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DLI means to use the target language as the medium of instruction, instead of teaching the language only. Even though acquiring the language is still one of the learning objectives, teachers do not strictly focus on teaching grammar, pronunciation and practising drills. Instead, teachers extensively use Chinese to teach, to conduct activities and to communicate, so that students learn the language unconsciously. Just like how kids learn their first languages. In the US, this kind of instruction method has been categorized as a special teaching program, called the Dual Language Immersion program. This program is well-established, with French, German, Spanish and Portuguese as the first four programs. In around 2006, some school districts have started the Chinese Immersion Program (CIP).

How to use Mandarin Matrix DLI Proficiency Builders in immersion teaching?

The Mandarin Matrix’ DLI Proficiency Builders series  is a complete curriculum that was co-developed with school districts and professional teachers. It is specially designed for Dual Language Immersion programs. The materials is available in print and on the Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom, levels ranging from foundation (0 starter) to intermediate 4 level (Pre-AP). Here are some highlights:

Highlight 1: Making learning interesting through storytelling

The DLI Proficiency Builders come in story format and was designed based on concepts of TPRS. In the lower levels, each unit has 3 stories with the same set of key words repeatedly used in different combination/vocab across the stories. The background of the 3 stories are based on students’ family, school and playtime. Students are able to get a sense of the language naturally through reading about context in different settings.

The pedagogy of teaching through the form of story aligns with the concept of immersion teaching using Chinese as the medium, rather than the teaching purpose. It also allows children to establish the foundation of Language Art Skills from an early age. For example, each of our stories starts with a beginning, it then gradually builds up, with a climax or a problem to solve, eventually a small surprise at the end. By applying the typical concept of “Story Mountain” in our content, we are bringing students from our Foundation level (= 0 beginners) to not only immerse with the language, but also immerse with language arts.

Below is a live demo of a Chinese immersion class in the second grade of elementary school. The teacher used Mandarin Matrix’ DLI Proficiency Builders.

Thanks to Teacher Yang for his wonderful demonstration!

The most important thing is that children should learn the language with fun. A story is worth a thousand words. Watching them enjoying learning and reading is also the joy of a Chinese teachers.

Highlight 2: An Unique Spiral Pedagogy

The DLI Proficiency Builders are designed with the “spiral pedagogy”, which means key words are highly repeated or reused, and are also expanded to wider and higher ranges. In this pedagogy, we follow the “I+1 principle” or “Comprehensible input” in order to make sure that students can fulfill all the requirements before going to the next steps.

Under the design of highly repetitive words, students can gradually improve their Chinese proficiency. Think about this, traditional textbooks introduce more than a dozen new words in each lesson, but how many percentage can students memorise? The Mandarin Matrix DLI  Proficiency Builders focus on very few new words in each unit at the lower levels. Even more, we use three stories to introduce the same keywords in each unit. We really make sure students acquire 100% or even 120% at the novice levels, then we bring students up to higher levels.

At 14’20 in the below video, you can see that once students got their new books, they simply just can’t wait to see if they can read them.

At the intermediate and higher levels, students expand their knowledge really fast because Chinese itself is a language of compound words. Also, our materials have changed from “character-based” to “word-based” learning at these levels. Moreover, the materials are expanding in non-fiction style. In Intermediate 3 and 4 levels, there are multiple authentic short texts in addition to a story. These short texts include different text types such as emails, blog posts, posters, etc., The stories and short texts both focus on the same set of keywords, again, aiming to increase the frequency.

Intermediate 3 and 4 also highly align to the six themes of AP: contemporary life, personal and public identity, family and community, global challenges, science and technology, beauty and aesthetics.

Highlight 3: Teacher reads, We read, Student reads

At Foundation level, each unit has three stories, which are called “Teacher Read”; “We Read” – for everyone to read together in class; “Student Reads” – the last one in the unit that students should be able to read completely by themselves. There are other communication vocabulary in “Teacher Reads” and “We Read” books, but key words students should learn are presented in red fonts.

“Big Books” is also available i this level. They are in larger size, allowing teachers to make different seating arrangements in class and to read to students.

At Intermediate 3 and 4 levels, as mentioned above, we not only have stories but also introduced many different text types. We have also expanded and covered AP themes and SDGs. Great for middle school+ students to conduct higher level discussions and develop more advanced languages.

Highlight 4: Informational teacher’s manual and well-illustrated worksheets

Each and every unit in this Proficiency Builder series includes detailed teacher’s guide, highlighting teaching points, key grammar concepts, oral focus, teaching objectives, effective evaluation suggestions and related readings, which help teachers to formulate each reading lesson’s plan.

Each unit also has worksheets that can be easily printed. Some of these worksheets are created by senior teachers of the American Star Talk Program, and some are created by AP teachers. They can save a lot of time for teachers. Print them immediately for students to practise basic stroke writing, reading comprehension, etc. . In the elementary worksheets, all the exercises are matched with interesting and easy-to-understand pictures, allowing students to practice and strengthen skills while making direct associations with pictures.

