Information for parents of kids in Mandarin immersion education
recent posts
- Kansas district votes to close Mandarin immersion due to budget shortfall
- Fourth grade Mandarin immersion students from Maryland sing for First Lady
- Utah’s Chinese Dual Language Immersion Program serves 12,000 students in 98 schools
- Chapel Hill NC superintendent wants to to disband 24-year-old Mandarin immersion program
- Wyoming’s only Mandarin immersion program going strong
about
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Chinese Language Education and Research Center 加州中文教学研究中心
2011Chinese Language Education Forum ( CLEF )
November 12 – 13 Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport
It is time to Register!
Don’t miss your chance to network with Chinese teachers from all over the world!You are invited join us NOW for the 2011 Chinese Language Education Forum.
This year’s conference saw an unprecedented number of proposals resulting in some of the selection of an exceptionally strong slate of presentations representing the latest innovations in Chinese Language Education. After receiving more than 400% more proposals than one year ago, our agenda is exciting and timely, representing broad perspectives from Mainland China, the US, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Europe, Africa, and South America. With such expertise to draw from, we feel it is not hyperbole to say this should be an event not to be missed by those wishing to learn from and network with some of the most renowned leaders in the field.
The registration deadline is fast approaching! Early Bird registration for 2011 CLEF will end on September 30th. You can register NOW for only half the price of regular registration.
About CLEF
Chinese Language Education Forum (CLEF) is the continuation and development of the previous biennial Conference on Chinese Language Education in the US West Coast. The past 14 years since the inception of conference in 1997 have witnessed rapid expansion both in terms of academic quality and scale, reaching far beyond the geographical boundary of the US West Coast. Therefore, starting from 2010, the biennial conference will be changed into an annual event to be held on the 2nd weekend of November under the new name of Chinese Language Education Forum.
The Forum is to build up an exchange platform for policymakers, educational administrators, K-16 teachers, heritage language instructors, and product and service providers in the field of Chinese language education. The Forum will also highlight a comprehensive Chinese Language Materials Expo.
Hosts & Collaborating Organizations
Chinese Language Education and Research Center (CLERC)
The Confucius Institute at San Francisco State University
UC Berkeley STARTALK Teacher Program & National Center for K-16 Chinese Language Pedagogy
Thanks to the following collaborating organizations for their participation and support of CLEF 2011
Alameda County Office of Education
Association for Modernization of Chinese Language Education Beijing Language and Culture University
Chinese Language Teachers’ Association of Southern California (CLTA-SC)
Confucius Institute at San Diego State University
Cupertino Language Immersion Program ( CLIP )
Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD)
Hayward Unified School District
San Francisco Unified School District
Confucius Institute at Portland State University
Chinese School Association in the United States
Keynote Speaker
Professor B. Kumaravadivelu San Jose State University
Guest Speakers
Feng, Shengli 冯胜利 The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Han, Zhaohong 韩照红 Columbia University
Hsin, Shih-Chang 信世昌 National Taiwan Normal University
Lu， Jane 杨静悦 Confucius Institute in Chicago
Zhang, Hesheng 张和生 Beijing Normal University
Zhang,Ying 张英 Peking University
Registration Fees
Early Bird (by 09/30/2011) $60.00
Regular (after 09/30/2011) $120.00
Registration instruction and policy
Registrations may be submitted online, by fax or by mail. Register Online: http://www.go-clef.org/en/register-online.php Register by Fax: (650) 259-2108 Register by Mail: CLEF Registration, 510 Broadway Suite 200, Millbrae, CA94030
Join us for the Second Chinese Language Education Forum, November 12-13, 2011, San Francisco, CA. To learn more information, please check the website: http://www.go-clef.org
Contact Iona Zhang
510 Broadway, Suite 200,
Millbrae, CA 94030
Tel: (650)259-2100
Fax: (650)259-2108
Email: ionazhang@nanhai.com
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Charter Schools Clarify Academics
State asks key questions to proposed Mandarin-immersion schools; decision expected in Sept.
Charter schools were asked to clarify their applications in several key areas over the summer as they await a decision by the state Department of Education.The state’s charter school office has before it 55 applications for new charters, including two Mandarin-immersion schools that would recruit students from Livingston and neighboring districts. The decision is expected later this month.
The proposed local charter schools were required to resubmit their financial statements and expand how they will assess academic success, according to addendas to their application posted on the Livingston Public Schools website. (See charter school informationhere).
The questions are in line with new directions coming from acting education commissioner Chris Cerf, who last week detailed steps that are intended to improve the oversight of new and existing schools. (NJ Spotlight has that story here). The rules spell out what’s expected for charter schools in the areas of student performance and state tests.
“We are committed to supporting the expansion of high-quality charter schools that serve unmet needs across the state,” Cerf says in the letter to charter leaders. “In return, we will require charter schools to demonstrate continuous academic achievement and a commitment to equal access.”
Questions aimed at doing just that were asked of Hanyu International Charter School and Hua Mai Charter School, the two applicants who propose to open schools locally next year.
Among the questions, Hua Mai is asked to clarify how it will measure proficiency for Mandarin language, and to clarify student progression grade by grade. Hanyu is asked how it will meet state standards in combination with Chinese instructions and evaluate teachers.
Please read more here.
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Cayce, SC (WLTX) – The relationship betweenChina
and the United States continues to grow.According to the South Carolina
Department of Commerce, in 2009 China bought about $869 million in goods from our state, making them one of the top five export markets for South Carolina. The United States also competes with China for business. So what better way to work as friends or competitors than to know them?East Point Academy in Cayce is the first in South Carolina to offer a Chinese-language immersion program.
Inside the school well-known songs, such as “It’s a Small World,” sound a little bit different because these kids are singing it in Mandarin.
“We have students from all races, cultural backgrounds,” said director and founding principal Renee Mathews, “and it’s just a beautiful montage of children.”
Mandarin is a form of Chinese and is spoken by more than 700 million people around the world.
More of the story, and a video, here.
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Williamson County schools set sights on developing bilingual kids
School district considers K-12 language program
1:17 AM, Sep. 12, 2011 |Maria Giordano | The Tennessean
Kindergartners in Williamson County could soon be on their way to becoming fluent in a second language.
It’s only a goal for now, but school officials in the district are working toward the idea and have narrowed down the language choice to Mandarin Chinese, German, Spanish or French. Ultimately, whatever is selected would be taught to students from kindergarten through 12th grade, much like students around the world are taught English as a second language.
“We’re one of the only countries in the world where students don’t walk away from their school experience knowing a second language,” said Director of Schools Mike Looney. “We want to make sure our graduates are globally competitive.”
The idea that high school graduates should be fluent in a second language was born out of several community meetings held last school year. Thousands of parents turned out for brainstorming sessions to create the district’s seven-year strategic plan.
Time and time again, parents said they thought their children should be fluent in a second language, said Pat Anderson, school board chairwoman.
But achieving the goal is turning out to be tricky. What language should they teach? How will it be implemented into the school day? What programs should they use? Anderson said there is a committee researching all the options, and Looney says it wouldn’t start until the 2013-14 school year.
read more here.
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Bump in the road
Signups falter for Mandarin Chinese immersion class
BY REBECCA RANDALL
The Lake Oswego Review, Sep 1, 2011, Updated Sep 1, 2011
Starting last year with enthusiasm, the Mandarin Chinese immersion program has hit a bump — there are not enough children to fill its first kindergarten class.
The program would have been at River Grove Elementary School, but the Lake Oswego School Board chose to cut the program for this year. The district will still maintain its preschool, which has six students, and its pre-K, which has eight students, at Bryant Elementary School.
read more here.
