What is the English Baccalaureate and its impact on learning Chinese in schools

Divided opinion: English Baccalaureate
English schools will now be measured on how many pupils achieve grades A*-C in five core subjects - maths, English, two science qualifications, a foreign language and either history or geography. The short Mandarin Chinese course with AQA or Edexcel might be an option?
http://www.thechinesestaffroom.com/articles/09-10-24/gcse-mandarin-chine...

The Chinese Staffroom reports on Ministry of Education Gove's new initiative for Chinese teachers

Education Secretary Michael Gove has announced a pioneering new partnership with China to train 1000 more Mandarin teachers for secondary schools in England. During a visit to China to build stronger education partnerships with the Chinese.

Mr Gove launched the joint programme between the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust and Hanban (the Confucius Institute Headquarters). It is to run over the next five years.

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=micheal+gove+teachers+china&rls=com.mic...

India too considers Mandarin Chinese important enought to make it work in their schools...

New Delhi: The Central Board of School Education (CBSE) will be introducing Chinese language in schools affiliated to it from April 2011 onwards.
In an official letter to principals of CBSE affiliated schools, Mr Vineet Joshi, IAS, Chairman of CBSE wrote “In view of China emerging as one of the major global economies and Mandarin being spoken by a large population of the world, the Board is set to launch Chinese in class VI from April 2011.”

Read more: ‘Ni Hao’, CBSE to launch Chinese language from 2011 | Bharat Chronicle http://www.bharatchronicle.com/ni-hao-cbse-to-launch-chinese-language-fr...

Understanding English, Communication and Languages is the new area of learning relevant to Mandarin Chinese

http://curriculum.qcda.gov.uk/new-primary-curriculum/areas-of-learning/u...

Following the review of the Primary curriculum in the UK here is the new area into which Mandarin fits - go have a look!

Politicians Ed Balls and David Laws debate introduction of compulsory language lessons for 7-11 (KS2)....

Ministers have already announced the introduction of compulsory language lessons for seven- to 11-year-olds in 2011 to stimulate interest in the subject from a young age.

A spokesman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said: "Introducing compulsory languages teaching in primary schools will instil a love of language learning in young children and help to encourage them to continue studying it as they move up through school and beyond.

MYLO is the new UK government backed online resource for KS3 children wanting to improve their languages.

http://mylo.dcsf.gov.uk/Home/About

Read more about this DCSF project here.

As a start, we’ve included some of the most popular languages – the ones most commonly taught at school or spoken on holiday. We’ve also included Mandarin as it is already offered in many secondary schools and is predicted to become a popular choice!

Join MYLO on twitter too http://twitter.com/HelloMYLO

Heartlands High school and nearby primary schools Chinese workshops are a great idea

Workshops for children learning Mandarin Chinese can be highly innovative. Taking children out of the classroom to a local Chinese restaurant to learn about fresh ingredients, what makes a balanced Chinese diet and to get some hand-on experience works.

Dorian Chan lead the initiative and is looking to go national with the concept.

The Languages Company briefing in association with Links into Languages was interesting....

This briefing in languages in Primary and Secondary School detailed how far languages have come and how far they still need to go. Key themes included:
- transitioning between the Key Stages and onto languages for life
-How language learning is becoming part of Languages and Communication as part of the new primary review
- How language teaching in KS2 will follow the same Listening and Speaking, Writing, Intercultural Understanding, Knowledge about Language and Language Learning Strategies structure
- How performance indicators assess take up and progress, monitoring both between schools and within schools versus other subjects
- How research into language teaching and investing in CPD for language teachers is vital
- How a NFER survey has revealed great progress in primary even before the statutory requirement for languages in primary comes into force in 2011
- How the new diploma will work
- Some news on the new Open School for Languages

How are perfect pitch and learning Chinese associated?

The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America has published a study showing fluency in a tonal language such as Chinese helps develop perfect pitch.

"In my experience, musicians in China don't regard perfect pitch as anything remarkable because it's very common," says Deutsch the pyschologist author of the research.

Research on Learning Chinese in Australian Schools reveals more expert knowledge needed

See both the full report and the summary on www.learnosity.com

Mandarin Chinese does need good oral and aural practice. Unlike for French, German and Spanish, pronunciation is key. Without good pronunciation you cannot be understood; it is not just a matter of having a bad accent. Curricula, teacher training and resources for children learning Chinese must take this into account. Contact us for suggestions, we know how to tackle the problems detailed in this report.