Highlight 5: A perfect online + offline solution

The curriculum isn’t only available in printed version, but also on the online learning platform of Mandarin Matrix! As long as a student or teacher subscribe to the platform, s/he can browse purchased books anytime, anywhere within the subscription period. This account can be purchased by school at one go, or by individuals. Both Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese are available.

The Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom not only has books on it, but also plenty of online exercises including listening, speaking, reading, and writing. There is no need to stack a pile of books and print out notes anymore! Everything is on the Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom!

Interested in checking out the materials and online platform? Just

Fill out the form and claim a free trial account!

The post Dual Language Immersion Chinese Teaching Materials Recommendation appeared first on Mandarin Matrix.

• Focused vocabulary and grammar backward designed from AP, IB, and HSK exams
• Authentic and informational materials using real-world languages in real-world scenarios
• Topics covering AP & IB themes, and many of the 17 SDGs

We are excited to announce that we will be launching an additional  30 new books to this series focusing on beginners’ level. Hence, learners can start reading the real-world materials even from absolute beginners!

Here is the  new book list:

Chinese Connections Foundation New Books

Mandarin Matrix now offers books introducing characters & radicals

The new Chinese Connections books include six books about the Chinese character system, Pinyin system, and Chinese Radicals. These books are designed to help learners build foundations of the language, understand basic characters and radicals, as well as how the language works.

For example, Chinese Connections Foundation B.1 is about Chinese characters in the ancient and modern forms.

Chinese Connections Foundation B.3 is about the Pinyin system, focusing on the tricky ones.

Fun real-world materials for beginners

Who says beginners can’t enjoy fun and authentic materials? Mandarin Matrix new books are tailor designed for beginners, using real-world languages and real-world scenarios. The language is simple enough for beginners to understand, and the scenarios are age appropriate for ages 15 and above. The new books include real-world texts such as shopping list, lunch menu, lost and found poster etc.

Let’s take a look at an example, Chinese Connections Foundation U1.2 is about playing Bingo. Under this topic, we can introduce vocabulary of numbers, as well as the grammar point of 有 or 没有 , and even the usage of 也 and 只.

Another example, Chinese Connections Foundation U4.2 introduces a shopping list. This can be included into a shopping, food, or cooking unit.

From these examples, we can see that the language used is simple, but the topics are fun and authentic. This is the DNA of the Chinese Connections series.

MORE Social Media and Technology Topics

For teenagers and young adults, more than half of their “real-world” life is online! That’s why our Chinese Connections series has included so many books related to social media, technology, and online life. For example, the book of “介绍自己 Self-introduction” is set on social media profiles, because that’s where  learners will introduce themselves most!

Chinese Connections 1 U3.1 介绍自己 Self-introduction is set on social media.

We also have  another book about social media, which is “做头像 Making An Avatar.” We use the topic of creating an online avatar to introduce the vocab of body parts, adjectives to describe someone, as well as  the grammar of double adjectives like “大大的”, “高高的”

Aside from technology, Mandarin Matrix has also been focusing on the pedagogies such as CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) and immersion learning. We are also  focusing on developing content for learners to learn about other concepts and subjects in Chinese. For example, the new book in the Foundation level “U5.2 吃肉？吃素？Meat-eater? Vegetarian? ”. It  not only introduces the language, but also integrates the concept of the food chain with language learning. It can be used for fun reading, or it can be used as cross-subject extended reading material.

To check out our new books and the online classroom, don’t hesitate to simply sign up  using the form here for TWO WEEK FREE TRIAL or below: 

The post 30 New Books Launched in the Chinese Connections series! appeared first on Mandarin Matrix.

With its 8th edition of the International Conference on Immersion and Dual Language Education being held March 2-5, 2022 in Salt Lake City Utah we sit down with Robert (Bob) Davis, CEO Mandarin Matrix to talk about learning a world language, improving proficiency and the resources available to schools.

Tell us about yourself and Mandarin Matrix?

Ninmen hao! My name is Robert Davis and I am the Global CEO of Mandarin Matrix.

Mandarin Matrix is a customizable, online learning platform designed to support learners of Mandarin as a world language from kindergarten through to middle school. The Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom and supporting print materials offer a complete learning solution with an integrated range of learning tools designed to be user-friendly and easily accessible. Students follow individual learning journeys toward developing a rich knowledge of the language and improving proficiency in reading, writing, speaking and listening. Through the Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom, students can access thousands of books, games, activities and assessments safely and quickly, anytime and anywhere.

What kind of resources does Mandarin Matrix provide and how does it improve proficiency?

