Frequently Asked Questions - MBK | Learn Hindi and Earn Credit for College Admissions

When is the next information day?

Scheduled for a virtual Meeting at 4:00 PM on Saturday, Feb 4th 2023. Send an email to [email protected] for the link/invitation.

Do you offer any classes during Summer?

We are not offering any accelerated Hindi program in Summer this year, but working with students individually through virtual meets. Send in your request to [email protected].

How do I register?

Students planning to join any program must submit an online application/registration form at least 2 weeks before the start of the program, to avoid late fees. Classes are scheduled to start in the week of August 14th, and enrollment is due by July 31st. Submit an application here.

How can parents be sure about the approval of credits?

MBK is WASC accredited for Supplementary Education Program.

We have approval for transfer of grades from FUSD , Palo Alto Unified, Saratoga, FUHSD (Cupertino) , Milpitas, MVLA, Lammersville USD (Mountain House/Tracy), IUSD (Irvine), SRCS (Santa Rosa City Schools), SRVUSD, Pleasanton Unified, and Stratford School.

An email dated March 28th, 2022 at 1:10PM from Asiya Subedar from the office of Secondary Education in Fremont Unified School District confirmed that these courses will meet A-G requirements.

“I’ve spoken with Steve and he stated that students taking board approved FLS will meet the A-G requirements. “

Asiya Subedar (Secondary Education) Fremont Unified School District T. 510.657.2350 Ext. 12618 F. 510-659-2578 Email: [email protected]

Send in your request if you would like us to initiate an approval process with your school or school district. UCOP (University of California Office of the President) states a path for schools and districts to approve these courses for A-G credits.

Here is the information shared by Kathrine Leslie of UCOP.

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You may refer them to UC’s principal certification policy, of which they may already be aware. As a reminder, principal certification permits the school principal, or another appropriate individual at the school, to opt to agree to certify courses that are comparable to other college prep courses offered at their schools without placing them on their A-G lists. These courses may then be listed on a transcript without being listed on an A-G list, and may be used by students to fulfill A-G requirements. The full policy is described on page 15 of The Quick Reference Guide to UC Admissions. Please know that this policy does not obligate schools to do this but rather gives them the option to.

Thank you,

Katie Leslie

Senior Articulation & Policy Analyst, A-G and Transfer Policy Analysis & Coordination

Educational Innovations and Services | Graduate, Undergraduate and Equity Affairs

University of California Office of the President

510-587-6195 | [email protected]

View official correspondence with UCOP here.

Where will the classes be held?

MBK has now expanded its program to meet students virtually through Google Meet or Zoom to accommodate students from different regions. In-person/On-Site Classes are held at MBK office on Christy Street in Fremont on scheduled day and time for each group. See schedule.

Students will meet for 150 hours during the academic school year for the full year program, and 75 hours for the half year program.

My child has been learning Hindi at home or with another organization. Does he or she have to start with High School Hindi I?

Curriculum for High School Hindi is in line with other World/Foreign Languages taught in High Schools in California. In general, students are able to learn a lot faster and more aggressively as they mature. Some studies indicate that 2-3 years of High School level program is equivalent to 1 year of college level course, and 3-4 years of elementary level language study is equal to 1 year of High School program. We have put testing procedure in place to determine student’s equivalency to High School Hindi Program.

Testing is scheduled in July. Students must submit their request for testing at least 2 weeks prior to testing date along with testing fee. Late fee of $25 will be charged for late registrations. Placement Tests for this year are scheduled from 10:00 am to 12 noon, on Saturday, July 15th 2023.

Students will be tested in Reading Comprehension, Listening Comprehension (audio and/or Video), presentation skills on a topic at their level, and writing skills with appropriate vocabulary and grammar for the given level.

Sample Tests are available in the ‘Student Corner’. Only students in High School or entering High School are eligible to take the Placement Test.

If my child takes a placement test and he/she knows enough Hindi (clears Hindi 2) to directly go into Hindi 3, will he/she get school credit for the 2 years of Hindi?

Credits are reported only for the classes taken with MBK. Placement test is given to identify what level is adequate for the student.

In this example, if the student clears level 2 placement test and studies Hindi 3 with MBK, the grades earned during Hindi 3 will be reported to the school.

