Posted on 01/25/2009 6:16:08 PM PST by Coleus
Arabic language classes are still few and far between, despite cash incentives from the federal government. A new class at Passaic County’s vocational high school in Wayne may be the only public school class in the state, while classes in Mandarin Chinese have mushroomed in recent years and are now offered in more than a dozen North Jersey districts. Both are considered "critical need" languages by the federal government, which set aside $114 million to kick-start new classes under the 2006 National Security Language Initiative.
Across the nation, 90 percent of the grants have funded Chinese classes, federal education officials said, with the rest split among Arabic, Hindi, Farsi, Russian, Japanese and Korean.
| Language studies drop steeply Economists, education advocates, business leaders and government officials agree: For America to remain an economic powerhouse, students must be prepared for jobs in a global economy. And that means foreign-language fluency. So, how many elementary schools in the United States teach foreign languages? One out of four. That’s according to a 2008 study by the Center for Applied Linguistics, which surveys language instruction in the United States every 10 years. Nationwide, foreign-language classes are in steep decline at the elementary and middle-school levels. Three-quarters of middle schools taught foreign languages in 1997; that number fell to 58 percent by 2008. Thirty-one percent of elementary schools taught foreign languages a decade ago, compared with 25 percent last year. Most U.S. high schools — 91 percent — teach languages, though fewer than half of the students attending those schools are enrolled in the classes. Those numbers have remained steady. Schools reported they have cut language classes and emphasized reading, math and science because those subjects are tested annually under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. — Kathleen Carroll |
"What you’re seeing in New Jersey is a little microcosm of what’s going on around the country," said Nancy Rhodes, director of foreign-language education at the Center for Applied Linguistics.
That’s due in part to a well-funded initiative by the Chinese Ministry of Education to send trained teachers to U.S. schools. Instructional materials for Chinese lessons are readily available, and the government offers technical support for American teachers.
Arabic has had no such support — in part because it is spoken in 21 countries, with no one nation taking the lead in promoting the language overseas, said Mohammed Abdul Aleem, chief executive of Human Assistance and Development International, which advances Arabic language and culture in the United States.
"Our growth has been more organic," he said. Indeed, Passaic County Technical Institute decided to offer the class after repeated requests by students, 7 percent of whom speak Arabic at home. Forty-one are enrolled this year, said spokeswoman Sandy Woods.
It could be a savvy choice: Arabic language skills are keenly needed by the federal government, and fluent speakers are often propelled into top jobs. This month, President Obama tapped North Bergen native John Brennan, who studied Arabic and embarked on a 25-year career in the CIA, as his homeland security and counterterrorism adviser.
Most of the students in the Passaic County tech class have a personal connection to the language through their family or faith. It is taught by a William Paterson University professor and paid for by grants for the school’s "college connections" program, which brings university instructors on campus and allows students to earn college credit. While state education officials don’t officially keep count, it’s the only public school course they know of.
During a recent class, students and instructor Dina Kataw-Aidabole reviewed vocabulary and shared insights into Arab culture. A word for "sandal" also can refer to wooden shoes worn in the shower, which originated in Turkish baths, she told students. "Yes, even in a house you have to take off your shoes," added student Ferdi Abedinoski, 17, of Paterson. "The carpet has to be clean."
"Yes, that’s another cultural thing we should know," said Kataw-Aidabole. Abedinoski said he wanted to study Arabic to enhance his religious education and because "it’s a big language in the world … it has a lot of influence." Such classes are unique nationwide. Less than 1 percent of schools that offer world languages teach Arabic, according to a 2008 study by the Center for Applied Linguistics. Three percent of those schools offer Chinese, compared with less than 1 percent a decade ago.
The Northern Valley regional school district, which runs two competitive high schools in Demarest and Old Tappan, received a National Security Language Initiative grant to start a Chinese class three years ago. The district also has offered Japanese classes for nearly a decade, said Superintendent Jan Furman.
But for now, Arabic is not on the table. "One of the concerns is money," Furman said. "We’re trying to hold on to everything we can. … I agree [Arabic] is a critical need, but we’re trying to meet a lot of critical needs in a very difficult fiscal situation."
The district picked Chinese because "it’s spoken by the largest group of people in the world right now," she said. "The more our kids can be fluent in this language, the more opportunities they will have."
Arabs have no class? Who knew?
I have the Rosetta Stone program and started simple translation for ‘I want to go to McDonald’s”..
The Arabic translation came back as “I want to bomb McDonald’s”. (j/k)
I’m probably walking into a trap, but how’s your Arabic? :)
There are lots of places one can learn that stinking language ... back in the 80s when I was on active duty, I thought I might be sent to Saudi Arabia, so I got on the phone and ordered a little “Learn Arabic” package from some muzzies in NYC .. and plus there are the Berlitz (sp?) guides available. The DLA has their program as well - so be of good cheer, all is not so bleak!
Non existant
re: post #4, my thoughts EXACTLY!
i was thinking the same thing when I was posting the thread — we need to know the enemy’s language and the conservative in me was also questioning why the federal govt. was involved in education in the first place.
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