Learning Chinese in USA, learning English in China (#27; Topic E)

Awakened by NPR at 7, the program was The Market Place, beaming from Shanghai. The anchor began by identifying himself and greeting his listeners in Chinese (Zao sha`ng hao = good morning). After a few minutes on the Chinese economy, the program switched to a special report from Chicago: (1) a "China connection" program is alive in the Chicago public-school system, involving some 5,000 pupils from 5th grade to 12th; (2) similar programs are offered in public schools in Houston, Philadelphia, and Charlotte, with some 30,000 pupils; and (3) it takes 1,500 hours to learn Chinese, compared to 500 hours to learn Spanish or other western languages. The anchor added that, on a visit to an elementary school in Shanghai, he was greeted by a pupil, in English -- English is taught in China from 3rd grade onward. He expressed the hope that more students in USA might elect Chinese as a foreign language to learn, and invited his listeners to click to the program's website, marketplace.org for other commentaries. Well done. We certainly need more programs like the Market Place that promote US-China relations in a positive way.
Posted 8:26 am, Saturday, Janaury 14, 2006