AUGUSTA – As the Olympics hit high gear back home, eight teachers from China, along with one from Spain, spent Monday in Augusta preparing to teach their language and culture to Maine middle and high school students.

The teachers are in Maine as part of a state and nationwide push to increase teaching of world languages to prepare students to communicate in an increasingly small world.

The nine new instructors met with Gov. John Baldacci in his office and later attended a tea at the Blaine House with first lady Karen Baldacci and Education Commissioner Susan A. Gendron.

The new contingent of Chinese teachers brings the number of Maine schools and school systems offering the language to 16, up five from last year. Three of the teachers will replace departing Chinese language teachers.

“The world has become much smaller and much flatter and we are becoming more and more connected to our global neighbors,” said Don Reutershan, world languages specialist for the Education Department. “For Maine students the need for communication and cultural skills in languages other than English is critical.”

Gendron entered into an agreement two years ago with China’s Office of Chinese Language Council International (Hanban) to bring Chinese language teachers to Maine as part of a national program. Of the 136 Chinese teachers coming to the U.S. this fall, eight will be in Maine.

Gendron also negotiated an agreement with the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science for visiting Spanish language teachers, and agreements with France and Taiwan are currently under discussion.

At the Blaine House, Gendron noted that it is increasingly difficult to find teachers of Spanish and French.

The Chinese Guest Teacher Program and the Visiting Teachers from Spain Program are new initiatives for Maine that bring teachers from China and Spain.

“More than 200 million Chinese schoolchildren are studying English and only 50,000 American students are studying Chinese,” Gendron said. “The benefits of studying world languages and cultures are well proven, and it is clear that for our students’ success and our economy’s success in the 21st century, we need more global citizens with global skills.”

In addition to meeting with the commissioner and the governor, the teachers participated in orientation sessions at the Department of Education where they learned about Maine’s educational system and standards.

Eleven public and private schools in Maine already offer Chinese language programs: Bangor High School; John Bapst Memorial High School in Bangor; Piscataquis Community High School in Guilford; Lincoln Academy in Newcastle; Washington Academy in East Machias; Maine School of Science and Mathematics in Limestone; Noble High School in North Berwick; Fryeburg Academy; Westbrook High School; Waynflete School in Portland; and Erskine Academy in South China.

The five new programs are at: Foxcroft Academy in Dover-Foxcroft; Falmouth Middle and High Schools; Mount Ararat High School in Topsham; Mount Blue High School in Farmington; and Yarmouth High School.

Three of the eight newly arrived teachers are filling vacant positions in existing programs; the rest are going to the new programs. The eight are: Zhu Bo, Foxcroft Academy; Deng Yue, John Bapst; Yang Hongli, Piscataquis; Zhang Wenyi, Washington Academy; Cheng Wen, Falmouth; Wu Wei, Mount Ararat; Zhu Kunwei, Mount Blue; He Junping, Yarmouth.

Spanish teacher Lisa Arias Rodriguez will teach at Richmond High School.