全中文授課的美國公立學(xué)校

全中文授課的美國公立學(xué)校

MINNEAPOLIS — On weekday mornings, a stream of orange buses and private cars from 75 Minnesota postal codes wrap around Yinghua Academy, the first publicly funded Chinese-immersion charter school in the United States, in the middle-class neighborhood of Northeast Minneapolis. Most pupils, from kindergarten to eighth grade, dash to bright-colored classrooms for the 8:45 a.m. bell, eager to begin “morning meeting,” a freewheeling conversation in colloquial Mandarin.

明尼阿波利斯——位于明尼阿波利斯東北部中產(chǎn)社區(qū)的英華學(xué)院(Yinghua Academy)，是美國第一所公立中文浸入式特許學(xué)校。每到工作日的早上，這所學(xué)校周圍都環(huán)繞著由橘黃色校車和私家車構(gòu)成的車流，它們來自明尼蘇達(dá)州的 75個郵政區(qū)。上午8點45分的鈴聲一響，從幼兒園到八年級的大部分學(xué)生就會沖進(jìn)色彩鮮艷的教室，迫不及待地參加“早會”——用漢語普通話自由交談。

Meanwhile, two grades form five perfect lines in the gym for calisthenics, Chinese style. Dressed neatly in the school’s blue uniforms, the students enthusiastically count each move — “liu, qi, ba, jiu, shi.”

與此同時，還有兩個年級的學(xué)生在體育館里排成五條筆直的隊伍，跳中式健美操。學(xué)生們穿著整潔的藍(lán)色校服，充滿熱情地數(shù)著每一個動作——“六、七、八、九、十。”

By 9:15, a calm sense of order pervades the school as formal instruction begins for math, reading, social studies, history and science. Instructors teach in Mandarin, often asking questions that prompt a flurry of raised hands. No one seems to speak out of turn. “We bring together both East and West traditions,” explains the academic director, Luyi Lien, who tries to balance Eastern discipline with Western fun.

9點15分，數(shù)學(xué)、閱讀、社會研究、歷史、科學(xué)等科目的正式授課時間到了，校園里變得平靜有序。教師以漢語授課，他們頻繁提出問題，引得學(xué)生們紛紛舉手。似乎沒有誰隨意開口。“我們把東西方的傳統(tǒng)融合在了一起，”試圖在東方的紀(jì)律性和西方的趣味性之間找到平衡的教務(wù)主任連鷺役(Luyi Lien)解釋。

Ms. Lien helped start Yinghua, which means “English Chinese,” with just 76 students and four teachers in 2006. This autumn a new addition opened that doubled capacity to handle the growing numbers of students. The school now has 660 students, all awarded tuition-free places by lottery. Yinghua is expected to be at its full capacity of 800 students by 2021.

連鷺役在2006年幫助創(chuàng)辦了英華，最初只有76名學(xué)生和四名教師。隨著學(xué)生人數(shù)的不斷增長，學(xué)校進(jìn)行了擴建。新增部分于今年秋天投入運營，學(xué)校的師生容量翻了一番。英華目前有660名學(xué)生，均通過抽簽獲得在這里就讀的機會，學(xué)費全免。英華預(yù)計，到2021年，學(xué)校將滿負(fù)荷運轉(zhuǎn)，在校生將達(dá)到800 人。

The student-teacher ratio is 10 to one, and 78 percent of the teachers hold advanced degrees, many of them from American universities; three have Ph.D.’s. All receive training in the United States, including two teachers paid for by Hanban, an affiliate of China’s Ministry of Education.

學(xué)生與教師的比例是10比1。78%的老師有高等學(xué)歷，其中很多人畢業(yè)于美國的大學(xué)，還有三位獲得了博士學(xué)位。包括由中國教育部下屬的國家漢辦支付薪酬的兩名教師在內(nèi)，所有教務(wù)人員都在美國接受了培訓(xùn)。

Yinghua Academy is among a handful of total-immersion schools, though the United States has 175 Chinese-immersion programs within regular schools across the country, 18 begun this academic year alone. While immersion programs have a mix of English and Chinese classes, Yinghua teaches all academic subjects in Chinese through fourth grade before moving to a half-English model for grades five to eight.

