Denver Language School Teacher Shares Her Pride For the School’s Chinese Programs
1. What are the strengths of the Chinese program at Denver Language School (DLS)? How does DLS compare to other language immersion schools?
2. What are some things you might see in a classroom at DLS that you wouldn’t see in other schools?
Q&A
Whether I look back at my more than ten years of The vision of Denver Language School is to teaching experience, or look at language learning cultivate students with academic excelthrough research publications, it’s clear that lence and intercultural literacy. Denver the length of time immersed in the target Language School’s Chinese immersion language is the key to language learning efprogram builds on this ambition and ficiency. Immersion language education is professionally builds a curriculum that booming across the United States, but immeris tailored to students’ cognitive and lansion programs with a high ratio like DLS are guage development, as well as cultural still quite rare. DLS also boasts two teachers in backgrounds. The Chinese program inevery K-4 classroom. tegrates the subject matter proficiency When you come to the DLS classroom, you indicators from the State Department of will be pleasantly surprised to see that the stuEducation and the language proficiendents demonstrate fluency in academic vocy indicators of the American Society cabulary, speaking, and writing. The mastery for the Teaching of Foreign Languages. of the target language is quite high and natHigh standards require high educaural. This is the program I am most proud of tional standards, so that students can out of the three immersive Chinese programs conduct academic learning and discusI have taught for over the past 14 years. sions through a second language. The school’s curriculum attaches great im3. As a DLS parent and staff member, what YU-HSIN LIEN portance to multicultural perspectives, about DLS appeals to you? Director of Curriculum and so that students with different languagAs a part of the leadership team at DLS, I Instruction, Mandarin Program es and cultural backgrounds can underhave had a wonderful environment, allowing stand the diversity of multiculturalism me to most closely integrate my love of lanthrough curriculum design and mainguage teaching and multicultural values. As a tain the value of multiculturalism. Such learning opportuniparent of a DLS student, I am very grateful to the school for givties are rare in Colorado. ing my child an opportunity for a bright future. I see that people Teachers are closely tied to the educational quality of a from different cultural backgrounds can learn through language, school. Denver Language School teachers have systematic understand each other’s culture, and learn and grow closely tolong-term training, including on-campus training, off-camgether for a common goal. Through natural daily life, we can culpus immersion education, expert customized training, and tivate the life values of respect, appreciation, reflection, tolerance teacher-themed discussions in the same grade to support and communication. From my children coming home every day to efficient student learning. The parent-teacher cooperation in share the big and small things about school life, I can clearly hear Denver Language School is very close. In addition to commuthat when children state their views on things, they can share and nicating and cooperating with each other in academic study, discuss from at least two different points of view. teachers and parents also cooperate in school class activities and cultural festivals. The cross-cultural learning experience Denver Language School is not only implemented with students, but also with parents. Two campuses | de nv e rla ngua ge schoo l.o rg It’s important to work together! Spotlight | Asian Avenue Magazine
19
