Chinese "immersion" outside of school hours

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^^
I can comment on any thread I choose. Are you aware of that fact, or do you think that I live in communist China where free speech does not exist? Although your child may be studying the language of Chinese communists, please don't forget that this is the U.S. and we have freedoms here that don't exist in China.

I am not Chinese... but this statement is not making the point you think it is. It's actually supporting your opponent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^^
I can comment on any thread I choose. Are you aware of that fact, or do you think that I live in communist China where free speech does not exist? Although your child may be studying the language of Chinese communists, please don't forget that this is the U.S. and we have freedoms here that don't exist in China.

Of course you can. You just aren't proving the point that you think you are...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^^
I can comment on any thread I choose. Are you aware of that fact, or do you think that I live in communist China where free speech does not exist? Although your child may be studying the language of Chinese communists, please don't forget that this is the U.S. and we have freedoms here that don't exist in China.

I am not Chinese... but this statement is not making the point you think it is. It's actually supporting your opponent.

Opponent? This is a DCUM thread, so it's not that serious.

Btw, you seem confused. My post made the exact point that I intended to make.

[Anonymous]

So far, the winning argument is that YY is the best way to learn Mandarin Chinese in DC. And, even though dual-immersion is a better model, since it isn't available, it's a lot of crying and sour grapes to keep b*tching that testing in is not a choice. Apparently there are models from... pretty much all over the world that it's possible to learn a complicated language without cradling dual-language snowflakes. In fact, they can kick our American asses in our own language, despite not having little English-speaking snowflakes in their schools.

Maybe we should up our game and try to learn their languages without coddling every precious idea?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Out of curiosity, beside Richard Montgomery and DCI what high schools offer higher level Chinese courses?

Wilson, WIS and Sidwell for starters.

What do you mean by "higher level" Chinese courses?

Only two MoCo high schools offer Higher Level International Baccalaureate Diploma Chinese (1-2 years past Standard Level IBD and AP). They are Bethesda Chevy Chase (open enrollment) and Richard Montgomery (test-in admitting around 10% of 8th grade applicants countywide). Rockville HS will offer IDP HL Chinese soon, and possibly WIS. The "W" MoCo high schools offer AP Chinese. SL IBD Chinese is probably what DCI will offer, at least for starters, without two-way immersion lower down.

Wilson's AP Chinese program is new, and relatively weak. They only had half a dozen students take AP Chinese this year, none scoring 5s (though 80% of AP Chinese test takers score 5s nationwide, the highest percentage of any AP test). Sidwell's program is strong, but only to AP Chinese, not IBD HL.

Hope that helps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Posters have lost the forest for the trees.

The point has been made that high-flying DCI students who learned whatever language via ES immersion must compete with other high-flying, language-learning DC Metro area students for admission to elite colleges. Like it or not, their applications will go into the same pots as those of competitors who have been enrolled dual immersion K-12th grade language programs in the area. It's a fair point.

If you enroll your child in immersion language studies but avoid native speaking families as a general rule (because you think the parents are racist jerks), you cut off your nose to spite your face in the process. In the last analysis, the joke is on your family, not the native speakers.

If you think that my Chinese-speaking AA kid who graduates from a DC public high school is going in the same admissions bucket as your heritage kid from Montgomery County, then you don't understand how college admissions work.

Actually, I do understand, all too well, at least for private colleges with highly competitive admissions. I worked on an Ivy League admissions committee (that of my alma mater) for several years, and currently work as a public high school college counselor.

My alma mater has long used one "greater Washington DC area"applications basket, first by hand/hard copy, then by computer. They toss applications from DC privates into it this e-basket, along with those from DC publics, NoVA and MoCo publics. This is common practice in elite college admissions. Many elite colleges do this for Metro areas, particularly NYC, Boston and Chicago. The downtowns and near burbs of a city are often treated as a single geographical entity for admissions purposes.

Private colleges can of course categorize and review applications however they like. FARMs and 1st generation college applicants are given special treatment in admissions, but other DC public HS applicants seldom are.