美國本土的常規(guī)中小學(xué)?？偣查_設(shè)了175項中文浸入式課程，僅本學(xué)年就新增了18項。然而，全中文浸入式學(xué)校只有少數(shù)幾所，英華就是其中之一。浸入式課程的授課語言既有英文又有中文，但在英華，四年級及以下所有學(xué)科的授課語言都是中文，進(jìn)入五至八年級，才會切換到半英文半中文的教學(xué)模式。

Total-immersion schools groom students with deeper cultural understanding and stronger Mandarin skills, particularly in reading and writing, Ms. Lien said. “Our goal is real bilingualism by eighth grade, which is near native,” she said.

連鷺役表示，全中文浸入式學(xué)校培養(yǎng)出的學(xué)生對中華文化有更深的理解，漢語技能也更好一些，尤其是在閱讀和寫作方面。“我們的目標(biāo)是，學(xué)生讀到八年級時要能真正諳熟兩門語言，接近母語水平，”她說。

At Yinghua, the process is intense. Just ahead of snack time in kindergarten, the teacher, who speaks only in Mandarin, thrusts an orange plastic disk in the air and 28 little hands shoot up. She points to one girl who answers correctly — “chengse” — before dashing to the nearby sink to wash her hands. In just minutes, all the students have identified a color and are happily tearing open their snacks. One 5-year-old asks, “Can you open this?” The teacher replies, “bangmang dakai?” On cue, the child repeats and then says, “xie xie” — thank you.

在英華學(xué)院，實現(xiàn)這一目標(biāo)的過程充滿緊張感。就在學(xué)前班的加餐時間之前，那位只說漢語的教師把一個橙色的塑料盤子舉到半空中，立即有28只小手揮舞了起來。她朝一個女孩指了一下，后者正確無誤地答出了“橙色”，接著便沖到附近的水池洗手。僅僅幾分鐘之內(nèi)，所有學(xué)生都辨認(rèn)出了一種顏色，高興地打開了餐點的包裝。一個5歲的學(xué)生用英語問道，“你能把這個打開嗎?”老師用中文回答，“幫忙打開?”收到提示，那個孩子重復(fù)了老師的話，隨后用漢語說了聲“謝謝”。

“Yinghua is the best of the best,” according to Hattie Bonds, the mother of two children at the school and a former associate superintendent for Minneapolis public schools. “The first week my son came home from kindergarten and taught my 3-year-old to count to 10 in Chinese,” she recalled. “High expectations are yoked to high results.”

“英華堪稱佼佼者，”身為母親的哈蒂·邦茲(Hattie Bonds)說。邦茲的兩個孩子都在這所學(xué)校就讀，她本人曾是明尼阿波利斯地區(qū)公立學(xué)校的助理學(xué)監(jiān)。“我兒子剛上了一星期的學(xué)前班，回家后就能教3歲的那個用中文從1數(shù)到10了，”她回憶道。“高目標(biāo)是和好成績聯(lián)系在一起的。”

In Minnesota standardized tests, Yinghua students perform at least as well or better than their public school counterparts, even though English classes begin only at age 7. In Minnesota’s Multiple Measure Rating system, Yinghua has ranked within the top 15 percent of all Minnesota public schools for the past three years. (That includes the Focus Rate ranking, which measures the school’s reduction in the achievement gap between higher and lower socioeconomic groups.)

在明尼蘇達(dá)州的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化考試中，英華考生的成績至少與其他公立學(xué)校的考生相仿，甚至還更好一些，盡管他們直到7歲才開始上英文課。在明尼蘇達(dá)州的多元標(biāo)準(zhǔn)評估(Multiple Measure Rating)體系中，英華已經(jīng)連續(xù)三年躋身該州所有公立學(xué)校的前15%之列。(其中包括關(guān)注率[Focus Rate]的排名，它所衡量的是這所學(xué)校在縮小較高和較低社會經(jīng)濟(jì)階層成績差異方面取得的成效。)

A primary reason, according to the executive director, Susan Berg, is the students’ home environment. Parents who choose immersion are often well educated themselves, and are highly committed to the school’s goals, including nightly homework.

