Gonna have a lil chat with school administrator tomorrow

[steveandrong]

Just found this out this weekend...Rongs son, age 12, is in the 6th grade here...he did not know one word of english upon his arrival in dec 2008...is coming along pretty well learning to speak english, but his reading and writing are still way behind...the problem?..they have him in a spanish class this semester...is that nonsense or what?...i know the idea is to teach/introduce the students to a foriegn language, but wouldn't one be sensible enough to recognize that teaching him english IS teaching him a foriegn language and that the time wasted trying to teach him spanish would be much better spent trying to help him learn to read, write and speak english?.....is it just me?....has anyone else encountered this with chinese dependents?.....i'll be at the school first thing in the morning to try and get this straightened out!

[credzba]

Just found this out this weekend...Rongs son, age 12, is in the 6th grade here...he did not know one word of english upon his arrival in dec 2008...is coming along pretty well learning to speak english, but his reading and writing are still way behind...the problem?..they have him in a spanish class this semester...is that nonsense or what?...i know the idea is to teach/introduce the students to a foriegn language, but wouldn't one be sensible enough to recognize that teaching him english IS teaching him a foriegn language and that the time wasted trying to teach him spanish would be much better spent trying to help him learn to read, write and speak english?.....is it just me?....has anyone else encountered this with chinese dependents?.....i'll be at the school first thing in the morning to try and get this straightened out!

 

Our high school accepted Chinese/Mandarin as their foreign language requirement.

English is still english, and our daughter had to pass that as any other student.

 

Don't know how that plays out in sixth grade though, but forcing spanish on a foreign language speak would steam me a bit.

 

One of our good adult friends (chinese) was taking nail school, and told they can't have a translator for the test, but they can take the test in english or vietnamese! That steamed me too. It is predjudice, plain and simple, but what do you do?

 

If they require a foreign language, it should be ANY foreign language.

[Zhou Zhou]

There's plenty of time for a 12 yoa to learn, Spanish. He should get his English to a high level, first. Then he should learn Spanish as all Usonians should, after all it's our second language .

[lostinblue]

At the christian school kai wen is attending they will accept mandarin as his second language.He came here in Feb. as a 17 year old and is english level was at 6th grade level. They require him to do Shakespeare this year.

First Clown:

A pestilence on him for a mad rogue! 'a pour'd a flagon

of Rhenish on my head once. This same skull, sir, was, sir,

Yorick's skull, the King's jester.

 

 

Hamlet:

This? [Takes the skull]

 

 

First Clown:

E'en that.

 

 

Hamlet:

Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio, a fellow of infinite

jest, of most excellent fancy. He hath bore me on his back a

thousand times, and now how abhorr'd in my imagination it is!

My gorge rises at it.

 

 

Hamlet Act 5, scene 1, 179¨C188

[LeeFisher3]

Just found this out this weekend...Rongs son, age 12, is in the 6th grade here...he did not know one word of english upon his arrival in dec 2008...is coming along pretty well learning to speak english, but his reading and writing are still way behind...the problem?..they have him in a spanish class this semester...is that nonsense or what?...i know the idea is to teach/introduce the students to a foriegn language, but wouldn't one be sensible enough to recognize that teaching him english IS teaching him a foriegn language and that the time wasted trying to teach him spanish would be much better spent trying to help him learn to read, write and speak english?.....is it just me?....has anyone else encountered this with chinese dependents?.....i'll be at the school first thing in the morning to try and get this straightened out!

Just remind them that he is currently in ESL and if they want to require him to learn Spanish as his second language you expect them to achieve fluency within 5 years.

[dnoblett]

Just remind them that he is currently in ESL and if they want to require him to learn Spanish as his second language you expect them to achieve fluency within 5 years.

Very true! ESL = English as a SECOND Language.

 

But as others have indicated they should accept Mandarin as satisfying second language proficiciency.

 

My wife teaches for a Chinese Language school on weekends, the school covers all grade levels, and I believe this satisfies the public school's second language requirements here in Rochester NY.