Mandarin not mandatory
by Alli Adams, Reporter

    TCC has something most colleges do not have-a class in Mandarin Chinese offered by the continuing education department.
    Mandarin Chinese is the second most spoken language in the world; however, many colleges do not offer a class in it.
    Beginning Mandarin Chinese focuses on speaking and writing of Mandarin Chinese as well as the culture.
    Dr. John Bruscemi teaches this group of students Wednesday nights from 6 to 7:50 p.m. on NE Campus.
    Bruscemi notes that his students are doing exceptionally well for beginners.
    "I would stack any of my students up against any undergrad in a three- or four-hour course," he said.
    Each class meeting, Bruscemi greets students in Mandarin Chinese so they will become more familiar with the language.
    Every class period Bruscemi introduces new vocabulary, and he encourages his students to use the new words during that meeting.
    In just one semester, students have learned enough to have a casual conversation.
    After students have become familiar with the spoken language, they learn Pinyin.
    Pinyin is a form of writing Mandarin Chinese in the western alphabet. It uses phonetics and tones to spell out words.
    The learning of Pinyin is followed by the learning of Mandarin Chinese characters. The language has more than a thousand characters.
    Students agree that this is a challenging class. Dr. Cynthia K.S. Reed, a professor of psychology and sociology on NE Campus, said from the first class day on, she felt she was making progress.
    "Dr. Bruscemi's style of teaching makes it easy to learn. He is an excellent teacher," she said.
    Each student had a different reason for taking the course. One student is taking the class because he has family from China and wants to understand more about them. Another student is taking the class because she has adopted a baby from China.
    Dr. Shannon Farrell is taking the class to assist him with his work. Farrell works for the Fort Worth Zoo in the conservation department. The traveling requires that he know some of the Chinese culture and language.
    "It is almost impossible to find a Mandarin Chinese class," he said.
    The students taking the class realize the rare opportunity TCC has provided them. In fact, most are coming back for the second part of the class, Advanced Mandarin Chinese, next semester.