We find that Teachers have a limited amount of time to improve Chinese literacy while also teaching content.  Our DLI Proficiency Builders feature everyday tales, reflecting real-life settings of school, family and community, providing core curriculum and teaching resources such as writing worksheets and guides. Our content focuses on contemporary topics which are relevant and engaging to learners. Our curriculum and content is designed by master in service teachers and can be mapped to any K12 curriculum and localized for cultural sensitivity and navigation.

The 2022 conference theme “Embracing Languages and Cultures for A Better World” represents its mission and key tenets: diversity of languages, collaboration and inclusivity, and equity.  How does that theme apply to you?

I love this theme and feel it is very timely. So often we think of a language in the context of one place from where it originates from. But the reality is much more nuanced than that, and what we are teaching are world languages. Language learners should be able to use languages in a variety of environments and communities, not just on a trip abroad. And as a second language learner myself, I know how powerful language is in bridging gaps, building new communities and connecting beyond my own heritage.

What kind of resources will Mandarin Matrix be showcasing at the event?

We have been working very hard over the last year or so to collect teacher and student input, and to modify and improve our products so they are optimal for use. We will be focusing on our digital platform and showing guests our 2.0 content which includes new Math and Science DLI materials as well as an entirely new Middle-Early College product called Chinese Connections. We cannot wait for everyone to check them out! And of course, we are always happy to provide free trials to teachers who want to dig in a little deeper and explore our materials with their students.

To learn more about Mandarin Matrix’s language immersion program and avail a two-week free trial please contact sales@mandarinmatrix.com.

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The post Chinese Connections Readers appeared first on Mandarin Matrix.

Mandarin Matrix is an award-winning online education solution specifically designed for children learning Mandarin as a foreign language. Our aim is to increase Chinese fluency and literacy across the world by delivering exceptional learning resources that are not only fun and interactive, but engaging and highly-effective, too. 

We are delighted to reveal that our Online Classroom has been shortlisted as a finalist in the ‘Primary – Digital Learning Product – Language & Literacy’ category for the BETT Awards 2022, the most prestigious and contested awards in the EdTech calendar.

The BETT Awards

The Bett Awards, organised in association with Besa, is the pinnacle of recognition within the EdTech space. Described by organisers as “a celebration of the inspiring creativity and innovation that can be found throughout technology for education.  The awards form an integral part of Bett each year, the world’s leading showcase of education technology solutions.” The winners are seen to have excelled in genuinely innovative ICT provision and support for educators with a clear focus on transforming education.

The winners will be revealed at the ceremony on 19 January at the Brewery in London. 

You can check out all the finalists across the different award categories here.

About Mandarin Matrix

Mandarin Matrix is a highly customisable Chinese proficiency building platform that leverages AI technology to help students from around the world learn Mandarin in a fun and interactive way. Teachers can assign thousands of books, games, activities, and assessments anytime and anywhere through the Online Classroom which allows students to deepen engagement and build their skills in Mandarin communication and literacy. Whether you’re in class, online or hybrid, Mandarin Matrix has the tools and resources to make teaching and learning Chinese more efficient and effective. 

The post Mandarin Matrix Announced as Finalist for Bett Awards 2022 appeared first on Mandarin Matrix.

Chinese Connections Readers

Our latest readers offer a more in depth program for middle school and high school students learning Chinese as a world language. Using authentic, real life situations, students will learn from relatable texts enabling them to practice Chinese in real world settings. Vocabulary, grammar, and sentence structures are aligned to major textbooks, yet are displayed under different contexts to expand and reinforce students’ learning. The texts cover AP, IB, and HKS grammar themes, helping students have additional material while preparing for their exams.

Product Highlights:

• Aligned with AP, IBMYP, and IBDP themes and topics
• Contemporary authentic use of language and expressions
• Relatable stories enable students to practice Chinese in real world settings
• Vocabulary, grammar, and sentence structures aligned to popular textbooks
• Supported with printable teacher guides and student worksheets
• Online exercises and assessments

ACTFL Proficiency Levels
(Each level with 24 books)

• Level 1: Novice Mid to Novice High
• Level 2: Novice High to Intermediate Low
• Level 3: Intermediate Mid to Intermediate High

Learn more about our Chinese Connections readers here.

Theme-Based Readers

240 theme-based Chinese books divided into 6 colour–coded levels, multi‐curricula, supporting iGCSE, Common Core, STEM and with over 1,600 characters up to AP Level.

Product Highlights:

• Available on the Online Classroom and also as printed books for take home and in-class reading
• Starts with basic vocabulary and develops through to advanced texts with complex historical and mythological Chinese tales
• Five encompassing themes:
  • About Us
  • Where We Are
  • Systems in the Community
  • Expression and Community
  • Science and Nature
• Multi-curricula-aligned with AP, IB (PYP, MYP), YCT, GCSE, Common Core, and STEM
• Each book has been deliberately developed with no English or pinyin in the body of the book, but with a full trilingual list at the back for easy reference

Teaching Materials:

Each level contains 40 ten-page stories

• Orange Level 1
• Blue Level 2
• Green Level 3
• Purple Level 4
• Brown Level 5
• Red Level 6

Dual Language Immersion (DLI) Proficiency Builders

Featuring everyday tales, reflecting real-life settings of school, family, and community. Developed with the University of Utah to provide a core curriculum for dual language immersion programs.

