Mine the only ones not learning Mandarin?

Marian
Wed, 23 Jan 2008 10:05:41 +0000

If my child were in middle school or about to start high school and had to choose a language to study, I would be wary if the child chose an unusual language that is only taught in relatively few schools. This includes Mandarin, as well as Arabic, Russian, or German. Even Latin is not taught in all schools.

What happens if the family has to move to another district or if the student switches schools? The new school may not offer the unusual language.

Of course, I realize that if a student completes two years of Mandarin, in grades 9 and 10, and then transfers to a school where only Spanish and French are offered, college admissions officers will make an exception to their rules requiring three years of study of the same foreign language and will understand why the student took Mandarin 1 and 2 followed by Spanish 1 and 2. But still, the student will have missed out on the opportunity to learn a language to the point where it could actually be used. And if the college that the student chooses has a language requirement for graduation, it will take a lot longer for the student to fulfill it than it would for a student who had taken four years of the same foreign language in high school.