DeMatha Mandarin Chinese Teacher Honored by Local Principals Group

Mingming Hao, a member of DeMatha's Foreign Languages Dept., is the only one who teaches Mandarin Chinese. She was honored Friday Oct. 24 at Bishop McNamara High School as DeMatha's Novice Teacher of the Year.

The award, from the High School Principals Association of the Archdiocese of Washington, goes to classroom instructors who are in their fifth year or fewer. Hao (pronounced how) concluded her fifth school year at DeMatha in June. She joined the faculty in 2020 after completing her M.Ed. at George Washington University.

In the latest Stag Symposium podcast, Hao reflects on her journey to DeMatha and her love of Chinese language and culture.

This past summer she led a group of 15 students on a 12-day tour of China. They visited major tourist attractions such as the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, as well as a high school.

"We also had some cultural activities, and with every meal we tried different types of Chinese food," she said on the podcast. "We also went tea-leaf seeking. So, we learned about how to make tea."

Hao is admired by several of her fellow DeMatha language teachers for the way she brings various technologies into the classroom. She thinks this benefits the students' ability to learn a language, particularly one that is character-based rather than letter-based.

"I think incorporating technology is very important because .. [in] learning Chinese you have to show students how to draw those characters," Hao said. "And you have to use visuals to help them connect with the characters and with the actual meaning."

She added that the use of technology helps to keep her students' attention for the duration of class and helps them learn more than just vocabulary.

"By using different platforms or pictures or videos, I can show students that, 'OK we're not only learning a language but also the cultural part.'"

To hear more about Hao, her family in the United States and China, and how she arrived at DeMatha, check out her podcast interview.

Chris McManes is DeMatha Catholic High School's communications manager.