Each parent is required to work a certain number of hours during the semester. To ensure that the system is fair, parents are asked to make a cash deposit at the beginning of the semester to guarantee their services. The number of volunteer service hours provided by each parent is recorded. Those who fail to work their required hours do not get their deposit refunded. This system has been widely adopted by Chinese language schools in southern California and has been credited with enhancing parental understanding of school activities, promoting team spirit among parents, effectively tapping parents' professional expertise to enrich school curricula, and alleviating an increasingly heavy burden on the administrative and teaching staff.
Some schools also recruit high school and university students as volunteers.
In recognition, these students are awarded community service certificates. Differences in age, family background, and competence in Mandarin make student placement difficult. To address the needs of all students, classes held in Chinese language schools are organized in the following categories. Mandarin Chinese Only Classes. In small schools, students of different ages and varying levels of Mandarin are grouped in one class because of the limited number of teachers.