You are thinking of sending your child to a Chinese language school. You are ready to commit several years of your time and effort hoping to achieve a positive outcome. But, you do not know how to choose the right school for your child. This article will provide you with important information that will help you decide which school best fits your goals for your child.

Language Instruction: Historically, foreign language instruction has tended to emphasize literacy (reading and writing) over conversational proficiency (oracy), despite stated goals to achieve both. Think back to your own experience in learning a foreign language in secondary schools. Could you converse better than you could read or write?

In recent years, recognizing the importance of active communication among people in this age of globalization, language instruction has shifted its emphasis towards a more communicative, interactive, learner-centered and task-based skills set, or what is called "performance-based instruction". The content is relevant, and the learning effort more rewarding as students readily apply what they have learned.

Your Background:  Success in learning a language has as much to do with quality instruction as it does with opportunities to practice the newly acquired skills. Students from different backgrounds have varying opportunities to practice the language. As a parent, you are likely to fit into one of the following categories:

1. You grew up in China, Taiwan or another Asian country and were educated in schools using the Mandarin Chinese language (PC). You use Chinese with ease.

2. You primarily speak other Chinese "regionalect" (Cantonese, Wu, Hakka, Southern Min, Northern Min, etc…) and have mastery of the Chinese text (PW).

3. You grew up in the U.S. and were educated in American schools with some knowledge of the Chinese language and culture (PA).

4. You grew up in the U.S. and have little or no Chinese language background (PO).

Your child's background: Your child's early exposure to Mandarin Chinese affects his/her mastery of that language. Use of Mandarin Chinese at home leads to a better contextual handling of this language. Use of other Chinese "regionalects" at home does not necessarily make your child's acquisition (proficiency) of Mandarin Chinese easier. Generally, a child growing up in the US and attending American school before age 7 will inevitably acquire English as the first language and Chinese will be treated as a second language. This shift depends on how the Chinese language is being used and reinforced at home.

Your expectation:  Depending on your background, your goals and expectations will be very different from those of other parents. Language is communication. Generally, PW, PA and PO parents aspire to have their child acquire proficiency primarily in the conversational aspect (oracy) of the Chinese language, while PC parents, with their conversationally fluent child, and some PW parents aim to have their child acquire mastery in reading and writing (literacy).

More than any other language, Chinese in its written form ( text ) has played a very important role throughout the history of its people and culture. Able to orally communicate in Chinese without adequate mastery of reading and writing Chinese text makes one literately inadequate, yet, acquiring mastery of reading and writing without adequate oral communicative skills makes one poorly functional. The time constraint of a weekend school may preclude the achievement of more advanced proficiency in reading and writing. Formulating and instituting a balanced curriculum that is practical, functional and relevant always pose a big challenge for every language school.

Curriculum:  Chinese language schools generally operate on weekends. Classes are held for 2-3 hours. The curriculum and approach to instructions can vary greatly among schools. The variables to keep in mind for schools teaching Chinese Language are:

• Traditional vs. Simplified Chinese text.

• A phonetic system of zhuyin fuhao (a system of unique symbols, also referred to as "BoPoMoFo") vs. hanyu pinyin (a Romanization system based on English letters).

Generally, there are two types of schools: 

1. Heritage schools (HS). This type of school can be traced back historically to as early as 1848. Its goal is to preserve Chinese language and heritage. Parents (PC) and their children are fluent in conversation (listening and speaking). Curriculum strongly emphasizes vocabulary and grammar drills ( literacy: reading and writing ). Homework and tests are often used as methods of reinforcement. This system relies heavily on parental help and instruction. Recently, some heritage schools started to offer modified curriculum to reach out to children of (PA) (PO), however, without a new curriculum and functional approach, those curricula or "second tracks" may cosmetically address but fail to correct inherent problems that have failed and caused most of these children to drop out.

There are two types of heritage schools:

1.  
   1. Those that use Traditional Chinese text.
   2. Those that use Simplified Chinese text.

2.  “Chinese as a second language” school (CS).  This type of school offers Chinese as a second language to children of diverse background. Its goals attempt to respond to more practical needs of a larger community and the future. The curriculum is geared towards conversation (speaking and listening), text recognition (reading) and task performance. Writing may be integrated at any stage. Since it is important to have some form of interface with English to facilitate learning, the hanyu pinyin phonetic system is typically used. Simplified text may be preferred. 

Recommendations:  You should choose a Chinese language school for your child only after you:

1. Determine your and your child's background, and set your goals and expectations reasonably.
2. Determine whether you want a Heritage (HS) or Second Language (CS) school.
3. Visit the prospective school(s). Talk with the principal, teachers, parents and students.
4. Inquire about the school's objectives and expectations, its curriculum and instructional methods. Are these practical and applicable to daily living? Can they sustain the interest of your child?
5. Inquire about the amount of homework and the frequency of written tests. These add to the pressure and demand of your child's hectic schedule.
6. Inquire about the necessity and the degree of parental help.

We hope your child will acquire basic proficiency and a lifelong interest in Chinese language.

For comments and inquiries, contact:

The Chinese Language School of Connecticut

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