Chinese program appoints director

Vivian Ling was recently named interim director of IU’s Chinese Flagship Program, which helps students gain extensive knowledge of the language.

Ling was born in China and moved to the United States when she was 11 years old.
Originally a math major at Swarthmore College, she went to graduate school to study east Asian studies and fell in love with the subject. Ling has been teaching Chinese for more than 40 years.

“I feel we have the support of the highest level of the administration. All the factors are coming together. It seemed to me like an opportunity I couldn’t pass up,” Ling said.

Forty-two undergraduates are enrolled in the flagship program, and two are enrolled in the newly created graduate program. Out of only 10 Chinese Flagship Programs in the nation, IU’s is the only one with a graduate program.

“It’s like Chinese language on steroids,” said Michael Robinson, chair of the east Asian languages and cultures department. “It’s a whole different idea about language learning. It’s one of these skills that is applicable everywhere.”

By the time these students are juniors they will have completed fourth-year Chinese. Students also have a capstone year that requires them to do a year of study in China, take classes at a Chinese university and complete an internship.   

“What really excites us is seeing students have relationships with colleagues in China,” Robinson said.

Each semester, students write a term paper in Chinese and present it by computer to professors from a university in China.

After their junior year, students must pass a Chinese proficiency test.

During their capstone year, students must write a thesis in Chinese.

“The demands on students are extraordinary,” Robinson said. “If you motivate them and raise the bar, they will go for it.”

Robinson said he hopes foreign language study will be more prominent.

“We can’t expect that international English will always be dominant,” Robinson said.

Robinson and Ling both said they want to attract more students from outside Indiana.

“We have something here that is quite unique, and we just need to get the word out,” Ling said. “There’s a lot of pressure for the students that get into this, but they find it very worthwhile.”

Ling said she hopes the program can move past the College of Arts and Sciences so professionals also have the chance to learn Chinese at an accelerated level.

Jackson Boyar, a senior majoring in east Asian languages and cultures, applied to the flagship program as a freshman.   

“It’s extremely well-organized and effective education,” Boyar said. “Learning foreign languages gives you exposure to things you wouldn’t learn in biology or math.”

Boyar participated in a program in Beijing through Princeton University with students from Harvard University, Yale University and Princeton. He said the students from IU were the most prepared.

“We were speaking for the first few weeks, and they were listening,” Boyar said.    

Boyar said he is excited to work with Ling, who will also teach a course.

“I want some direct contact with the students,” Ling said. “They are working so hard and are very inspiring. You want to do everything to help them succeed.”