How much Chinese language is enough?
March 28, 2012, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
"SPEAKING two languages rather than just one has obvious practical benefits in an increasingly globalized world. But in recent years, scientists have begun to show that the advantages of bilingualism are even more fundamental than being able to converse with a wider range of people. Being bilingual, it turns out, makes you smarter. It can have a profound effect on your brain, improving cognitive skills not related to language and even shielding against dementia in old age."
- Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, Sunday Review, New York Times, March 17, 2011
You are excited for your child to have the opportunity to learn Chinese - but what are your expectations for their level of fluency, and what learning environment is necessary to achieve that outcome?
At many international schools, the Chinese program is based on education philosophy and national curriculum. While some schools provide Chinese language study as a component of their curriculum, one makes bilingualism a living, breathing part of the school culture. Yew Chung International School of Shanghai (YCIS Shanghai) provides an education in both English and Chinese, with as much as a 50/50 approach during Early Childhood years, and a full staff of Western and Chinese Co-Principals and Co-Teachers.
YCIS Shanghai caters to the varying skills of their students by offering 14 levels of Chinese language classes. "Students have different modes of thinking and learning methods, so we assess them and teach each child at the level that will help them to advance most quickly, using relevant strategies to raise teaching efficiency," says Chinese Co-Principal Mary Yu.
YCIS assesses students twice a year to carefully calibrate the Chinese language lessons to each students' needs. Students' performance on these assessments allows them to move up to the next level of Chinese study as soon as they are ready, rather than waiting for the next academic year. The Chinese curriculum materials used by all YCIS campuses in the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Silicon Valley are developed in-house by the YCIS Chinese Language Research and Development team, to support and enhance this learning.
Co-teaching, with one native English-language teacher and one native Chinese-language teacher in the classroom, ensures that Chinese language becomes part of daily life for students. According to Year 2 Co-Teachers Amanda Yang and Jessica Manni, the major advantage of co-teaching goes beyond language acquisition. "The biggest takeaway for students is an intuitive respect for another culture," says Manni.
Yang notes that they also help each other bridge cultural sensitivity. She cites the example of parent expectation and acceptance of mistakes in homework.
"Some parents want their children turn in 'clean' homework, and ask them to completely erase mistakes so that only the correct answer is on the page," she says. "But in order for the children to learn, it is important for Jessica and I to see where they might have made a mistake - for example, when working through a math problem." Together, they are able to communicate this concept to parents in effective, culturally sensitive ways.
YCIS Shanghai reinforces Chinese language learning with regular school events including field trips for younger children and the Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC) program, giving students in Years 7-9 the opportunity to travel to different parts of China. In addition, each week sees the younger students studying a Chinese culture topic, and there are regular cultural experiences for all students: Chinese Reading Month, Chinese Week and Chinese Cultural Topic Day. This gives YCIS students a wide platform to demonstrate their progress and fluency. More importantly, notes Yu, "the enjoyment and motivation students derive from these activities are important for language study."
For some parents, it's enough for their children to learn conversational Chinese while they live in China. For others, this is an amazing opportunity to help give children a key to a global future. How much Chinese is enough is a question that each family needs to answer individually, but for those families who consider Chinese language learning a priority, the YCIS model offers children the chance to grow quickly, to integrate their language learning into daily life and to truly absorb the culture along the way.
- Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, Sunday Review, New York Times, March 17, 2011
You are excited for your child to have the opportunity to learn Chinese - but what are your expectations for their level of fluency, and what learning environment is necessary to achieve that outcome?
At many international schools, the Chinese program is based on education philosophy and national curriculum. While some schools provide Chinese language study as a component of their curriculum, one makes bilingualism a living, breathing part of the school culture. Yew Chung International School of Shanghai (YCIS Shanghai) provides an education in both English and Chinese, with as much as a 50/50 approach during Early Childhood years, and a full staff of Western and Chinese Co-Principals and Co-Teachers.
YCIS Shanghai caters to the varying skills of their students by offering 14 levels of Chinese language classes. "Students have different modes of thinking and learning methods, so we assess them and teach each child at the level that will help them to advance most quickly, using relevant strategies to raise teaching efficiency," says Chinese Co-Principal Mary Yu.
YCIS assesses students twice a year to carefully calibrate the Chinese language lessons to each students' needs. Students' performance on these assessments allows them to move up to the next level of Chinese study as soon as they are ready, rather than waiting for the next academic year. The Chinese curriculum materials used by all YCIS campuses in the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Silicon Valley are developed in-house by the YCIS Chinese Language Research and Development team, to support and enhance this learning.
Co-teaching, with one native English-language teacher and one native Chinese-language teacher in the classroom, ensures that Chinese language becomes part of daily life for students. According to Year 2 Co-Teachers Amanda Yang and Jessica Manni, the major advantage of co-teaching goes beyond language acquisition. "The biggest takeaway for students is an intuitive respect for another culture," says Manni.
Yang notes that they also help each other bridge cultural sensitivity. She cites the example of parent expectation and acceptance of mistakes in homework.
"Some parents want their children turn in 'clean' homework, and ask them to completely erase mistakes so that only the correct answer is on the page," she says. "But in order for the children to learn, it is important for Jessica and I to see where they might have made a mistake - for example, when working through a math problem." Together, they are able to communicate this concept to parents in effective, culturally sensitive ways.
YCIS Shanghai reinforces Chinese language learning with regular school events including field trips for younger children and the Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC) program, giving students in Years 7-9 the opportunity to travel to different parts of China. In addition, each week sees the younger students studying a Chinese culture topic, and there are regular cultural experiences for all students: Chinese Reading Month, Chinese Week and Chinese Cultural Topic Day. This gives YCIS students a wide platform to demonstrate their progress and fluency. More importantly, notes Yu, "the enjoyment and motivation students derive from these activities are important for language study."
For some parents, it's enough for their children to learn conversational Chinese while they live in China. For others, this is an amazing opportunity to help give children a key to a global future. How much Chinese is enough is a question that each family needs to answer individually, but for those families who consider Chinese language learning a priority, the YCIS model offers children the chance to grow quickly, to integrate their language learning into daily life and to truly absorb the culture along the way.
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