Marlborough charter school would focus on teaching Chinese Language
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A proposed charter school serving MetroWest will focus on bilingual education in Mandarin Chinese, according to a prospectus submitted to the state for approval last month.
The Hop Brook Regional Public Charter School was among 42 charter school proposals received by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education this summer. It was submitted for approval as a Commonwealth charter school.
According to the prospectus, submitted July 30, the school would be located in Marlborough and enroll a maximum of 324 students in kindergarten through eighth grade. It would serve school districts in Berlin, Boylston, Clinton, Framingham, Hudson and Marlborough.
The school would open next fall.
The group that submitted the prospectus consists of Jeannette Landrie, Mark Rearden and Xin Xin of Shrewsbury; Anne-Marie Laine and Richard Williamson of Boxborough; Sanne Dinkel of Westwood, and Janis Peters of Mansfield.
According to their resumes, Landrie, Dinkel and Peters are faculty members at Curry College. Laine teaches at Milton High School while Xin Xin teaches grades 5 through 8 in the Shrewsbury school system.
Reardon is a computer technician at Westborough High School. Williamson is an acquisitions editor.
The executive summary of their prospectus says Hop Brook is intended "to fill a need for more language programs starting at an earlier age" in the region. The school specifically would teach Mandarin in a dual language immersion process.
Landrie said she decided to develop the prospectus after learning about a similar school in Hadley called the Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School, the first of its kind in the state.
"I was surprised we didn't have one in Boston or MetroWest first," she said.
Landrie and her group - who came together through their "mutual interest in Chinese," she said - began work on their proposal a year ago.
A language specialist at Curry, Landrie said early immersion "is the best way to learn a language," especially one like Mandarin that is difficult for English speakers to grasp.
Students at the school may take a science class in English in one grade and in Mandarin the next, according to Laine, who is also a language immersion specialist.
"Our goal is to challenge students a little bit more," she said.
Landrie said the rise of China as a global economic power has made Mandarin an important language for Americans to learn.
"There's so much crossover between the two countries," she said. "We have so much to learn from them, and they have a lot to learn from us."
In China, however, students learn English "right away in first grade," Landrie said.
"I think we (in America) have rested on our laurels too long. We need to take second language acquisition seriously," she said. "Knowing two languages doubles your value."
Dual language immersion also helps students improve their critical thinking and comprehension skills, which could aid them on the MCAS, added Laine.
"It stimulates your mind in a totally different way," she said. "It gives you flexibility of mind."
The state education department is currently evaluating the 42 charter school requests. Groups with the most promising proposals will be notified mid-September and encouraged to submit a full application before Nov. 1.
The education department will vote to award new charters in February.
There are a minimum of 15 Commonwealth charters available in this year's application cycle.
Landrie hoped Hop Brook's unique curriculum would make her group's proposal stand out.
But their prospectus faces strong competition, particularly from existing charter schools which are looking to expand into a franchise.
"A lot of people are trying to replicate what's already succeeded," she said. "It may not be our year."
Even if Hop Brook doesn't make the cut this cycle, Landrie said she'd try again next year.
