Mandatory Mandarin in United States?

"The heavens declare the glory of God; ... Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." (Psalm 19:1, 4)

Are you aware of a new trend across the United States? Tonight ABC news announced, "from Philadelphia to Portland Oregon, schools are adding Mandarin programs. Some schools even made learning Mandarin mandatory."

The camera showed enthusiastic students in K, 2nd grade, and 8th grade classes reading, speaking, and singing in Mandarin. These students are from the Driscoll public school in Massachusetts. One 8th grader said he liked learning Mandarin because it helped him to prepare for the future. Teachers told them that they would be able to "communicate with one third of the world's population -- the seven percent who speak English, and the 18 percent who speak Mandarin. " Someone else said, "the congress may spend $1B on programs to teach the Chinese culture and language ... It is about getting ahead in the global economy."

Children need to understand other cultures and accept people who are different from themselves not only for economic reason. After his first day of kindergarten, our 5-year-old boy told us he cried because someone said he was not American. I explained that he was born in the United States and an American and added, "Dad came from Taiwan and I came from Hong Kong. We are Chinese but we are American citizens also. You are special because you are Chinese and American. You are BOTH." The next day, I found out that the "someone" was a little boy from India.

Our son attended Chinese school on Friday nights. He understood the benefits after a trip to Taiwan where he played basketball with students who could only speak Mandarin. Like many ABCs, he took Mandarin in college on his own.

Accept the fact that your ABC kids are of both cultures. Listen to their fears and hurts as they search for their identity. Let them enjoy both, not one or the other. For whatever reasons, it is much better for them to speak Cantonese or Mandarin because they want to, not because they have to.

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