D YNAMIC PARTNERSHIPS AMONG CHINESE TEACHING INSTITUTIONS Dr. Na Liu Center for Applied Linguistics Dr. Tommy Lu Chinese School of Delaware April 15th, 2011

BACKGROUND 2000 CommunitiesPublic Support Peyton et al (2001)Fishman (1991)

P ARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN C ONFUCIUS I NSTITUTES AND C HINESE H ERITAGE L ANGUAGE S CHOOLS : A C ASE S TUDY Dr. Na Liu Center for Applied Linguistics April 15th, 2011

Challenges of Chinese heritage schools

R ESEARCH Q UESTIONS Chinese heritage schools Chinese school stakeholders The Confucius Institute CI stakeholders

FINDINGS Professional Development Workshop Series

---Set up prior knowledge (by Ling, an 8 th grade teacher)

---Gained knowledge on curriculum design and proficiency-based testing. ---Provided rich information about various programs for students so that teachers felt good to know that she was not teaching alone. ---Put a spurt on some teachers

Conference on Chinese Heritage Language Learners (2009) ACTFL Conference

Adopt-A-School Program Chinese learning perspectivePsychological perspective

STARTALK Program of 2009

Chinese Knowledge and Culture Contest, to encourage students to seek knowledge related to China.

Graduation Ceremony

Challenges of Chinese heritage schools

Chinese heritage school stakeholders’ expectations for the CI Summer camp; accreditation Teacher certification; teacher training Workshops Consultants; funding

C ONCLUSION

I MPLICATIONS Chinese schools Chinese government and organizations The U.S. government and organizations Public schools Univ. programs STARTALK Chinese Language Flagship

REFERENCES Fishman, J. A. (1991). Reversing language shift: Theoretical and empirical foundations of assistance to threatened languages. Philadelphia: Multilingual Matters. Peyton, J. K., Ranard, D. A., & McGinnis, S. (2001). Charting a new course: Heritage language education in the United States. In J. K. Peyton, D. A. Ranard, & S. McGinnis (Eds.), Heritage languages in America: Preserving a national resource (pp. 3-28). McHenry, IL: Center for Applied Linguistics and Delta Systems.

A P RACTICAL A PPROACH AND C HALLENGES Dr. Tommy Lu Chinese School of Delaware April 15th, 2011

W HAT HAVE BEEN DONE Partnered with local schools High school Help recruiting teachers Assist curriculum design Culture activities Chinese New Year Artists demonstration/hands-on experience Elementary school After school program STARTALK program

W HAT HAVE BEEN DONE Partnered with local schools Private schools Help recruiting teachers Help obtaining text books Credits for foreign language requirements Assist curriculum design – curriculum committee

W HAT HAVE BEEN DONE Recruit high quality teachers Doctoral degree Master degree Bachelor degree Education related field Chinese school graduates (second generation)

W HAT WERE THE CHALLENGES Best kept secret Computer skills Lack of effective assessment tools (still unsolved) High turnover rate Better opportunities with private schools than public schools (in line with CAL’s 2008 survey)

H OW DID WE SOLVE IT Community outreach Partner with other local Chinese school Bring in main stream teachers to share experiences Collaborate with local, regional, and national Chinese organizations and Chinese American community centers

H OW DID WE SOLVE IT Create online platforms Web site ( Wiki site ( Curriculum Class materials Teaching and learning tools Administrative tools

H OW DID WE SOLVE IT Professional development Curriculum design STARTALK Digital learning

L OOKING AHEAD Collaborate with state DOE World Language Program Unite local community schools to advocate Chinese education, share resources, Recruit high quality teachers Partner with community centers, parents, Streamline curriculum Teacher evaluation

L OOKING AHEAD Assessment Outcome based Intended outcome Means of assessment Assessment tools Rubrics Formative vs. summative Portfolio evaluation Standards based

L OOKING AHEAD More discussions about L1 learners vs. L2 learners The differences Identity issues Their needs Homogeneous vs. heterogeneous classes Teacher preparations