Product Highlights:

• All content follows Mandarin Matrix’s spiral system – learning based on upward spiralling and repetition
• Features relatable stories in fun and simple settings using school, family, and community topics
• Leverages Rebus images to stimulate expanded narrative storytelling beyond set scope and sequence vocabulary from Foundation to Novice 3
• Uses pinyin to expand narrative storytelling beyond set scope and sequence vocabulary from Intermediate 1-3 with teacher-tested scaffolding
• Structured with units that use the same vocabulary across three books (or chapters in Intermediate 1-2) and across levels, to ensure repetition in a variety of contexts to reinforce learning outcomes
• Supported by printable 15-day lesson plans, curriculum maps, teacher’s guides, and student worksheets
• Aligns with ACTFL “Can-Do” statements

Elementary Math and Science

K–5th grade Math readers and 1st to 6th grade Science readers, both correlate to Mandarin Matrix’ DLI literacy levels. Our Math readers are also aligned to Common Core Math standards and our Science readers are aligned to Next Generation Science Standards. The Math and Science Readers are included in the Mandarin Matrix enhanced online accounts.

Product Highlights:

• Aligns with the scope and sequence of our Dual Language Immersion Proficiency Builders Readers
• Features factual and informative texts
• Audio support for students to master keywords and vocabulary
• Math: Carefully designed images for students to easily understand abstract Math concepts
• Science: Real life Science photos and illustrations to help students visualize and understand concepts

GCSE and iGCSE Readers

A series of books specially designed for students studying GCSE and iGCSE.

Product Highlights:

• A selection of 175 books with appropriate artwork for secondary school students, available on the Online Classroom
• Starts with basic vocabulary and develops through to longer and more advanced texts
• Covers the 5 big iGCSE topics:
  • Everyday Activities
  • Personal and Social Life
  • The World Around Us
  • The World of Work
  • The International World
• iGCSE topics, themes, and most frequently seen content in previous past papers can all be found in this series.
• All elements of the exam are incorporated into a story format, making learning more fun and engaging.

Teaching Materials:

Levels 1-4 each contain 40 ten-page stories. Level 5 contains 15 longer stories, suitable for students at higher proficiency levels and students preparing for iGCSE/GCSE exams.

• Level 1: 40 units
• Level 2: 40 units
• Level 3: 40 units
• Level 4: 40 units
• Level 5: 15 units

Story-Based Readers

Narratives that are relatable to students’ lives and experiences, including topics such as school, family and play time. With the support of rebus images, pinyin and English support, these readers help expand the story themes beyond the set scope.

Product Highlights:

• Available online and as printed books for take-home and in-class reading
• Engaging stories that are supported by pinyin and English
• Consolidated learning based on upward spiralling and repetition
• Aligns to ACTFL “Can-Do” statements
• Features familiar settings and stories that students can relate to and understand
• Leverages Rebus images for expanded narrative storytelling beyond set scope and sequence vocabulary from Start to Level 6 (ACTFL Level Novice High)
• Uses pinyin to expand narrative storytelling beyond set scope and sequence vocabulary from Level 7-10
• Unit-based structure that uses the same vocabulary across three books to ensure repetition and variety of context

Teaching Materials:

• Starter Pack: 10 units (Two Big Books comprised of five books each for teachers to read in class, 10 books for the class to read with the teacher, and 10 books for students to read)
• Levels 1-6: Five units per level (Three books per unit, 15 books per level)
• Levels 7-10: Five units per level (One book per unit, 30 chapters per level)

Youth Chinese Test (YCT)

A series of fun and engaging books for students at YCT testing levels 1, 2, 3 & 4. Endorsed by the Beijing Confucius Institute for YCT Testing levels 1, 2, 3 & 4.

Product Highlights:

• Thoughtfully designed and illustrated printed books which provide a fun and engaging read based on Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling (TPRS) character acquisition
• Multi-use, wipe-clean YCT Flashcards are a proven resource to help boost character recognition
• Teacher Packs highlight the main teaching points, including key grammatical concepts and outcome assessment

Teaching Materials:

• Level 1 (15 books), Level 2 (15 books), Level 3 (25 books), Level 4 (40 books, coming soon!)
• YCT Flashcards: Levels 1-3
• YCT Teacher’s Packs: Level 1-3
• Can be purchased separately or in discounted Combo Packs

To view and purchase our full range of products, please visit our teacher-package page. If you would like additional information on a specific product, you can reach our sales team via email at sales@mandarinmatrix.com

Related articles:

The post Mandarin Matrix Resources (Online and Offline) appeared first on Mandarin Matrix.

