot of people think ‘Texas’ and we should be doing Spanish and that’s already being done, but Houston is such an international city that we need to turn our attention elsewhere and include other aspects of international relations,” said Principal Bryan Bordelon.

    Please see more here.

  • You know you’re a Mandarin immersion parent* when….

    This list comes from things people have told me or emailed me of late, which I’ve turned into this format because I realized I burst out laughing when one mom told me the “fuxi for my kaoshi” line because I knew exactly what she meant. These are clearly all from non-Chinese speaking parents, and mostly folks with no connection to Chinese culture before their kids started in Mandarin immersion. But that’s the majority of people in these programs nationally, so it’s a pretty big cohort.

    Would love to hear others to add to the list. Email me or comment below…

    =====

    You know you’re a Mandarin immersion parent* when….

    Your third grader is starting to lose it over homework so you offer to race him looking up the characters in a story he doesn’t know in the dictionary by stroke order. You beat him.

    You know what Yellowbridge.com is and how to use it.

    You have strong preferences in moon cakes types, and can answer the question “one egg yolk, two or none?”

    Your kid says “I have to fuxi for my kaoshi, but after that I’m done with my gongke” and you understand her.

    When you reach into your purse for Kleenex you come out with a handful of flashcards.

    All the CDs in your car are in Chinese.

    You know who the biggest K-pop stars are and have their songs, with Chinese subtitles, bookmarked on your computer.

    You own more Chinese dictionaries than English dictionaries.

    You can explain to a Kindergarten parent what a measure word is, and get it right.

    You can pick out your child’s handwriting on the bulletin board outside his classroom, even though the papers are all in Chinese.

    You forget that in most schools teachers speak to parents in English when there are kids around.

    *A non-Chinese speaking MI parent. I’d love to see a list for Chinese-speakers, if anyone’s got one.

     

     

     

  • Making the case for a Mandarin immersion program

    This video has been out for three years, but I just ran across it and thought it might be useful for schools contemplating adding Mandarin immersion programs. There’s a host of material out on the topic, but this seems to include a piece designed for showing to skeptical school boards and worried parents.

    Ordering information here.

    As the U.S. education system sees an explosion of interest in establishing Chinese language programs, many schools are struggling with the task of building programs that are effective and sustainable over the long term. Asia Society continues to lead the charge in this arena with the release of our DVD, Learning Chinese in American Schools.

    The DVD illustrates best practices for establishing high-quality programs, including how a large city and a state have created effective growth models. The chapter “Why Chinese and Why Now?” is designed to help educators and policymakers make the case for Chinese language education.

  • Opportunities for teachers, schools and students

    From this month’s Asia Society newsletter

    2013 STARTALK programs: The online RFP has been posted for programs for students and teachers in one of the following languages: Arabic, Chinese, Dari, Hindi, Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Swahili, Turkish, and Urdu. Deadline: October 31.

     Association for Asian Studies (AAS) invites submissions for the Franklin R. Buchanan Prize awarded annually to recognize an outstanding curriculum publication on Asia designed for any educational level, elementary through university. Deadline: November 1.

    Sino-American Bridge for Education and Health is offering a five-week travel with Chinese teachers of English while sharing American methods of teaching English based heavily on oral interchange. Deadline to apply for summer travel is December 31.

    The American Youth Leadership Program offers opportunities for American high students and educators to travel abroad on an exchange program to gain first-hand knowledge of foreign cultures and to collaborate on solving global issues.    Recruitment areas and application deadlines vary, so please check the website for more information.

    The National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) offers merit-based scholarships to U. S. high-school aged students for overseas study of seven critical foreign languages:  Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), Hindi, Korean, Persian (Tajik), Russian and Turkish.  Applications for summer 2013 and academic year 2013-2014 programs are due November 1.

     

    View the full newsletter here.

  • Chinese writer Mo Yan wins Nobel literature-prize

    BEIJING (AP) — Novelist Mo Yan, this year’s Nobel Prize winner for literature, is practiced in the art of challenging the status quo without offending those who uphold it.

    Mo, whose popular, sprawling, bawdy tales bring to life rural China, is the first Chinese winner of the literature prize who is not a critic of the authoritarian government. And Thursday’s announcement by the Swedish Academy brought an explosion of pride across Chinese social media.

    The state-run national broadcaster, China Central Television, reported the news moments later, and the official writers’ association, of which Mo is a vice chairman, lauded the choice. But it also ignited renewed criticisms of Mo from other writers as too willing to serve or too timid to confront a government that heavily censors artists and authors, and punishes those who refuse to obey.

    The reactions highlight the unusual position Mo holds in Chinese literature. He is a genuinely popular writer who is embraced by the Communist establishment but who also dares, within careful limits, to tackle controversial issues like forced abortion. His novel “The Garlic Ballads,” which depicts a peasant uprising and official corruption, was banned.

     

    Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Chinese-writer-Mo-Yan-wins-Nobel-literature-prize-3937927.php#ixzz2918CwwN8