FUESD partners with SDSU on Mandarin program

The Fallbrook Union Elementary School District (FUESD) celebrated its collaborative partnership between its Mandarin enrichment program and San Diego State University’s (SDSU) Confucius Institute on May 20.

In April, Stacey Larson-Everson, the director of state and federal programs for FUESD, was informed that the District had been selected to participate as a Confucius Classroom.

“The intended purpose of the formalized agreement, now available to the District, is to further support current Mandarin enrichment programs throughout district schools,” she said.

With this program, teachers from China will support the district’s program, bringing 1,000 curriculum resources, such as books, software, and workbooks. There is also facilitation of possible student exchange programs between Fallbrook schools and Chinese schools.

Parents, board members, SDSU staff and district staff were invited to attend the signing ceremony which commemorated the district’ collaborative partnership with San Diego State University Confucius Institute. Students performed songs and poems in English, Spanish, and Mandarin. Representatives from FUESD and the Confucius Institute will sign the partnership agreement. FUESD were presented with a Chinese calligraphy piece.

Currently, the district offers the program at all eight of its schools, offering it to students in grades K-8.

“It was a new program this year, and we were only able to offer it once or twice a week at the schools,” said Larson-Everson. “The district has two paid part-time Mandarin instructional assistants who work in collaboration with certified teachers to provide the program at each school.”

Students in the program receive Mandarin instruction for between 45 and 90 minutes per week, during the school day, said Larson-Everson. Though no test results of having such programs available to students have come in, Larson-Everson believes that the growth of the program will allow for further student success.

“Since the program is very new, we haven’t had our standardized testing or achievement score results come in,” she explained. “With our new additional resources will allow us to offer the program on a more intensive level and with more frequency. Just like practice with any musical influence, additional practice will maximize the benefits of the program.”

Currently, the classrooms range between 26 to 32 students from two grades. The classrooms are a part of the federal program, the United States Department of State, Teachers of Critical Languages Program (TCLP), which is designed to increase the study and acquisition of important world languages in U.S. schools.

The district’s application was one of twenty-eight awards to schools throughout the United States. The application process specifically called for the designation of a particular school, referred to as the host school.

“La Paloma is our host school and through the grant, was awarded a guest teacher from China for the 2011-2012 school year. In addition to the guest teacher, the school is eligible to request, as part of the grant, $5,000 for the purchase of classroom equipment, materials and supplies,” said Larson-Everson.

All costs related to the guest teacher, including travel, training and insurance, are covered through the grant.

“We try to individuate each school’s programs to meet the needs of the students,” said Larson-Everson, who wants parents to understand the cognitive and academic benefits of having elementary-aged students learning a foreign language.

“Research shows that children absorb language better than adults, and are able to develop proficiencies,” she said. “The government has identified Arabic and Chinese as critical world languages, and has support programs to help students gain proficiency.”

To help motivate students in the program, Larson-Everson stated that students are highly involved in the classrooms.

“When children are motivated and excited about a language, they have higher levels of proficiency,” she stated. “Our program has a lot of oral language practice, and our students have total physical response – they stand and move in response to questions. They are engaged in physical movements, talking with each other, and are involved in choral chanting, singing. It’s very interactive.”

Students are also given individual chalkboards and classrooms are stocked with LCD projectors, webcams, docu-cameras and computers.

“We have teleconferenced sister schools through the webcams. Students are able to teleconference in Mandarin with another classroom,” said Larson-Everson. “We hope to have a partnership with another school through the SDSU program.”

Parents and students alike seem to enjoy the success seen in the classrooms.

“Over the past week, my office has received more than 471written parent requests from across the district, from parents desiring for their children to continue or enter into the Mandarin enrichment program for the 2011-2012 school year,” said Larson-Everson. “I expect these numbers to grow while schools continue to submit parent request through the end of the month.”

As the district looks for ways to support students, Larson-Everson stated that the district hopes to allocate additional grant agreement resources to support each school’s needs.

“The district’s Mandarin enrichment program has a lot to offer students across grade levels and academic proficiency levels,” said Larson-Everson. “While supporting academic success, it also provides students with the opportunity to learn a second language as well as gain understanding and knowledge of another country and culture.”

Parents interested in the program may contact the Fallbrook Union Elementary School District State & Federal Programs Office at (760) 731-5417 or [email protected].

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