英華學(xué)院執(zhí)行院長蘇珊·伯格(Susan Berg)認(rèn)為，主要原因在于學(xué)生的家庭環(huán)境。為孩子選擇浸入式教育的家長通常受過良好的教育，并且高度認(rèn)同該校的教學(xué)目標(biāo)，包括晚上的家庭作業(yè)。

Math results, which are particularly strong, are partly attributed to the Singapore Math curriculum and its eight-step approach to word problems, as well as the Chinese-educated teachers who move through material more quickly than their American peers.

該校學(xué)生尤為突出的數(shù)學(xué)成績，部分得益于《新加坡數(shù)學(xué)》(Singapore Math)課程及其應(yīng)用題八步解題法。還有一個因素是，受過中文教育的老師能比他們的美國同行更快地通曉教材。

Mathematical terms in Mandarin are also clearer. The word for “triangle,” for instance, “sanjiaoxing,” means three-sided. And when counting to 100, the Chinese use only 10 numbers to build all others; 71, for instance, is written 7-10-1. “The number system is easier to work with,” said Mary McDonald, a seventh-grader who takes an extra university math class once a week. “It’s faster and more organized.”

以漢語表達(dá)的數(shù)學(xué)用語也更清晰明了。舉例來說，與“triangle”相對應(yīng)的“三角形”，意味著有三條邊。此外，從1到100，中國人只用10個基本數(shù)字就能構(gòu)成其他數(shù)字;舉例來說，71寫作“七十一”。“這個數(shù)字體系使用起來很簡便，”每周都要額外上一堂大學(xué)數(shù)學(xué)課的七年級生瑪麗·麥克唐納 (Mary McDonald)說，“它更快捷，也更有條理。”

Research also shows that early immersion produces cognitive benefits. “These students are better at nonverbal problem solving,” said Dr. Tara Fortune, of the Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition at the University of Minnesota. “They have better executive control to focus on relevant information, and better listening skills.”

此外有研究表明，較早接受浸入式教育有助于增進(jìn)孩子的認(rèn)知能力。“這些學(xué)生能更好解決非言語性問題，”明尼蘇達(dá)大學(xué)(University of Minnesota)語言習(xí)得高級研究中心(Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition)的特拉·福瓊博士(Tara Fortun)說，“他們有更強的執(zhí)行控制能力，可以把注意力集中在相關(guān)的信息上;他們的聽力技巧也更好一些。”

Yinghua’s retention rate this autumn was 93 percent. Asians and Pacific Islanders comprise 47 percent of the student body; Caucasians, 46 percent. At the school, 13 percent qualify for free or reduced school lunches and 8 percent are special-education students. According to Mrs. Berg, almost all the students flourish in immersion, including those with special needs. “These students do well, relatively speaking,” she said. “They are so proud they know Chinese.”

英華今年秋季的學(xué)生留校率為93%。亞裔及太平洋島嶼裔學(xué)生占在校生的47%;白人學(xué)生占46%。在這所學(xué)校里，13%的學(xué)生有資格享用免費或減價的午餐;接受特殊教育的學(xué)生占8%。伯格稱，包括有特殊需求者在內(nèi)，幾乎所有學(xué)生都在浸入式教育中如魚得水。“這些學(xué)生表現(xiàn)得很好，相對而言，”她說， “他們?yōu)樽约憾形亩械阶院馈?rdquo;

Chinese immersion is apparently an American phenomenon, fueled since 2000 by impressive French and Spanish immersion test results, new charter schools that tap local school district funds, federal grants and, notably, substantial infusions of Chinese government support, particularly since 2004.

目前看來，中文浸入式教育的風(fēng)潮主要存在于美國。這股風(fēng)潮始于2000年，法語和西班牙語浸入式教育試驗所取得的可觀成效對它起到了推動作用。另一個促成因素在于，一批新的特許學(xué)校能從當(dāng)?shù)貙W(xué)區(qū)拿到經(jīng)費，能得到聯(lián)邦政府的撥款，尤其是還獲得了中國政府的大力支持，特別是從2004年開始。

But the scope is broadening. China will highlight immersion for the first time at a conference in Europe early next year. “Immersion is still new to the Chinese,” said Joan Brzezinski, executive director of Minnesota’s Confucius Institute. “But they see the results and they now want to reach out to their Confucius Institutes in other countries.”

