Ada Merritt and PIPA make the NEWS!!!!!

Our Portuguese program, together with schools teaching Mandarin and Japanese were featured in an article published in

The Miami Herald on January 7th, 2010.
 
 
www.miamiherald.com/news/miami-dade/communities/story/1409634.html
 
 
Students in Miami-Dade

Embrace Foreign Language Education

BY MICAELA HOOD
mhood@MiamiHerald.com

11/24/09.   With the help of their teacher Yunyan Chen two students practice a song during Mandarin Chinese class at Mandarin Lakes K-8 center in Homestead.
On a recent afternoon, Mandarin Lakes K-8 Academy teacher Yun Yan Chen entered a classroom filled with 19 kindergarten students.
The students jump from their seats and scream in unison, ``ni hao?'' the Mandarin greeting of hello.

The vocabulary lesson doesn't end there.

Her students know how to recite common phrases in Mandarin, China's official and most-spoken language.

``They know how are you, what's your name, how old are you, what do you like, thank you and you're welcome,'' she said.

The Mandarin program at the Homestead-based school, available for students in kindergarten, first and second grades, is one of 13 schools in Miami-Dade County that teach the Asian language to elementary, middle and high school students.

Chen, a native of China, has 63 students. She said they are eager to learn and curious about her culture.

``I appreciate their enthusiasm,'' she said. ``They seem to really enjoy what they're learning.''

As Chen wrapped up her hour-long lesson, the kindergarten students sung her a traditional Chinese song. Nyeirah Handkerson, 6, hugged her teacher and said, zai jian, or goodbye.

``My favorite part of class is when we sing songs,'' Nyeirah said. ``I know if I practice a lot, I'll become better.''

Mandarin is not the only Asian language taught at local schools.

At Palmetto High School, 79 high school students are learning how to read, write and speak Japanese.

Japanese teacher Meiko Avello said the language has become more popular because of Japanese video games and animation.

``Their faces light up now when they watch anime,'' she said. ``Before, they didn't understand, now they tell me, `oh my gosh, I've heard this before, now I know what it means!' ''

In addition to learning how to speak Japanese, Avello's students are taught how to write using three systems.

``They have to learn two different alphabets plus Chinese characters because in Japan we learned our writing system from China,'' Avello said.

Because of the Japanese program's success the school started its first Japanese advanced placement program.

Added Avello: ``I believe the students will benefit in the long run by learning the difference between Eastern and Western cultures.''

The knowledge of Japanese and Mandarin also will benefit the students' résumés.

``If you have two individuals that are trying to apply for employment and one of them speaks three languages, who do you think will get the job?'' said Joanne Urrutia, administrative director for the division of bilingual education and world languages for Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Urrutia said at a bilingual school students' days are split. They receive instruction in English in subjects such as math, science and language arts and then spend anywhere from one to two hours receiving instruction in their language of choice.

At Ada Merritt K-8 Center -- where more than half of the population is of Brazilian heritage -- 250 students are learning how to speak Portuguese.

For the parents, the school gives their children the opportunity to learn about the culture of the South American country.

``When we visit [Brazil], my son is no longer afraid to speak Portuguese with the other kids,'' said Floriana Martinez, a board member of the school's Portuguese International Parent Association. ``I've noticed he has become more proud of where he comes from and is more interested in learning about his family and his roots.''

The school, which employs 10 Portuguese-speaking teachers, has an after-school program for 45 students who have excelled at learning the language.

``They get to stay with their friends and learn more about the culture, music, art and geography,'' said teacher Caroline Cortezia. ``They're eager to learn more, it's fun for them.''

At the end of the school year, faculty, students and their families celebrate the Festa Junina, an annual event that honors the harvest and the saints of the month of June.

The festivities included games and Brazilian food like canjica (rice pudding) and churrasquinho (kabobs).

``The children dress up and perform the quadrilhas,'' principal Carmen Garcia said.

The school is also one of the county's only commuter schools, so parents who live anywhere in Miami-Dade can enroll their kids.

The bilingual program is so popular that last year the school received more than 700 applications.

``We only had availability for close to 120 students,'' Garcia said. ``To give everyone a fair chance, it's done by a random selection process.''

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