34 South Main St., Attleboro, MA - (508) 222-7000
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Chinese on tap for NA students
Top Headlines As China's influence in the global marketplace expands, North Attleboro High School intends to make sure that its students have a leg up when it comes to communicating with the country's future leaders. The high school plans to include Chinese in its foreign language course options beginning next fall. "This isn't to replace Latin, French or Spanish. It's an additional language at no cost to the school district," said Principal Robert Gay. The program will be paid for through a grant from the Chinese government, which will pay the salary for the teacher and for textbooks. The district's only obligation is to provide a room with a desk for the teacher, Gay said. Details for the grant are still being worked out, but Gay required permission from the school committee to pursue the idea. The committee voted unanimously in favor and acknowledged local resident Lyle Pirnie for helping to coordinate the grant. Gay, who toured schools in China in April 2006 as part of the China Exchange Initiative of Newton, said it has long been one of his goals to offer a Chinese language course at the high school. "I traveled to more than a dozen schools and I was amazed at how often the English language was being taught to the young people of China," Gay said. "There is no question in my mind that the United States and China will be the dominant economic powers in the future. We need to prepare students for the global economy they will be facing." While the full-blown Chinese language courses won't begin until the fall, students will get an early taste this spring during their structured learning periods. Students will have the opportunity to be exposed to the Chinese language, culture and arts about once a week. Gay hopes that eighth graders at the middle school can be offered a look at the course as well before they begin selecting courses for their first year in high school. "It will let the kids dip a toe into the pool to see if the water's good for them," Gay said. AMY DeMELIA can be reached at 508-236-0334 or at ademelia@thesunchronicle.com.
Post Your Comments jose21 wrote on Mar 4, 2008 1:52 PM: " I must be missing something, since when do i need to understand Chinese to buy a TV or Computer? " skeptic wrote on Mar 4, 2008 8:56 AM: " This money is not coming from the Chinese government. It's coming from the men and women of the area who lost their jobs to unfair competition from the Chinese prison factories and all of us who have no choice but to buy computers and TVs that are made in China because no one wants to build them anywhere else. Yes we have to buy them. Try living today without a computer, TV or cell phone. (I can't wait to see who posts an argument on that point)
At least the rest of the money is going to a good cause, such as missiles aimed at Taiwan, Tokyo and the United States. " realist wrote on Mar 4, 2008 8:47 AM: " One more thing -- for the memory impaired:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiananmen_Square_protests_of_1989 " realist wrote on Mar 4, 2008 8:46 AM: " Okay - so we are cutting back in the school system yet we are offering classes paid for by a repressive Communist regime and everybody thinks that's okay?
Why don't we have Venezuela and Cuba pay for Spanish classes too? Am I the only person in town that has a problem with this? These are the same people who brought you Tiananmen Square, millions of lost American jobs and the latest, planned suppression of the free speech of athletes for the 2008 Olympics. I guess there are certain Chinese words the students won't have to learn - such as "freedom", "democracy" and "elections". I favor language classes, but let's not sell our town's school system to the whomever shows up with cash. " or
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