Chinese school
Encyclopedia
- For a more general discussion of Westerners learning Chinese, see Chinese as a foreign languageChinese as a foreign languageChinese as a foreign or second language is the study of the Chinese languages by non-native speakers. Increased interest in China from those outside has led to a corresponding interest in the study of Standard Chinese as a foreign language, the official languages of mainland China and Taiwan....
.
In Western countries, a Chinese school is a school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
established explicitly for the purpose of teaching the Chinese languages and dialects (Mandarin
Standard Chinese
Standard Chinese, or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
and Cantonese
Cantonese
Cantonese is a dialect spoken primarily in south China.Cantonese may also refer to:* Yue Chinese, the Chinese language that includes Cantonese* Cantonese cuisine, the cuisine of Guangdong province...
are the most commonly taught) to Americans with Chinese ancestry
American-born Chinese
An American-born Chinese or "ABC" is a stereotype that describes a person born in the United States of Chinese ethnic descent, a category of Chinese American. Many are second-generation born after the U.S. Immigration Act of 1965 were free from limits on immigration from East Asia...
, Canadians with Chinese ancestry, Americans with Taiwanese ancestry, Canadians with Taiwanese ancestry, and the youth born in the respective countries.
Typically, American and Canadian children attend Chinese school either after school (that is, elementary
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
or middle school
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
) on weekday afternoons, or on weekend mornings and afternoons.
Besides teaching Chinese language, the schools serve as social centers allowing Chinese and Taiwanese immigrants and their children to meet other Chinese and Taiwanese families. Chinese schools also counter the loss of Chinese culture brought on by cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is a socio-political response to demographic multi-ethnicity that supports or promotes the assimilation of ethnic minorities into the dominant culture. The term assimilation is often used with regard to immigrants and various ethnic groups who have settled in a new land. New...
into the local society.
Chinese schools are credited with maintaining the relatively high proportions of children of Chinese and Taiwanese immigrants residing in Western countries who are able to read or write Chinese, at least to a limited extent. (Spoken, as opposed to written, Chinese is likely learned as much at home as in a Chinese school.)
. Many children, however, are opposed to Chinese school. Generally, most children no longer attend one by the time they enter high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
.