Since the number of students willing to learn Chinese is decreasing gradually, Mandarin courses at KO will no longer be offered next school year. In my opinion, the Chinese courses should be maintained since they can provide more than just ways to learn a language, but ways to embrace cross-cultural collaboration and diversity.
“Everything began two years ago when fewer students wanted to learn Chinese in the Middle School,” Chinese teacher Daphne Wang said. Based on her explanation, the decrease of Mandarin learners caused the Chinese language teacher in the Middle School to leave and ultimately caused the Chinese programs in the Upper School to be closed as well due to a lack of basic Chinese literacy from incoming students.
When asked about the impact of closing Chinese courses, Mrs. Wang expressed her disappointment. “I definitely do not want the Chinese classes to be closed,” she explained, “not only because of my identity as a Chinese teacher but also because it is a good way for others to learn our culture.”
In Chinese classes, students learn the Mandarin characters and how they are used in their daily lives. They can also learn Chinese culture by getting involved in cultural activities, such as creating decorative lanterns with ancient Chinese poetry.
“I love how Mrs. Wang lets us do such activities,” said senior Daniel Gao, “and the Chinese classroom is such a cozy place.” Shutting off Chinese classes will pose a threat to maintaining diversity in school. Students will not have the chance to appreciate and learn Chinese culture. Since there are a large number of students in KO who accept Chinese culture, mastering the basic Chinese culture is conducive to closer relationships with them.
There are quite a few students at KO who participate in Chinese culture. Chinese values are somewhat different from American values, causing inconveniences in daily communication between international and American-born students. Having more students learning about Chinese culture will allow students from different cultures to understand one another better.
“I would be really happy to see people learning my culture,” said sophomore Eric Du. “I think we can understand each other better if people understand how they and I are different in our perspectives.” By allowing cultural differences to be learned, misunderstandings on campus can be reduced. For example, in Chinese culture, it is more or less unacceptable to give opinions directly, and they prefer to express opinions implicitly.
To cope with the problem of the continually decreasing number of Chinese students, several different actions can be taken. For example, by finding a Chinese teacher for the Middle School and encouraging students to take basic Chinese classes, students can get an initial exposure to Chinese culture and decide whether they want to pursue more in the Upper School. Besides that, we should continue to commemorate some important Chinese festivals, so as to attract more people to explore Chinese culture. Some interesting clubs can also be established about Chinese culture.
By increasing interest in Mandarin and Chinese culture at KO, I hope that Chinese courses can be opened again. This will not only to preserve the only language of Asian origin taught at KO but also promote mutual understanding and tolerance among students of different cultures.
