HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	92
TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2013		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO EXPAND THE MANDARIN CHINESE LANGUAGE CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS.

     WHEREAS, after decades of isolation, the People's Republic of China emerged in the twenty-first century as a rising economic power and reports predict that China's economy, currently the world's second largest, is likely to pass the United States in less than two decades; and

WHEREAS, in an increasingly global economy, it is important for today's children to be culturally sensitive and able to converse in a language other than English; and

WHEREAS, the significance of the Mandarin Chinese language is reflected in the United States Department of Defense's classification of Mandarin Chinese as a critical needs foreign language; and

WHEREAS, in 2006, the United States Department of Education noted that more than two hundred million children in China were taking compulsory English classes, in contrast to twenty-four thousand of fifty-four million American elementary and secondary school students who were studying Chinese; and

WHEREAS, in response to China's growing economic global dominance, teachers and parents throughout the United States have acknowledged the importance of learning Mandarin Chinese, and the last decade has seen an impressive growth nationwide in Mandarin language classes that range from immersion classes for kindergarteners to mandatory Mandarin language classes in some cities; and

WHEREAS, experts state that learning another language enhances learning in other areas; and
     WHEREAS, because of the structure of the Mandarin Chinese language, with its tones and characters, educators have noted that the students who study Mandarin Chinese use cognitive and academic skills not addressed in studying most other foreign languages; and

WHEREAS, offering Mandarin Chinese language courses to Hawaii's public school students will help them to become successful global citizens; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-seventh Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2013, the Senate concurring, that the Department of Education is requested to expand the Mandarin Chinese language curriculum in public high schools to be available to students by the 2015-2016 academic school year; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is urged to cooperate with the University of Hawaii and the University's Confucius Institute to expand Mandarin Chinese language offerings in public high schools; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Education and the Superintendant of Education.

Report Title: 

Mandarin Chinese Language Curriculum; Public High Schools