The document discusses factors that have impacted foreign language education programs and considerations for starting an elementary school Chinese language program. It covers the history of Chinese language schools and immersion programs. National standards and initiatives that promoted language learning are outlined. Research on benefits of early language learning is presented. The document examines program models and discusses elements critical for success, including adequate time and intensity of instruction, continuity, and teacher effectiveness. It also provides perspectives from an example Chinese immersion program.

1. Asking the Right Questions: Crafting a Plan for an Elementary School Chinese Program Marcia Rosenbusch • Carol Ann Dahlberg Betsy Lueth • Luyi Lien • Janna Chiang NCLC Chicago, 2009

2. Why? Lessons from the Past and Risks in the Future

4. Our profession in the past…. Wave of Immigrants: 1850-1900

5. Our profession in the past…. Chinese Immigrants: 1849-1882

6. Chinese Language Schools, aka Chinese Heritage Schools Date back to 1848 By 1997 there were 82,675 students, 634 schools In the 1930s schools in Los Angeles, San Diego, Washington, D.C., New Orleans, Minneapolis, Oakland--among others Goal: keep language and culture alive!

7. Our profession in the past…. World War I: 1914-1918

8. Our profession in the past…. World War II – 1939-1945

9. Our profession in the past…. Sputnik October 4, 1957 Wake-up call for Math Sciences Languages (especially Russian!)

10. Our profession in the past…. Program Success...

11. Our profession in the past…. Program Failure... Lack of qualified teachers Inappropriate goals Lack of articulation Inappropriate instruction and/or delivery

12. What factors have impacted our profession in recent times?

13. National Standards: Students Standards for Foreign Language Education: Preparing for the 21 st Century The Vision… All students can be successful language and culture learners. Language and culture education is part of the core curriculum. (p. 7)

14. National Standards: Teachers FL Teacher Candidates ACTFL/NCATE Program Standards for the Preparation of FL Teachers, 2002 ACTFL/NCATE Beginning FL Teachers Standards for Licensing Beginning FL Teachers, 2002 INTASC Accomplished FL Teachers World Languages Other than English Standards, 2001 NBPTS

15. National Focus on Assessment Assessment plays a key role in focusing language learning and communicating what language educators and the public expect that students will be able to do in their new language; Assessment of language learning requires a variety of measures to assist students in their language learning;

16. National Focus on Assessment Users must match language assessments to the purpose for using the instrument, selecting the most appropriate measure. National Assessment Summit Papers, 2005 Examples of oral proficiency assessments for Early Language Learners: ELLOPA, SOPA, NOELLA

17. September 11, 2001

18. National Language Conference (2005) Develop language and cultural competency; Engage federal, state, and local government in solutions; Integrate language training across career fields; Develop critical language skills; Strengthen teaching capabilities in foreign languages and cultures; (Continued)

19. National Language Conference (2005) Integrate language into education system requirements; Develop and provide instructional materials and technological tools.

20. Education for Global Leadership The Importance of International Studies and Foreign Language Education for U.S. Economic and National Security Policy Statement Committee for Economic Development, 2006

21. Education for Global Leadership Recommendations: International content should be taught across the curriculum at all levels of learning, to expand American students’ knowledge of other countries and cultures; Expand the training pipeline at every level of education to address the paucity of Americans fluent in foreign languages, especially critical, less-commonly taught languages.

22. National Security Language Initiative (2006) Collaborative Effort: Secretary of State Secretary of Education Secretary of Defense Director of National Intelligence $114 million in 2007 budget

23. National Security Language Initiative (2006) Goals: Expand the number of Americans mastering critical need languages (e.g., Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Hindi, Farsi, and others) ; Increase advanced-level speakers of languages, with an emphasis on critical languages through K-16 language study pipelines; Increase the number of teachers of critical language and the resources for them.

24. K-16 Flagships NSEP funded Goal: Graduate students with superior-level proficiency in critical languages who will become global professionals Form partnerships with universities and school systems to develop K-16 pipeline programs in Chinese and Arabic.