How Do We Tackle Learning Loss Caused by the Pandemic?

A Case Study at Tarwater Elementary School, Chandler School District, Arizona

The challenge
Due to the pandemic,  students were given the choice of attending in-person school or attending online school during the 2020-2021 school year. When the DLI students chose to attend the Chandler Online Academy (COA), their instructional time for learning Mandarin was down to 30 minutes per day, while their peers at in-person school had half-days in Chinese language arts in addition to content areas.  How to make up for the learning gap in Mandarin for the online group of students became a challenging task .

The goal
The goal was to maintain the online students’ Mandarin proficiency at their current level to try and keep up with their peers when they were eventually reunited in school.

How did we tackle the learning gap?
Tarwater Elementary School utilized effective online Mandarin learning resources to build an extended Mandarin literacy program by:

• Adopting Mandarin Matrix DLI Proficiency Builder as our core curriculum.  The spiral up proficiency readers from Foundation ( Novice Low) to Intermediate 3 (Intermediate Mid) levels align to ACTFL and Common Core standards which provided the framework for our students.

• Choosing essential language concepts and skills based on the MMX Curriculum Map and Teacher Guides.

• Utilizing the MMX Student Online Platform to individualize students’ reading tasks. Students were assigned to read different levels of books based on their proficiency.

• Using the online exercises and worksheets provided by MMX to build a routine for students to follow. Each day, we tackled a learning area and celebrated students’ successes on Fun Fridays when we used interactive games to review and have fun

• Collaborating with parents to secure their full support to use reading logs to record the books their kids read every day.

The result:
By the end of the 2020-2021 school year, Third to Sixth grade DLI students had the option to take the STAMP test to assess their Mandarin proficiency.  In the 1st quarter of 2021-2022, the Tarwater Elementary DLI program also did a key vocabulary test based on the MMX Proficiency Builder series. Per the data from both the STAMP test and the school-wide pre-test, the students who chose to attend online school met or exceeded the program goal.

The conclusion:
Tarwater students did not experience learning loss, and in many cases accelerated their learning with the support of Mandarin Matrix Online Platform despite having a fraction of the learning time that their in-class peers experienced.

You may also be interested in: Mandarin Matrix’s CEO Robert Davis Guests on the ‘Wisdom & Productivity’ Podcast

The post Don’t Remediate, Accelerate Learning with Mandarin Matrix appeared first on Mandarin Matrix.

Dr. Efrain Martinez is the principal at Northwood Middle School in Woodstock, Illinois, and the man behind the US-based podcast ‘Wisdom & Productivity’. Having worked in the education industry for over 20 years, he started this podcast with the goal to seek wisdom and deliberate over productivity as a means of better serving his community. 

Last month’s guest was our very own Robert Davis. As the Global CEO of Mandarin Matrix and former leader behind the Chinese Language and Culture Initiative at The College Board, Robert has played instrumental roles in the design and implementation of ground-breaking, internationally focused K-12 education initiatives in the US and abroad. His long career in education was initially sparked by an interest in Chinese, and to this day he remains extremely passionate about providing equitable access to academic opportunities. 

Here’s what Robert had to say.

Today I have the distinguished honor of interviewing Robert Davis, Global Chief Executive Officer of Mandarin Matrix. Robert, for the listeners of this show, can you walk us through your interesting professional trajectory up to this point?

My life and career has been very unorthodox. I am a lifelong educator, and while I don’t recommend this path I will tell you that I have never to this day taken a course in education. I had been a student and I have worked in institutes of education but I’m not formally trained in it. This is a very Chicago thing in some ways, learning on the streets and learning through growing up. I grew up in a family where my father was a journalist at the Chicago Tribune, and he covered Chicago politics his entire career, so I grew up with a background of understanding city politics and the way things happen in Chicago. I went to Northern Illinois University to major in Art History focusing on China. It was there where everything really changed. I had some great teachers who encouraged me to learn Chinese, which I did, and I graduated and found myself in 1997 in Xi’an China. 

I became a teacher at the Xi’an International Studies University. It was probably the single most transformative experience of my life, moving to China in the ’90s. I did not know a single person there, I barely spoke the language, and it really just changed me in so many wonderful and positive ways.

In 1999, I came back to the US and wanted to teach Chinese so I approached the Chicago Public Schools and I said “My Chinese is good enough to do level 1 or level 2 Chinese.” However at that time the Chicago Public Schools did not teach Chinese, so I was really confused because I had just come back from China where things were just like blossoming and blooming and there was this renaissance happening. So I looked into my Chicago playbook and I called the superintendent Paul Vallas, and I requested to meet with him and he agreed. I said “Paul, this is crazy, I don’t understand. I just came back from China, it’s like the future. Why aren’t we teaching Chinese? If you’re not doing it now you will be doing it later.” He said you’re hired and gave me six months to get this thing started. 

