DUKE UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL STEPS DOWN AFTER TELLING CHINESE STUDENTS TO USE ‘ENGLISH 100% OF THE TIME’ IN LEAKED EMAIL
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
DUKE UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL STEPS DOWN AFTER TELLING CHINESE STUDENTS TO USE ‘ENGLISH 100% OF THE TIME’ IN LEAKED EMAIL
BY CHRISTINA ZHAO, Newsweek, 1/27/19
Duke University official steps down after leaked email showed she told Chinese students to "commit to using English 100% of the time."
A Duke University official stepped down over the weekend after a leaked email showed her telling Chinese students to speak “English 100 percent of the time.”
On Friday afternoon, Megan Neely, the director of graduate studies for the Master of Biostatistics program at Duke University, sent an email out to first-year and second-year biostatistics graduate students, urging them to “commit to using English 100% of the time” on campus “or any other professional setting.”
In the email—titled “Something to think about…”—Neely claimed that two unnamed faculty members visited her office and asked to see photos of the biostatistics students. Neely went on to explain that her colleagues wanted to see the images so they could then determine who they heard speaking Chinese “very loudly” on campus in case they ever applied for an internship.
Screenshots of the email were leaked on social media on Saturday. Duke University officials later confirmed the screenshots were accurate to campus newspaper The Chronicle .
“They were disappointed that these students were not taking the opportunity to improve their English and were being so impolite as to have a conversation that not everyone on the floor could understand,” Neely wrote in the email. “To international students, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE keep these unintended consequences in mind when you choose to speak in Chinese in the building.
“I have no idea how hard it has been and still is for you to come to the US and have to lean in a non-native language. As such, I have the upmost respect for what you are doing,” she continued. “That being said, I encourage you to commit to suing English 100% of the time when you are in Hock or any other professional setting.”
One professor from Duke University sent out an email asking Chinese students not to speak Chinese in school building. pic.twitter.com/6xGkIeScJo
— Hua Sirui 华思睿 (@siruihua) January 26, 2019
Neely’s emails sparked outrage after being widely shared on social media, with some accusing her and the unnamed faculty members of racial discrimination.
In an email on Saturday afternoon, seen by the Chronicle , Mary Klotman, dean of the medical school, apologized to students for Neely’s email and announced she will be stepping down from her role as the director of graduate studies for the program. “I have asked the university’s Office of Institutional Equity (OIE) to conduct a thorough review of the Master’s of Biostatistics Program and to recommend ways in which we can improve the learning environment for students from all backgrounds,” Klotman wrote.
“In addition, Dr. Neely has asked to step down as director of graduate studies for the master’s program effective immediately and will be replaced by an interim DGS to be named shortly.
“We will always be committed to ensuring that you are welcomed and included in every aspect of university life,” she added. “Sadly, this matter demonstrates that we must continue to work on overcoming deep-seated concerns about our cultural awareness and understanding.”
There is a video included with this article that I cannot post, so to see the video go to the original article either by clicking the "SEEDED CONTENT" link at the top of the page, or click this link:
Tags
Who is online
88 visitors
I consider this to be a very interesting topic for discussion, not because I am defending Chinese students, but because of the general concept itself of the topic - as to whether one should require such compliance and the consequences of doing so. I don't believe the official was entirely wrong in her intention, but the manner in which she applied it, and the consequences that arise from doing so mostly caused by present "social" requirements are a concern.
The fact that she indicated that such intercommunication was rude, perhaps even the way the request was worded (although it was NOT a demand) was a signal for negative consequences such as the requests to identify the students targeted in order to deny them internships.
I am not coming to her defence, but I wish to indicate a couple of things. In Canada when I was a student there were "French Immersion" schools where only French could be used notwithstanding they were in an English speaking province, Ontario, NOT Quebec. As well, English speaking students seriously considering becoming competent in French were sometimes billeted for summer vacation in the homes of French Canadian families where English was not spoken or even understood - a sort of forced learning environment, except in all such cases it was VOLUNTARY, not actually forced, and the only consequence for English first language persons not taking advantage of such programs was to not being that fluent in French, like me.
I do believe that in order to more easily learn and perfect the use of a foreign language, then some at least regular partial form of immersion is necessary to facilitate the learning of it because as I wrote at the top of the blackboard in my English classes in China: "USE IT OR LOSE IT". But that was not a demand, it did not require exclusivity. Even going further, I commenced a program at my school that there be at least some lunch tables (that sat 8 or 10 students each) to have a foreign English teacher, or English-fluent staff member at the end of each such table, with the requirement that English be spoken as much as possible during lunch, with the fluent staff there to assist if there were questions. However it was EXPECTED that the students might ask for help and receive it in Chinese when it was easier for the asking and the comprehending the answer to be in Chinese.
I think this issue has arisen only because of the extreme PC and exuberant SJWs these days. Granted that the official handled what she tried to accomplish poorly, but I don't believe she was entirely wrong. She did not require that NO Chinese be spoken, but not so others could hear. It was the consequence of what she did, refusal of internships for example, or isolating foreign students socially or otherwise, that indicated the serious possible results, but I believe that is mostly because of the effects of today's extremist environment (and maybe even a little xenophobia).
When English is a persons second language it is not unusual when they speak to another person that is also a speaker of their native language, (two Chinese students) for them to speak in their native tongue. I don't see anything wrong with that. The article states that they were talking in a loud way and other around them couldn't understand them.
That is rather strange, were the non Chinese speaking students trying to converse with the Chinese students.
I think that the professor got a bit carried away, but I do not see any reason to demote her.
I've been told ''speak English this is America''...LOLOL you can imagine what my response to them is...
It's dumb.
Is Spanish not allowed?
Hebrew?
A few seconds' consideration of the side-effects of banning Chinese in email would have been enough to prevent it from ever happening. I have to assume that Ms Neely just didn't think...