25. STARTALK NSLI funded multi-year initiative Goal: Expand critical language education by funding new and existing K-16 programs; Provide incentives and rewards for foreign language learning and use in the work force.

26. World Class Education To succeed in this new global era, we need not only to increase the number of high school graduates and improve the rigor of our math and science curriculum, but also to ensure that our graduates are globally competent. http://asiasociety.org

27. World Class Education Knowledge of other world regions, cultures, economies, and global issues; Skills to communicate in languages other than English, to work in cross-cultural teams, and to assess information from different sources around the world; and Values of respect for other cultures.

28. Putting the World into World-Class Education: A National Imperative and a State and Local Responsibility Signatories Asia Society Alliance for Excellent Education Committee for Economic Development Council of Chief State School Officers National Association of Secondary Schools Principal National Education Association National Middle School Association

29. Why Start Early?

30. Language Learning Capability Young children appear to learn to speak a new language more easily than adults; A child’s language learning advantage is greatest in the area of pronunciation. AERA Research Points . 2006. Vol. 4, 1

31. Cognitive Benefits Sixth grade students in a non-intensive program outperform a control group in metacognitive processing in the highest levels of cognitive processing in Bloom’s taxonomy . Foster & Reeves, 1989.

32. Cognitive Benefits Immersion students demonstrate greater cognitive flexibility than students in control group Bruck, Lambert, & Tucker, 1974 2 nd grade immersion students demonstrate significantly greater growth in nonverbal problem-solving ability than control group Bamford, 1991

33. Academic Achievement 3 rd , 4 th , and 5 th grade students in a non-intensive language program had significantly higher academic achievement, especially in English language arts, than control students. Rafferty, 1986

34. Academic Achievement K and 1 st grade students in an immersion program performed as well or better than English-only peers on tests of achievement in English Swain, 1981, 1984 3 rd grade students in a non-intensive program had significant gains in math and language . Armstrong & Rogers, 1997

35. Academic Achievement Immersion students consistently demonstrated comparable or better performance in subject matter content than students in English-only programs. Genesee, 1987; Swain, 1984

36. Attitude 14-year-olds are less receptive to learning about people from other cultures than 10-year-olds. Younger children are more open and friendly toward people they view as different from themselves. Lambert & Klineberg, 1967

37. Attitude Significant findings from comparing: Schools with a non-intensive Chinese kindergarten program and Schools with no foreign language program in kindergarten…

38. Attitude Kindergarten students Like learning Chinese and Believe that learning to speak Chinese is important. Parents/Guardians Believe that it is important for their child to speak, read, and write Chinese fluently. Rosenbusch, Navarro-Villarroel, Zhang, Kaptain, & Shelley, 2009

39. Why Teach Chinese in Early Elementary School? Chinese is the most widely spoken first language in the world; China is: Politically important in the Asia-Pacific region; An immense market for U.S. goods and services; One of the most enduring world civilizations. Creating a Chinese Language Program in Your School, Asia Society

40. Questions and Discussion

42. What? Program Models for Early Language Learning Overview and Case Studies

43. What Matters Most? Time allotted for the program/classes Intensity of program and instruction Continuity of the program Teacher effectiveness

44. Time + Intensity of Instruction => (Potential) Rate of Language Acquisition and Learning Time = number of minutes hours years spent learning and acquiring language

45. Time + Intensity of Instruction => (Potential) Rate of Language Acquisition and Learning Intensity of Instruction = Frequency and Duration of Classes Time on Task during instruction Opportunities for interaction Substance, Relevance, and Challenge of language experience (Cognitively Engaging, Intrinsically Interesting, Culturally Connected)

46. PLUS

47. Uninterrupted study of the same language across grade levels and institutions Continuity:

48. Teachers who are: Teacher Effectiveness: • well-prepared • enthusiastic and dedicated • knowledgeable about students • knowledgeable about language and culture • knowledgeable about best practices in world language education.