We started with just three schools and that Chinese program, called the Chinese World Language Program, proved to be the largest Chinese program in the United States in any school district. This was in part due to the great help of Richard M. Daley. When you work in language and culture you went to all the community events. I attended an Asian heritage event and I saw the then-mayor of Chicago Richard M. Daley. I approached him and said I just wanted to say “hi, I know you knew my father.” And he said “your father was great, he was very kind to me, and he took the time to talk to me.” The conversation eventually led him to ask me what my job was so I said I work for you in the Chicago Public schools and I run your Chinese program. Then he replied “you gotta be kidding me! I keep asking people who does this, do you have a card?” So I gave him my card and the next day I got a call from city hall saying the mayor wants you to come in to talk. I walked to city hall scared as can be sat in the mayor’s office. He told me his brother Bill Daley, was the secretary of commerce, “My brother Billy keeps saying that China is the future, we really need to connect to China, what do you think we should do?” I answered “Mayor, I think we/you should go to China,” and he said to set it up. 

From that point, I started working a strange career where I was at Chicago Public Schools but I was also working with Mayor Daley. We went to China together eight times, he was a big supporter of the work, speaking publicly about it on multiple occasions. What was interesting about this was that the community that we were working with was not what we would think a Chinese program would start with. The Chicago Public schools had and continue to have these really diverse populations of students who all are coming into the school as multilingual and multicultural students learning another language, so they are really global citizens. I know I’ve tangented a little bit but it’s important to insist because that’s what changed my perspective on how you can do things. Be creative, be excited, take risks and chances and then people respond to that and you can get things done. I did that job for over a decade and then when the mayor retired I decided to look around and do different things. At that time I was approached by the president of the College Board, former president Governor Gaston Caperton who invited me to come to the College Board to run their partnership with China, the largest US-China education partnership. I had the great honor and pleasure of working there for a decade, built an amazing team whom I consider family and friends and still talk with all the time.

Now I’ve been given the wonderful opportunity to be the global CEO of Mandarin Matrix, which is a product and organization that I was very familiar with beforehand. I’m very fond of it. We really focus on dual language immersion which I believe is very strong. I’m just getting started here, getting to know people, in the middle of the pandemic. My office is in Hong Kong. I’ve never been there. I’m working from home but I can’t wait to get on a plane and go see them and spend some real human time with them as soon as I can. I also can’t wait to get back into a classroom and see what’s going on structurally to learn about how the students and teachers are using the product and what they like and dislike about it. A really fun ride and I’m just excited about what comes next. 

Do you remember when you first started learning if it was an immediate attraction and love for Mandarin? Or initially were you hesitant while learning it?

It was my second to last semester of college when I showed up to Chinese 101. I was the only non-Chinese person in the class. All these kids were from China and they were in there because they needed to get a language credit. My teacher was professor XiaoXiao Chuan, who is on my list of mentors as well. So I had this ideal situation when you think about it from a learning perspective – a dedicated teacher and a whole classroom of native speakers who were just there willing to help me. I liked it because I thought it was exciting. I had studied Spanish beforehand and I liked that as well but there was something about Chinese that just clicked for me. What always has been hard for me about romance languages is verb conjugation and all that kind of stuff. Chinese has other complicated stuff but it was exciting and it was connected to what I was studying academically – Chinese art history. I think when you have that connection and you see it coming to life it’s just a much better environment for you to dig in and really get into it.

Robert, who do you learn from?

Hopefully everybody, right? I think it’s a decision, you have to be open to it. Daily I learn from my children, from my colleagues, my wife, from my mentors I still keep in touch with. 

In terms of my actual field that I mentioned, I learned so much from Armando Almendarez (Deputy Chief Education Officer of the Chicago Public Schools). He was a smart leader who took good care of his people. Part of that was insisting that people have a life. I remember him walking into the office at 5pm and saying work is over. Not because he didn’t want to stay but because he wanted us to be balanced. He also thought that we should get our work done during our work hours, focusing on doing it better. There was this kind of gentle but direct approach with this. Whenever he had the opportunity for any office member to go to a concert or anything cultural he’d give it to us. He wanted us to enjoy living in a multicultural city and celebrate it, celebrating each other’s cultures. While I was there, he sent me to Mexico for a trip and it was just amazing just to see it. It was just a really different time and I think that he just took the time to be a great leader. So I learned from him now still, even though I don’t even interact with him because I look back, and in a way I think of my father. I look back at lessons I learned from my father and they mean something different as you get older and go through your life and your career.

Additionally my colleagues – I’m so impressed and love working with them and at all my jobs there have always been a few that made me think differently about things, see that I should be less rigid and that there was multiple ways to get things done. I really do try to pay attention and now that I’m a leader I try to give my team and my colleagues a space to be successful and to fit in. I think there’s such lessons in both of those aspects.

