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At town board meeting tonight---mandarin program at greenburgh central schools to be highlighted
Release Date: May 23, 2018

At our Town Board meeting tonight we will highlight an amazing program offered to students at the Greenburgh Central schools.  The Mandarin program offered to student in K-12 grade is unique because it is probably the only Mandarin program offered to students as young as kingergartener's. 
Students who master foreign languages in this global economy will have a great advantage when searching for employment.   Our community should applaud the Greenburgh Central School district for this innovative program.

PAUL FEINER

 

 
Hello Paul,
 
I've heard back from our Mandarin teachers in Jackson, Highview and RJ Bailey, Ms. Su Liu, Ms. Kunye Li and Mr. Ran Xiang, respectively. They are very excited to be invited and to serve as ambassadors of our brand new K-12 Mandarin Program.
 
There is much to be excited about! While a handful of schools in Westchester offer FLES (Foreign Language in the Elementary School) World Language programs, many of these programs do not begin in Kindergarten (some begin as late as 6th Grade), the majority of these programs, quite understandably, teach Spanish, and I am personally unaware of any other Mandarin FLES program in Westchester County Public Schools that starts in Kindergarten. I am also unaware of any other FLES program that teaches Kindergarten World Language with the same intensity level ((i.e) student contact time) as our program here in the Greenburgh Central School District. Bolstered by the Superintendent's vision, students receive 120 minutes of "world class" World Language instruction per week in grades K-6. Nearly 100% of Greenburgh CSD students K-6 are enrolled in - and thoroughly enjoying - a World Language course. Our mission is to eradicate monolingualism (!) - or for our students who already speak multiple languages -  to build and foster even further multilingualism and multi-culturalism.
 
As you will learn through our presentation - or possibly you may have heard already - the Mandarin program is fueled by dynamic, creative, collaborative, intelligent and caring teachers. Their classes nurture and inspire engagement and love for the Mandarin language, and for Chinese and Chinese influenced culture, through a broad repertoire of pedagogical techniques, truly interesting content, and by providing a multitude of ways for students to demonstrate their learning and appreciation for developing into global citizens capable of understanding our world and ourselves from many different perspectives.
 
Our program has not gone unnoticed by neighbors near and far. We have received visits and inquiries from groups from places such as Scarsdale and Dobbs Ferry, we are being "followed" internationally on Twitter, and Mr. Ran Xiang's good work at Bailey was written about in a publication in China, for example.
 
Again, we are grateful for the opportunity and eager to present. 
 
We would like to present on the "4th Wednesday in May (4,/23/2018)" at 7:30 - if this time and date still works for you and our Town Board members.
 
 
Thanks very much again for this invitation and thanks very much in advance for your response to the questions above (Would you kindly "reply all" so that our teachers and administrators cc'd in on this communication will also receive the information you send?).
 
Regards,
 
Brendan Gallivan
 

 

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