Long Reach High School in Columbia wants to offer students a Chinese-language course next year ? a move that would bolster a partnership with a school in Beijing and prepare graduates for the global economy.
“We have a very diverse population, and the students are excited to learn the language,” said Rose Friss, assistant principal at Long Reach, also in Columbia.
If the course is offered, it would follow one being taught for the first time at Wilde Lake High School in Columbia this year, she said.
Discussions are under way with Deborah Espitia, coordinator of the World Languages and English for Speakers of Other Languages department for the Howard public school system, Friss said.
Espitia could not be reached for comment and to provide the number of students enrolled in the Chinese-language class.
Superintendent of Schools Sydney Cousin said curriculum for a Chinese-language course was developed several years ago, but the class couldn?t be offered until enough students had signed up.
Friss said that with a better understanding of the language, students could compete in a highly skilled global economy as well as improve communication with students in Beijing, where Long Reach High has a partnership with No. 22 Secondary School.
On Monday, six members of the delegation from the Education Bureau of Dong Cheng visited Long Reach High and Worthington Elementary schools.
Friss said they were interested in learning about the diverse teaching styles in the U.S. education system.
“In China, there?s a lot of lecture-based teaching, and they wanted to know more about the creativity in our system,” said Friss, referring to the use of cooperative learning where students learn in groups or partners.
Last year, Cousin sealed the partnership with the bureau in China.
“They were impressed by the openness of our system,” said Cousin, about the delegation?s visit.
Min Kim, coordinator of Howard?s equity assurance/human relations, elaborated by referring to the freedom of students to choose their schedules rather than being tracked through the system.
The delegation “loved the freedom of the students to ask questions and actively participate in their education,” she said.