Lastly, I would say, if you work in education, like us, I think one of the greatest ways to learn is spending time with students and teachers and that’s where I really kind of get it.  You can have the greatest plans and brands whatever it is, and if it’s not working it’s not working. Teachers and students will tell you why, very directly and they will be right. So I found that if you really want to understand if you are a success, it’s not to look at your colleagues, it’s actually going to that classroom and see how it’s going. And if it’s not working there it’s not working period. What I miss most about being in the district was the possibility of going into schools quite often, even with the College Board I traveled quite a bit. With Covid it’s a little bit more difficult because they want to limit the amount of people in the building and rightfully so. However, I’m really looking forward to getting back and just being in that atmosphere but also just paying attention to see if the programs that I am overseeing now and the products are working or not. 

Who are your biggest influences?

It’s going to be my parents, I’ve been so lucky to have such wonderful parents, my mother who is still alive and I see her all the time. They just made me who I am at such a foundational level. My wife, for sure, I just think she is much smarter than I am and is a better person, the best person I have ever met and she just does things with such grace and genuineness that I learn from watching her every day.

There was a professor in Uni, Dr. Richard Cooler, he was my art history professor that just took me under his wing. Seeing that I was interested and could do more, he gave me research projects at a very young age and then hired me as his research assistant and then he had me write a thesis as an undergraduate. Pushing me in ways that I wanted and he could see that. He was the person that told me to pick a major language and learn it and told me that Chinese is probably what I should learn. A lot more opportunities lie in China and literature, so I’m really glad that for that moment he said “I believe in you, you can do this.” It just changed the whole path of my life. XiaoXiao Chuan my Chinese teacher, he was the one who told me to move to China and introduced me to his university and got me my first job and led me to move there.

Richard M. Daley just adore the man, he scared me in a way that made me more productive, positive and real. He taught me things that he probably didn’t even know. When his wife would walk into the room his whole world would stop and it was all about her. We could be with the president of China and he would just stop and greet her. I learned something just from watching, that you can be at a high level position with all eyes on you but you can still be yourself at all times and that was a big takeaway for me.

At the College Board there was a wonderful man named Jim Montoya who immediately took me under his wing, just a fantastic educator. He’s been in admissions his whole life, he just had a really interesting path himself. He lived in Idaho. Latino, got himself into Stanford and worked really hard but always had time for everybody. I would call him when I was stressed out or nervous and we would talk for like half an hour, and then he’d say he should probably get back to bed and he’d be like in France and it’d be 3 am but he’d take the call. I appreciate him and still consider him a great friend.

The last thing I will say is China, this is a really broad one but, I’ve been to China 98 times. I’ve learned there for years. It’s just such a big part of me, it challenged me in ways I never knew but I also think the experience of being a foreigner, being an outsider being a minority is something that most white Americans don’t ever have a chance to have, or normally even welcome. It has influenced so much in my life and being able to be a little empathetic and patient and understand the challenges of moving. I have worked with guest teachers coming from China for two decades but just having that perspective really really helped. I’m so grateful to all these people and places and also hope I can do this for just one person alone and that would be such a joy.

Being successful must include staying on top of our productivity but these can mean so many different things for so many different people. How would you describe your productivity system?

That’s a good question, it’s pretty basic, I pray to the church of lists. I don’t always make good or smart lists. I would email a list of things I want to remember the next day, or jot it down, sometimes I even wake up in the middle of the night and write something down. I do think that I get a little scatterbrained without things written down and I feel successful when I can cross things off and I can prioritize. That’s very basic but it works for me. I think the other thing that I really and firmly believe is that I include stakeholders in every step of the way. If I’m doing things that will impact other people or making decisions that will impact others I very much like to include said people. I think that otherwise you’re guessing and that’s arrogant and I don’t want to be arrogant.

Also including stakeholders in decision making will lead them to become invested as well and they will contribute more. It could be anything from the community or staffing decisions. I have my team members interview other people because I want it to be a team. I want people to care about each other and feel comfortable to say no.

Giving yourself time to step away a little bit is also something very important. I play basketball. It’s a hoop I “put in for the kids” which I use every day. I find that since my schedule is strange since my office is in Hong Kong, I do a lot of night meetings, etc. I feel that it’s good for me otherwise I just sit in front of the computer every day. It’s also a space where I get a lot of clarity, understanding what I need to get done for the day and it’s really been great from me. 

Contrary to that, I think in general I give myself space to not be working, and I think that’s really important. Don’t alway be working, because that means you won’t get your best work done. Save your energy, be creative, have fun and be present with your other activities that you do and that will give you a great foundation and the energy for you to do your job well.

Finally, I struggle with this, but insist on it, we have to build in time for failure. If we’re building new processes or products or programs we need to understand that in that process we will fail along the way, we need to put time in that to not be behind but at the same time not be defeated. Nothing works perfectly the first time out, so knowing that will be the case can help us learn from those experiences and put time for that. Starting earlier and having longer process timelines and making sure that your team understands why. Clearly expressing that failure is not a deficit but it’s part of the path. If we all do that together we’re all gonna learn from the mistake and not do it again in the future. Those are the only things I have, I wish I had something more interesting but it’s worked for me so far. 

