what do you think of this matter?

Currently, in many university where Hmong language are taught, the only
offered courses are composed of 3 levels

Hmong beginning level for native speakers and/or foreign learners
Hmong intermediate level
Hmong advanced level

Sometimes, they add courses such as "teaching Hmong content" (Fresno state)
or "topics in Hmong language" like the one I have taught 4 semesters at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison, but there is no study of literature, of
ritual literature, of cultural topic, of Hmong linguistics.

Are these courses enough to pretend to proficiency on behalf of students?

In designing a curriculum for single subject for teacher credentialing, how
many courses should a student take to be considered as a proficient,
skillful in the studied language?
Should one add the cultural studies, linguistics or literal analysis?

As a Hmong teacher a few years in the US, I have observed surprised matters
from the current Hmong teaching method-landscape:

0. Students keep repeating the same class in order to learn again and again
because they feel they did not learn anything valuable and useful to be real
proficient and literate ...
1. Teachers teach...

Doc,

You have made some very enlightening points. Please initiate and there
shall be followers. Please, however, rememer that Hmong language in
every forms, like a human being, had just conceded. We are not even at
the embryo stage. The only sad thing is that we Hmong now know other
developed languages prior to knowing our own and for that our patience
is too thin.

But if we're patience and continuously going at the rate that we are
going I am sure that some of the things you've listed will be
considered, soon; not achieved nor attained, but considered...just look
at of how much and how far the English language had come and still
evolving/changing every day....

Zoo li lo lus Hmoob hais tias sawv ntawm ntug cub tuaj xwb thiab kawm
ntawv loj leeb xwb no....peb Hmoob li lus, li ntaub, li ntawv ces tseem
qus, qus kawg li. Tiam sis yog peb ib ob leeg pom ib yam lawm ces txoj
kev yeej yuav muaj hnub tho tau coj los taug xwb....

Thov pab txhawb thiab nej cov ua twb pib mus taug txoj kev ntawv....peb
cov raws qab thiaj li xuas kev tau lawv nej qab nawb....yuav caum tsis
cuag lawm tiam sis kom pom qab, thiab....

To answer your following opinion,

"This means that theorized assertions such as "all Hmong teachers wrote
their own textbook
and teach them at their class" [sic] should be part of the debate, and not
presented as pseudo-solutions to the myriad of complex
problems students and teachers face in the classroom."

Books are very important to any new courses and improvement. It is a real
issue: no good book = no academic recognition of the field, no proof of
potential growth.
Any course that people need to develop should already have available
materials such as real good textbooks . ...

One of the jobs of the language teacher is to identify textbooks, new books,
to compare the methods, to look at the price, the background of the writers,
the long-term use of the book, to coordinate the levels in the curriculum.

I have to confess that I am always surprised to see some Hmong teachers at
the college, university or schools still teach Father Bertrais' Green
Ab

Kao-Ly Yang,

That's why we need all the Moob/Hmoob professionals to perform as
educators, leaders, and managers. If the Moob/Hmoob professionals can
provide critique of ideas, performance, assist an individual ro groups
to make meaning of experience, correct mistake or errors, seek
understanding of facts and theories, collaborate with others, and
etc....then we'll accomplish our goals in one day...

nts

30Xyoo wrote:

Most of these so called Hmong language teachers can't even speak, read,
or write Mong Leng or even recognize (in their biased ways) that Mong
Leng exists. Whether teaching in high school or college, they teach
White Hmong only even when a third or half of the students are Mong
Leng. If one can't cover these two main dilacts in their teaching, one
is not qualified to be the teacher, let alone teaching what's being
discussed here. tomx

Kao-Ly Yang wrote:

Why are Mong / Hmong teachers teaching Mong / Hmong in the first
place..Quick cash... career....or passion?

When you go after quick cash and career, you surely do anything you
know how or write your own text to get the job done because there isn't
any out there for them to use or may be is not good enough to your
taste or it was not academically written.

Anyway, it would help to write, whatever subject it is, that is useable
by the general public rather than our individual interest. Until Mong
/ Hmong create our own texts, teach our own kids, and take the Mong /
Hmong life to a meaningful life, Mong / Hmong classes in the American
college and university are just quick cash.

Doc,

Some of your colleagues and us few have discussed this issue way before
you came to teach at the University. I told them that some of Doc and
so called professional who is willing to teach Hmong language cannot
even comprehend his/her own language well. How could the students learn
from them, but since it is a funding program with $$$$, people just
feel that it is necessary to do so for the $$$$? And, there was/ is no
real strategy plan behind is truly Hmong language when we are teaching
in the university or college level.

And, as for the right reason, whoever taught the course would just
invent on his/her own way of thinking and feelings to teach to the
students, as the way he/she knows or see it. I told them that it is...

B2BM

Bravo! Two thumbs up. You surely nailed a self-proclaimed scholar on
the head.

cm

Born2beHmong wrote:

See answers below...

Kao-Ly Yang wrote:

The problem is these few volews and consonants are never added unless
they are taught together. How hard can it be to incorporate the two
dialects together? Very easy if the teacher knows the two dialects.
For instance, when you introduce the consonant "d" for White Hmong, you
could just easily just tell the students at the same time that in Mong
Leng, it is "dl." Other consonants could be explained the same way.

tomx,

i think your statements are a bit extreme and emotional. the hmong
proper leadership circle has been dominated by hmong speaking the dawb
dialect, and as such, that is the dialect to which the west
conveniently supports via funding for academics or interpretations.

at some universities, catonese is ONLY taught.
at some universities, mandarin is ONLY taught.
at some universities, both dialects are taught.

i do not know of any universities where in ONE SINGLE COURSE, BOTH
mandarin and catonese are taught. quite ridiculous if you ask me. at my
university, mandarin is a 6 credit semester course.

it's a beautiful thing that Hmong people have multiple dialects. which
dialect is taught should be made clear, and it should also be made
clear that multiple dialects exists. if Hmong dawb was indeed the
proscribed curricula, i do not see a reason why the teacher has to
demonstrate any proficiency in anything else other than what they were
hired to do.

tomx@netzero.net wrote: