In L.A., his own wall of China
Zhao yan feng finally lost his cool minutes before the bell sounded, signaling the end of fourth period.
For nearly two hours, his classroom had teetered on the edge of anarchy. Students chatted on their cellphones. They put their feet on their desks. Some had their heads down, sleeping. A clique of girls loudly debated where best to shop for jeans.
"I need your cooperation," Zhao pleaded in a clumsy Chinese accent. "If you don't want to learn this language or be in my class, just don't interfere with others learning. I'm just a guest teacher."
It had been three weeks since Zhao (pronounced Jow), 27, left his hometown in northern China to join a program that sent dozens of Chinese teachers to school districts across the United States.
His two-year assignment: teach Mandarin at Dorsey High in South Los Angeles, where test scores are well below the state and national averages, two-thirds of the students live near the poverty line and most have had scant exposure to Chinese culture.
"Why do I do this?" he said to the students, who were silent for the first time. "Because I want to be your friend."
Two girls in the back of the classroom giggled at the remark. Others stared at their desks. The bell rang, and the teenagers charged out of the room -- except for a boy who was still asleep. Zhao tapped him on the shoulder and told him to leave.
It was the end to another humiliating day.
"Two years," Zhao said. "Sometimes I don't know how I'll do it."
Before he left China for Los Angeles, Zhao, a university instructor, had been optimistic. A partnership between the College Board in the U.S. and Hanban, China's language council, had selected him and other teachers to bring Mandarin to American students.
Imparting a language to others, he thought, was a profound gift.
"I want my parents to know their son isn't a common person living a common life," he said a few weeks before starting at Dorsey. "I think it's meaningful to teach these kids Mandarin, to give them something you have."
Zhao had been told by other Chinese teachers that American high schools could be tough. They said the neighborhood around Dorsey was dangerous and that he should always carry $30 in cash. If he was ever mugged, they said, the money could save his life.
When he arrived, he saw police stationed in squad cars outside the campus. He assumed there had been an incident. He soon learned the police are there all the time.