[Anonymous]

Kind of enjoying the vile Oyster poster derailing a thread that has nothing to do with Spanish immersion. Usually she ruins our threads with her crazy, but I find it hilarious that she can derail all threads, even when they have nothing to do with Oyster or the Spanish language.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Kind of enjoying the vile Oyster poster derailing a thread that has nothing to do with Spanish immersion. Usually she ruins our threads with her crazy, but I find it hilarious that she can derail all threads, even when they have nothing to do with Oyster or the Spanish language.

There's more than one Oyster parent posting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Out of curiosity, beside Richard Montgomery and DCI what high schools offer higher level Chinese courses?

Wilson, WIS and Sidwell for starters.

What do you mean by "higher level" Chinese courses?

Only two MoCo high schools offer Higher Level International Baccalaureate Diploma Chinese (1-2 years past Standard Level IBD and AP). They are Bethesda Chevy Chase (open enrollment) and Richard Montgomery (test-in admitting around 10% of 8th grade applicants countywide). Rockville HS will offer IDP HL Chinese soon, and possibly WIS. The "W" MoCo high schools offer AP Chinese. SL IBD Chinese is probably what DCI will offer, at least for starters, without two-way immersion lower down.

Wilson's AP Chinese program is new, and relatively weak. They only had half a dozen students take AP Chinese this year, none scoring 5s (though 80% of AP Chinese test takers score 5s nationwide, the highest percentage of any AP test). Sidwell's program is strong, but only to AP Chinese, not IBD HL.

Hope that helps.

That was very helpful. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In India, students learn English via one-way. In Japan, students learn English via one-way. In South Korea, students learn English via one-way. In Finland, students learn English via one-way. In Germany, students learn English via one-way. In the Czech Republic, students learn English via one-way. All over Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa, students learn English via one-way instruction. And millions of it learn it very well. Some of them learn it well enough to take your job.

Obviously. Obviously language can be very successfully learned via one-way instruction.

The YY kids are fortunate that they're being taught by native speakers, which is an advantage that most language-learners don't have. But if you think it's necessary to recruit Cantonese kids to Yu Ying in order for language instruction to be successful, then you're willfully delusional and you overvalue your snowflake's potential benefit to the class. The school and the students will continue to thrive and be well educated without the Cantonese snowflakes.

India cannot be compared... the country already has a relatively high English fluency, including having their own dialect. Some families actually speak English in the home. Similar statements can be said about many European countries... having more exposure to English and closer language families.

Japan and South Korea are actually perfect examples. And have you heard their typical English speakers? They are not so good. Their reading is much better.

Yes, it can. Even for the very highest caste Indians (Brahmins) English is still a second language.

Ignorant peasant!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kind of enjoying the vile Oyster poster derailing a thread that has nothing to do with Spanish immersion. Usually she ruins our threads with her crazy, but I find it hilarious that she can derail all threads, even when they have nothing to do with Oyster or the Spanish language.

There's more than one Oyster parent posting.

Ugh really? What a horrible group of parents! I can understand why the school has such a bad reputation (unfriendly, rude, bad history, etc).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Out of curiosity, beside Richard Montgomery and DCI what high schools offer higher level Chinese courses?

Wilson, WIS and Sidwell for starters.

What do you mean by "higher level" Chinese courses?

Only two MoCo high schools offer Higher Level International Baccalaureate Diploma Chinese (1-2 years past Standard Level IBD and AP). They are Bethesda Chevy Chase (open enrollment) and Richard Montgomery (test-in admitting around 10% of 8th grade applicants countywide). Rockville HS will offer IDP HL Chinese soon, and possibly WIS. The "W" MoCo high schools offer AP Chinese. SL IBD Chinese is probably what DCI will offer, at least for starters, without two-way immersion lower down.

Wilson's AP Chinese program is new, and relatively weak. They only had half a dozen students take AP Chinese this year, none scoring 5s (though 80% of AP Chinese test takers score 5s nationwide, the highest percentage of any AP test). Sidwell's program is strong, but only to AP Chinese, not IBD HL.

Hope that helps.

That was very helpful. Thanks.

Agree. Thank you.