Thanks for answering and for this great conversation! I love asking that question because everybody has their productivity system and people like me can see people they admire and understand that’s how they do it. Is there anything you’d like to add for the listeners of the show?

I would, I just want to say I could do a few shout outs, let’s shout out to the language learners. You are magnificent and you are doing something really special that’s going to make a huge difference to you, your family, your community, and to the world. The teachers too! The teachers who are just the warriors out there. It’s really worth doing and there will be a moment where it will click and you will be a person of the world, you can go places and be whoever you want to be. The other thing is if you have the opportunity please travel, get out there, make yourself uncomfortable, eat the food, meet people, get on the street and you’re going to find that the world is really quite similar and people are excited to meet you and you’re excited to meet them.

Lastly, I’d just tell students that it’s a really hard time right now and you are going to be the most resilient and interesting generation that we have ever seen and I could not be more excited for your future. You’re going to get through this and we are too and you’re going to have skills that no one has had before because of it and you are going to be such a magnificent group of people. You already are but you are going to be more magnificent than we’ve ever seen before. Yes, today is hard, it’s been rough times and weird, but you got this and the future is going to be so special for all of you. I could not be more thrilled and I cheer you all on.

We hope you enjoyed this transcribed version of the Wisdom & Productivity podcast! If you’d like to listen to the audio in its entirety, you can find the full version here. Happy listening!

[Editor’s note: This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity]

More about Robert Davis

Robert Davis has greatly impacted the Chinese learning industry in the United States. He established the Chinese World Language Program in Chicago Public Schools in 1999. This grew to become the largest district-level Chinese program in the USA. He then served as Executive Director of the Chinese Language and Culture Initiative at the College Board for a decade. He is a values driven leader who helps organizations to fulfill their mission. Joining Mandarin Matrix in April 2021, he has been working with our team to constantly help and improve our products for the benefit of all our students learning Mandarin as a foreign language.

The post MMX CEO Robert Davis Guests on the ‘Wisdom & Productivity’ Podcast appeared first on Mandarin Matrix.

Aisling Quinn has worked with Mandarin Matrix from genesis to adolescence and is the Chief Operating Officer. As a mother with three children learning Mandarin, she focuses the development lens, demanding that traditional teaching methods be more interactive and compelling. Aisling has a BA in Consumer Science and she brings a scientific approach to both the product and human capital employed on three continents.

Hi Aisling, can you tell us a bit about Mandarin Matrix and this event?

We are delighted to be able to participate in this outstanding event hosted by the IOE CI (Institute of Education Confucius Institute). The CI’s contribution to the Mandarin teaching industry has been overwhelmingly positive, their work has had a real impact all across England for Mandarin learning students. We wanted to use this opportunity to showcase Mandarin Matrix materials in the exhibition. I am glad to be able to be present at this exhibition in order to showcase our materials and take part in this event!

What kind of resources does Mandarin Matrix provide?

I’m glad you asked that! Mandarin Matrix offers an Online Classroom that has a curriculum that is very easy to access. I’ve always valued interactive material and think that it is an important part of motivating students to learn. The Online Classroom option we provide is a great way to learn Chinese in a manageable way. It is so interactive and engaging and helps keep students’ attention. The new speech recognition and writing function have been a real boost and give students immediate feedback so they self correct these areas to improve their Chinese learning journey.

Learn more about how Mandarin Matrix’s Online Classroom can help your child here

This year’s conference theme is “Teaching Resilience,” how important is this theme for you at Mandarin Matrix?

The theme of “Teaching Resilience” is especially important to us here at Mandarin Matrix. Trying to ease the burden of teachers worldwide through providing teaching materials is one of our biggest goals. Helping teachers be able to spend less time preparing class activities in order to maximise time spent on more important tasks. Teachers can customise learning opportunities for students in order to maximise effectiveness, which I feel is a great way to personalise curriculum to fit students’ needs and skillset!

What resources will Mandarin Matrix be showcasing during the event?

We recently added a brand-new audio analysis feature, which provides our students with an interactive environment to better help them on their learning journey. This new audio analysis feature immediately analyses and gives feedback on the pronunciation of students. We think that this new feature is extremely helpful and can give students insight into which areas of their pronunciation need to be fine-tuned.

Another feature that we will be showcasing is the enhanced character writing feature. This also happens to be a new feature to our Online Classroom that will help students improve their writing of Chinese characters. Many students find learning a new form of writing difficult, this new program will give visual guidance and character stroke order information to students. Enabling them to improve both of these skills!

The 18th Annual Chinese Teaching Conference will take place on Saturday 11th September 2021 at the UCL Institute of Education, University College London.

Please click here to see the 2021 Conference Programme

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