49. What are the goals of our programs? Proficiency!

50. Superior Proficiency Inverted Pyramid LOW LOW LOW MID MID MID HIGH HIGH HIGH Novice Advanced Intermediate Can support opinion, hypothesize, discuss topics concretely and abstractly, and handle a linguistically unfamiliar situation Novice Can communicate minimally with formulaic and rote utterances, lists and phrases Intermediate Can create with language, ask and answer simple questions on familiar topics, and handle a simple situation or transaction Advanced Can narrate and describe in all major time frames and handle a situation with a complication Survive and cope in the country Limited work ability Satisfy most work requirements

51. ACTFL Performance Guidelines for K-12 Learners

52. Adapted from Languages and Children: Making the Match, 4th Edition, 2010 Language, Culture, and Curriculum Content are essential elements of every curriculum model. The focus changes as time and intensity increase across the continuum. Minimum 90-120 min. Weekly Maximum Full Day Full Immersion Intensity and Time Continuum of Intensity and Focus for Early Language Programs Leading to Proficiency Immersion: 50-100%/day Content in TL Content Focus Content Language Culture Language Focus Language Content Culture

53. Adapted from Languages and Children: Making the Match, 4th Edition, 2010 Minimum 90-120 min. Weekly Maximum Full Day Full Immersion Intensity and Time Less than Minimum Programs with less intensity: • less than 30-40 minutes daily, and/or • less than three times per week • may not be able to meet the performance goals of the Standards for Chinese Language Learning and K-12 Performance Guidelines. Continuum of Intensity and Focus for Early Language Programs Leading to Proficiency Immersion: 50-100%/day Content in TL Exploratory will Content Focus Content Language Culture Language Focus Language Content Culture

54. Program Types Offered by Elementary Schools With Language Programs (Private, Public) (2008) Private From the Center for Applied Linguistics, National K-12 Foreign Language Survey (2009). Draft data. I m m e r s i o n 2 % 4 2 % I m m e r s i o n 1 3 % 4 8 % Public LANGUAGE FOCUS LANGUAGE FOCUS (FLES) (FLES) LESS than minimum LESS than minimum 5 6 % E XPLORATORY 3 9 % E XPLORATORY

55. What Matters Most? Time allotted for the program/classes Intensity of program and instruction Continuity of the program Teacher effectiveness

56. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Program: Yinghua Academy By Betsy Lueth, Director Dr. Luyi Lien, Academic Director April 30, 2009 National Chinese Conference, Chicago, IL

57. History of Yinghua Academy - Opened in 2006 with 76 students in K to 3 rd grade - in 2007-2008 school year, we doubled our student sizes - in 2008-2009 school year, we have 239 students - in 2009-2010 school year, we have waiting list with every grade and will move to a bigger building

58. Y inghua Academy: Early Total Immersion Program - 100% of Chinese instructional time in K & Grade 1 - 90% of Chinese instructional time in Grade 2 - 80% of Chinese instructional time in Grade 3 - 70 % of Chinese instructional time in Grade 4 - 60% of Chinese instructional time in Grade 5 - Provide special classes (PE class, art class, and music class) also in Chinese

59. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Programs: Challenge 1 Community and Parents FAQ’s Why immersion? Why Chinese? Where do you get your teachers? Is it o.k. for any student? What if they are special ed.? How can I help with homework if I don’t speak Chinese? How will they learn English – math-science? How will they do on state tests?

60. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Programs: Challenge 2 Curriculum and Instruction FAQ’s What text book do you use? Do you use simplified or full-form characters? When do you teach pinyin? How do you teach content? Are students taught in the “Chinese” way or “American” way?

61. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Programs: Challenge 3 Immersion Teachers (Language and Content Combined) Recruit, Retain, and Develop FAQ’s Where do you find your teachers? How do you get your teachers licensed? How do you keep your teachers? How do you develop your teachers? How do you evaluate your teachers?

62. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Programs: Challenge 4 Daily Teaching Challenges “ The full-service administrator perspective” How do we support teacher’s in the classroom? How do we support parent communication? How do we support teacher’s personal life? How do we support school law understanding? How do you open the door to cultural understanding and communication with staff?

63. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Programs: An example of content teaching and the integration of culture An example of “The Mouse Bride ”

64. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Programs: An example of content teaching and the integration of culture Content Area with Cultures: Chinese Language Arts: Poems/Rhythm/folk stories/drama and play From writing characters to learn cultures, e.g., marriage ideas in Chinese thoughts Science: mice and other live animals’ habitats and common behaviors Social Studies: Comparisons of the traditional wedding and modern weddings in China The custom of Chinese new year

65. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Programs: An example of content teaching and the integration of culture

66. Perspectives from a Chinese Immersion Program: Yinghua Academy Questions: Betsy Lueth, Director [email_address] Dr. Luyi Lien, Academic Director [email_address] Phone: 651-379-4112

68. FOREIGN LANGAUGE IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL (FLES) Janna Chiang 蔣芸芳 : NCLC : April / May 2009

69. Only one school (2005) FLAP grant in 2006 Program expanded due to funding 6 instructors 2 Certified teachers Model : 3 times a week : 30 mins

70. K – 2 nd Grade 40 mins, once a week Pre-School 20 mins, once a week 3 rd – 5 th – Chinese club 30 mins, twice a week

71. Connecting Cultures

72. Real Life Connections

74. Classroom activities

75. Assessment strategies

76. : Grade 1

78. Expand the program Higher frequency Additional teachers Core-content collaboration Next move ?

79. Questions? Janna Chiang 蔣芸芳 [email_address] 502-727-8820

80. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Scheduling the foreign language too infrequently and/or in class sessions that are too short .

81. “… accomplishment of such content standards required students to be enrolled in elementary programs that meet from 3-5 days per week for no less than 30-40 minutes per class. 3-5 days per week 30-40 minutes per class

82. “ Remember, these are samples--not supper!”

83. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Planning schedules and workloads that lead to teacher burnout.

84. Many Additional Responsibilities of a FLES Teacher: • interacting with numerous classroom teachers • developing curriculum and materials • communicating with parents and community • building public relations

85. Many Additional Responsibilities of an Immersion Teacher: • responsibility for content areas and language development • developing curriculum and materials • communicating with parents and community • building public relations

86. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Launching an early language program without sufficient planning --not enough time --not enough involvement of the rest of the school community

87. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Treating foreign languages differently from other academic subjects.

88. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Implementing an entire new program in every grade level at the same time. 1 K 2 3 4 5 6

89. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Leaving critical articulation issues to be dealt with later.

90. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Planning and scheduling the foreign language curriculum in isolation from the general curriculum.

91. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Relying on English for communication in the foreign language classroom. What is this in Chinese?

92. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Making a language choice based on popularity, without attention to other important factors.

93. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Ignoring the needs of students who enter the program in later grades.

94. “ Planning for Success: Pitfalls in the Planning of Early Foreign Language Programs” • Hiring teachers for the program who do not have both language and teaching skills.

95. Building an Action Plan

96. Defining a Planning Committee and a Timeline

97. Identifying the Chinese Teacher

98. Defining/Developing the Curriculum

99. Defining Instructional Strategies

100. Selecting Teaching Materials

101. Assessing Students

102. Integrating the Program into the Wider School Context

103. Evaluating the Program

104. Sustaining the Quality and Longevity of the Program

105. What are the first steps in YOUR Action Plan?

106. Asking the Right Questions: Crafting a Plan for an Elementary School Chinese Program Marcia Rosenbusch • Carol Ann Dahlberg Betsy Lueth • Luyi Lien • Janna Chiang NCLC Chicago, 2009