不過，中文浸入式教育正在擴大。明年年初，中國將在歐洲的一個會議上首次著重介紹這種教育模式。“對中國人而言，浸入式教育還是一個新生事物，”明尼蘇達(dá)州孔子學(xué)院的執(zhí)行主管瓊·布熱津斯基(Joan Brzezinski)說。“但他們看到了成果，現(xiàn)在想讓孔子學(xué)院在其他國家遍地開花。”

Since 2004, China has set up 465 Confucius Institutes and 713 Confucius classrooms in 123 countries. The institutes, mostly on university campuses, offer schools compelling incentives. China will cover budget costs for teacher training, materials, top-notch cultural programs and student exchanges. China also offers $10,000 grants to all schools that start teaching Mandarin.

自2004年以來，中國已經(jīng)在123個國家開辦了465所孔子學(xué)院和713個孔子課堂。多半設(shè)在大學(xué)校園里的孔子學(xué)院，推出了對學(xué)校頗具吸引力的激勵措施。中國將承擔(dān)培訓(xùn)教師、購置教材、開設(shè)一流文化課程以及進(jìn)行學(xué)生交換項目的預(yù)算費用;并向所有開始教授漢語的學(xué)校提供1萬美元的補助。

No figures exist for Chinese immersion efforts outside North America, according to an email response from a Hanban spokesman.

國家漢辦的一位發(fā)言人通過郵件回復(fù)采訪提問時稱，關(guān)于在北美之外對中文浸入式教育的推廣，目前還沒有具體數(shù)據(jù)。

While Ms. Brzezinski knows of several immersion programs in Canada, and one in Britain, she says other countries still teach Mandarin as a second language, albeit with impressive results in certain countries, such as Singapore. (Chinese Singaporeans begin Mandarin at an early age and continue through high school.)

據(jù)布熱津斯基所知，加拿大有若干個中文浸入式課程，英國也有一個，但她表示，其他國家仍然在把漢語當(dāng)成第二語言來教授，盡管在某些國家里卓有成效，比如新加坡。(新加坡華人很小就開始學(xué)習(xí)漢語，一直要學(xué)到高中畢業(yè)。)

Dr. Shuhan Wang, director of the Asia Society’s Chinese Early Language and Immersion Network, based in New York, calls Minnesota a “hidden gem” in the immersion movement. (Other key states include Utah, California, Delaware, Washington, Oregon and North Carolina.) She credits Minnesota’s Concordia College Language Villages for the model of an immersion laboratory. In 1984, it opened the Sen Lin Hu, or “Lake of the Woods,” Chinese village as part of its summer camp immersion programs. “Sen Lin Hu proved that immersion works,” Dr. Wang said. “It gave us both knowledge and best practice.”

在位于紐約的亞洲協(xié)會(Asia Society)中文啟蒙與浸入式教育聯(lián)盟(Chinese Early Language and Immersion Network)擔(dān)任主管的王周淑涵博士(Shuhan Wang)，把明尼蘇達(dá)州稱為浸入式教育運動的一塊“隱蔽的寶地”。(發(fā)揮關(guān)鍵作用的還有猶他州、加利福尼亞州、特拉華州、華盛頓州、俄勒岡州和北卡羅來納州。)她對明尼蘇達(dá)州的協(xié)和學(xué)院語言村項目(Concordia College Language Villages)給予了贊揚，稱其為浸入式教育實驗室的樣板。該項目包含多門以夏令營形式開辦的語言浸入式課程，其中的“森林湖”(Lake of the Woods)中文浸入式課程啟動于1984年。“森林湖證明浸入式教育是可行的，”王周淑涵說，“它不僅讓人學(xué)到了知識，還貢獻(xiàn)了一種最佳實踐。”

The United States Department of Education stopped funding Chinese immersion in 2012, Dr. Wang said, though the Department of Defense still contributes a minimal amount. These days additional support comes from state budgets and from China. “By having people learn Chinese, it becomes a global language,” she said.

王周淑涵稱，美國教育部在2012年停止了對中文浸入式教育項目的資助，不過國防部依然在給予微量撥款?，F(xiàn)如今，有額外的資助來自州級預(yù)算以及中國方面。“通過讓人學(xué)習(xí)中文，它日益成了一種國際性語言，”她說。