PAASSC Founder goes International

Well…

The video below was really recorded before PAASSC was founded (this picture is years before PAASSC also) and I was only interviewed as a parent but it is my television debut as an advocate for Mandarin Immersion programs.

Disclaimer: I am posting this although I am not sure that I agree with the position and general sentiment of the interviewer. This documentary highlights the “shattered dreams” of Americans following the attacks on September 11th and comes to California specifically to see where we are headed in light of our continued economic problems as a state and a nation. I was slightly aware of the interviewers position on this matter but hoped that I would be available to represent the school that my daughter attends and our desires to pursue a language immersion program for our children to a larger audience.

Although this didn’t come across in the interview I want to share why we are raising our daughters to speak Mandarin.

The Decision:

Our initial decision had nothing at all to do with our daughters. We actually made that decision before they were even born. Six years later I signed our three year old up for New Sprouts Chinese School. We participated one 16-week session and then we moved on to a dance class. It was my daughter that kept asking to go back to “Chinese School”. As a parent I have a number of reasons why I think my daughters should learn Mandarin but the reason we are committed to raising bilingual children that speak Chinese is because both girls LOVE the language so much.

Sure, China is predicted to be the super power in 2030 and that sounds like a great reason to raise bilingual children. But this is a blog for parents raising Black children and we all know that there are many more factors that we have to consider when selecting a school for our children. There are strengths and limitations in Chinese Immersion programs for African American children. As parents of Black children we have to continue to engage the school’s administrators, teachers and other parents to ensure that our child is receiving the best experience possible. So while there are numerous benefits to raising bilingual children my daughters are being raised bilingual because they love the language. My daughters leave for school with smiles and return home with smiles and giggles. The site of a butterfly sends them into song (Chinese songs of course). That’s why my children are learning Chinese – because they love Mandarin.

My oldest daughter is the cute little girl in the purple that is super enthusiastic about singing her songs during circle time. (The interview at Shu Ren International School – begins at 25:36).

2nd Disclaimer: The interview was approximately 30 minutes and they have captured less than 3 minutes of our conversation on film so there was a lot that was left out and some editing to highlight their intended focus but the overall presentation of my statements is fair. During my interview I repeated that our pursuit for a Chinese Immersion program was more involved in our daughter’s love for languages and Mandarin specifically than the state of the Chinese economy although they seemed to only use statements I made that referenced China. I guess it took them 30 minutes of videotaping to get me to say what the wanted LOL. I tried.