This will give them 10 credits for the year, but completing Hindi 3 is equivalent to completing 3 years of language study. In other words when colleges and universities see Hindi 3 or Spanish 3, it indicates completion of 3 years of language study as students could only enter level 3 of language study only if they had enough language proficiency in required areas of receptive and productive skills.

Do the teachers need to be credentialed for Hindi?

MBK teachers are not required to be credentialed teachers. All of our staff members are highly qualified and two are credentialed teachers for Hindi. All teachers are required to meet MBK standards and go throughour MBK Training program. Visit our ‘Team’ page more details on each team member.

How can the teachers be credentialed for Hindi?

CSU East Bay is now offering a Teacher Credential Program for Hindi teachers. Qualified candidates need to show subject proficiency by taking the CSET exam (California Subject Examination for Teachers). CSET Hindi Part I is offered by NES (National Evaluation Series).

See details at http://www.ctcexams.nesinc.com/test_info_CSET_LOTE.asp?t=304

CSET Hindi Part II is offered by GRID (Global Research on Indian Diaspora). Write to [email protected] for scheduled test dates and other details

Why wouldn’t the district offer a class in Hindi as opposed to letting a private institution offer it?

Now that we have qualified (credentialed) teachers, there is no excuse for school districts for not offering Hindi as part of the school program like other world languages. Students and parents need to push for this by going to school administrators and school board members.

We do hope to see Hindi offered in the public school system soon.

Do you have approved books and curriculum?

We did not have to get the books approved, only the curriculum.

MBK staff members wrote the curriculum outline for four year program with help from Dr. Duarte Silva, Executive director of California Language Teacher Association. Curriculum was also reviewed and approved by Mrs. Usha Jain, professor of Hindi at UC Berkeley, and by Mrs. Gyanam Mahajan, professor of Hindi/Urdu at UCLA.

Currently we are using:

Beginner Hindi by Joshua Pien & Fauzia Farooqui published by Georgetown University Press (Chapter 1-21) for Hindi 1.

Beginner Hindi by Joshua Pien & Fauzia Farooqui published by Georgetown University Press (Chapter 22-42) for Hindi 2.

Selected chapters from Intermediate Hindi Reader by Usha Jain for Hindi 3.

Curriculum for Hindi 4 program is project based. Students work on social and socio-economic issues in this country and the Hindi speaking world to bring better awareness in their own community by learning through online resources in the target language. Projects involve creating a video in the target language or publishing an article or getting involved in a real-life project related to these issues.

We also use other material published by Tulika Publishers of India, Katha Publishers, Pratham Books and many other available resources.

Why do I have to pay for this course?

MBK Language Center is a non-profit organization. There is no State or Federal funding available for these classes right now, and the organization is incurring expenses for teacher salary, facility rental, insurance, marketing, planning, hiring, teacher training, and much much more. Fees collected are used to cover these expenses.

What are the Fees, Discounts, Late Fees and Cancellation Costs?

Fees for each category are listed under ‘Academics’ and in the application form.

Discounts – With growing enrollment in these programs we are able to offer discounts on these yearly programs based on profit/loss from previous year.

Returning students have an opportunity to get the best discount through end of February.

Enrollment is opened for all students with discounts available through end of April.

Note – Application and fees must be submitted before offer expires. No exceptions.

Late Fee – Students enrolling after July 31st will incur late fee of $200.

Cancellations – Cancellation requests must be submitted in writing.

Fees are non-refundable for cancellation requests received after start of classes. If for some reason you need to opt out of this program before the start of the program, you must inform at least 10 days before the first class meeting to get refund.

Refunds will be issued for 80% of the net fees received. Payments received through Paypal generally cost us 3%.

What will I do if this program stops after one semester or one year?

We have been running the high school program since 2007.

The community response has been very positive. It took a lot of time, effort and paperwork to get to this stage, and we expect to make it a success for everyone. Once a batch of students starts this program with MBK, we will take the batch through completion of at least 3 year program.

What are the qualifications of MBK teachers?

Teachers are carefully selected for this program, and are required to meet the state and district standards for teaching as a substitute. Some staff members have completed the teacher credential program in Hindi and even have PhD in Hindi.

All staff members continue to attend seminars and workshops offered by STARTALK program and ACTFL. All MBK Teachers are also required to attend a summer workshop to share their thoughts and ideas for effective and well planned lessons.

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