Panama schools to teach Chinese
Panama schools to teach Chinese
Panama is moving to make the teaching of Mandarin compulsory in all schools, in recognition of China's growing importance in the world economy.
The Panamanian National Assembly has given conditional approval to the bill in the first of three debates.
The bill's supporters say boosting the number of Chinese speakers will help increase Panama's competitiveness.
China is the biggest single user of the Panama Canal that connects the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
The bill's supporters recognise that English is the international language of business but say that with China's increasing economic influence, Mandarin is set to be an indispensable language.
Panama has important commercial links with China, with bilateral trade running at $1bn (?500m).
The Central American nation also has diplomatic links with Taiwan, one of the few countries to do so.
The proposed legislation sets out a timeframe of 10 years for Mandarin to be taught in all schools.
The legislation proposes allowing the immigration of specialist Chinese teachers to help train local teachers.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/7131205.stm
Panama is moving to make the teaching of Mandarin compulsory in all schools, in recognition of China's growing importance in the world economy.
The Panamanian National Assembly has given conditional approval to the bill in the first of three debates.
The bill's supporters say boosting the number of Chinese speakers will help increase Panama's competitiveness.
China is the biggest single user of the Panama Canal that connects the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
The bill's supporters recognise that English is the international language of business but say that with China's increasing economic influence, Mandarin is set to be an indispensable language.
Panama has important commercial links with China, with bilateral trade running at $1bn (?500m).
The Central American nation also has diplomatic links with Taiwan, one of the few countries to do so.
The proposed legislation sets out a timeframe of 10 years for Mandarin to be taught in all schools.
The legislation proposes allowing the immigration of specialist Chinese teachers to help train local teachers.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/7131205.stm
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panama just made the list![:(!] 0 -
Sounds to me like Panama is being forehanded and prepared for their future by properly evaluating world economics and commerce over the next 20 years. Could you imagine the demand there would be for young Americans who spoke fluent Chinese in tomorrow's world? If even one school district in this country started introducing mandatory Chinese classes into their curriculum from kindergarten to 12th grade those kids would be the most sought after high school graduates in the country. But we as a country, sadly, lack the forehandedness of Panama. Oh well I guess we can always hire Panamanians to translate for us in the future. Beach 0 -
Our new Prime Minister, himself a fluent speaker of Mandarin Chiknese, wishes to do something similar in our schools. It might make us more competitive in the world economy, as Beachmaster73 suggests it may do for Panama. 0 -
Hmmmm, interesting. 0 -
Makes a hellava lot more sense than teaching French.[:D] 0 -
Yeah, they're looking forward to the next emerging economic super-power, and we're looking backwards to bowing down to the illegal, Third World invaders by requiring mandatory Spanish![:(!][:(!][:(!] 0 -
so Panama is just further assuring their place as a backwater, flea-bitten, hell hole.
EVERYONE in the international business community learns ENGLISH. ESPECIALLY THE CHINESE!!!!!!!!!!!0 -
Better than lerning Ebonics I guess. 0 -
you all may be surprised to know that it isn't just Panama. I live in Louisville KY, and last week, my six year old first grader started Mandarin Chinese. They replaced Spanish with the chinee. they waste 20 minutes a day, one hour a week on this nonsense. My child cant command the English language, why the hell confuse her with another one? Foreign language should be an elective course for middle or high school, not required in elementary. No American child should be forced to learn a foreign language. As a matter of fact, I feel that my daughter's constitutional rights have been violated. But if I raise a stink about it, they'll just call me a racist.
What to do?0 -
quote:Originally posted by DocBAE
you all may be surprised to know that it isn't just Panama. I live in Louisville KY, and last week, my six year old first grader started Mandarin Chinese. They replaced Spanish with the chinee. they waste 20 minutes a day, one hour a week on this nonsense. My child cant command the English language, why the hell confuse her with another one? Foreign language should be an elective course for middle or high school, not required in elementary. No American child should be forced to learn a foreign language. As a matter of fact, I feel that my daughter's constitutional rights have been violated. But if I raise a stink about it, they'll just call me a racist.
What to do?
Raise a stink anyway. That ain't right.0 -
You guys need to get out more.
Before the US handover of the Panama Canal, the government of Panama held an international bid to negotiate a 25-year contract for operation of the Canal's container shipping ports (chiefly two facilities at the Atlantic and Pacific outlets), which was won by the Chinese firm Hutchison Whampoa, a Hong Kong-based shipping concern whose owner Li Ka Shing is the wealthiest man in China.
[:D]0 -
quote:Originally posted by DocBAE
you all may be surprised to know that it isn't just Panama. I live in Louisville KY, and last week, my six year old first grader started Mandarin Chinese. They replaced Spanish with the chinee. they waste 20 minutes a day, one hour a week on this nonsense. My child cant command the English language, why the hell confuse her with another one? Foreign language should be an elective course for middle or high school, not required in elementary. No American child should be forced to learn a foreign language. As a matter of fact, I feel that my daughter's constitutional rights have been violated. But if I raise a stink about it, they'll just call me a racist.
What to do?
get over it. It's a class. We all have to put up with nonsense of all sorts everyday. It's annoying, it's obtrusive, it's bothersome, but none of it violates a constitutional right, especially a schoolchild's course cirriculum.0 -
"Hey bitchen man, totally rad!"
Look no further than our own backyards.
A California native teaches Chinese how to speak English:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=DendKIx01zc&feature=related
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quote:Originally posted by A J Christ
quote:Originally posted by DocBAE
you all may be surprised to know that it isn't just Panama. I live in Louisville KY, and last week, my six year old first grader started Mandarin Chinese. They replaced Spanish with the chinee. they waste 20 minutes a day, one hour a week on this nonsense. My child cant command the English language, why the hell confuse her with another one? Foreign language should be an elective course for middle or high school, not required in elementary. No American child should be forced to learn a foreign language. As a matter of fact, I feel that my daughter's constitutional rights have been violated. But if I raise a stink about it, they'll just call me a racist.
What to do?
Raise a stink anyway. That ain't right.
Why, exactly, is it not right?0
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