The Confucius Institute works with school districts across the region to start, build, and expand programs in Chinese language. CIKU assists schools in finding highly qualified Chinese teachers, offers professional development and networking opportunities for K-16 Chinese instructors, and maintains a reference library of teaching materials. The Institute also provides support and advising to individuals interested in becoming certified teachers of Mandarin Chinese.
During June and July, 2009 the Confucius Institute at the University of Kansas will offer a summer language program for high school students called Chinese Jump!The program included a series of two-week sessions designed to give high school students an opportunity to jump into the study of Chinese language.
This program is a part of President Bush's National Security Language Initiative--STARTALK-- funded by the Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Defense to promote the teaching of lesser taught languages including Chinese. The United States currently has too few speakers of these languages to meet our nation’s needs.
Who is eligible:
Rising ninth and tenth grade students in good academic standing who 1) intend to enroll in Chinese I during the 2009-10 academic year; 2) are selected by their school district; and 3) have permission from their parent(s) or legal guardian.
Dates:
The Chinese Jump! summer language programs will be offered three times in 2009:
Session 1: June 29 - July 11 (No class on July 3)
Session 2: July 6 - 18
Session 3: July 20 - August 1
Venue:
Selected students will receive Chinese language instruction on nine weekdays via Interactive Distance Learning (IDL) technology in an IDL classroom designated by their school district or via face-to-face instruction depending on their location. There will be a field trip to the Confucius Institute at KU’s Edwards Campus in Overland Park, KS on the last Friday and Saturday at no cost to students; transportation, lodging, meals, admission fees as well as third-party travel insurance is provided. Activities during the field trip will include visits to cultural sites such as the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, real-time videoconferences with students in China, face-to-face interaction with Chinese instructors and individual assessments of learning. Students will be supervised during the regular instructional sessions and field trip by a facilitator chosen by their school district.
Instructors:
Instructors will be provided by the Confucius Institute and are certified by the Kansas State Department of Education as K-12 teachers of Chinese.
Resources:
The main STARTALK website is continually updated with useful resources.
See: http://www.startalk.umd.edu/.
Contact info:
Please contact Chinese Jump! Program Director Nancy Hope at nfhope@ku.edu or 785-864-3918.
Each year the Confucius Institute at the University of Kansas awards a Chinese-English dictionary to diligent students of Chinese language. These students were selected by their instructors and are to be congratulated for their hard work this year. This year's winners are:
Kevin Adams, Chinese I, Pleasant Lea Middle School, Lee's Summit, Missouri
Jason Aldrich, Elementary Chinese I, Johnson County Community College, Overland Park, Kansas
Adrienne Rose Graskemper, Chinese II, Liberty High School, Liberty, Missouri
Anna Hirsekorn, Chinese II, Lincoln College Preparatory Academy, Kansas City, Missouri
Paige Hunter, Chinese II, Lawrence High School, Lawrence, Kansas
Charles Hyatt, Chinese II, Valley Heights Jr. Sr. High School, Valley Heights, Kansas
Brianan Lichter, Chinese I, Washburn Rural High School, Topeka, Kansas
Heath McCall, Chinese I, Liberty High School, Liberty, Missouri
Kacee McCrorey, Chinese I, Summit Lakes Middle School, Lee's Summit, Missouri
Ho Seung Moon, Chinese I, Lincoln College Preparatory Academy, Kansas City, Missouri
LiAndra Moore, Chinese I, Lincoln College Preparatory Academy, Kansas City, Missouri
Alexandre Poumaer, Chinese I & II, Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas
Joseph Puzey, Elementary Chinese II, Johnson County Community College, Overland Park, Kansas
Kristyn Saunders, Chinese I, Gravette High School, Gravette, AR
Gabriel Sniezek, Chinese I, Lorain Southview High School, Lorain, OH
Cody Sun, Chinese II, Washburn Rural High School, Topeka, Kansas
Daniel Vanderhorst, Fourth Year Chinese, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
Miquel Santiage Velasquez, Chinese I, Lorain Admiral King High School, Lorain, Ohio
To meet the rising demand from parents and students for Chinese language training, the Confucius Institute provides classes to high schools all over Kansas and in selected locations in Missouri and Arkansas using advanced distance-learning technology(IDL), in partnership with the Greenbush Southeast Kansas Education Service Center.
