You may have heard some disheartening stories about secondary school Chinese being considerably more difficult than primary school Chinese. However, your fears may alter after reading this.
Students should understand that succeeding in secondary school Chinese requires a distinct skill level. The exam paper criteria are also rather different. Reading materials and Chinese lessons are commonly accessible in Singapore for anyone confident they require assistance with this subject.
Lesson and Curriculum
- There will be no spelling tests.
When you enter secondary school, you will no longer require spelling examinations. However, some instructors may deliberately set spelling exams to assist students in improving their vocabulary. Therefore, the examinations are no longer needed, as they were in primary schools.
Because secondary students are expected to comprehend common Chinese phrases and vocabulary, they should be able to use a dictionary for essays; hence, spelling examinations are unnecessary.
- Increased Practice with Fewer Textbooks
Unlike elementary tests, which employ terminology drawn from Zuo Ye and textbook sections, most secondary school tutors plan their lectures independently of textbooks. However, no terms from textbooks are used in secondary school exams. For Chinese examinations, students are urged not to depend solely on textbooks.
Exam Format
- Longer MCQ questions
Those short MCQ questions that tested your vocabulary and Hanyu Pinyin are no longer available. However, MCQ questions are included on secondary school test papers. They will emerge following understanding as well as in extended sentence paragraphs. Because the options are similar, these MCQ questions are substantially more difficult.
- Follow-up open-ended comprehension questions
The Comprehension MCQ section remains. However, an Open-ended comprehension portion joins it. This contains lengthy questions and paragraphs. Because there are fewer sections, the marks on the understanding test for secondary school Chinese have increased significantly.
There is also a wider variety of comprehension questions. The majority of them concentrate on inference abilities and detailed reading. In vocabulary questions, you will be asked to describe the meaning of some terms in your own words. This section is also new to secondary school Chinese tuition.
- There is no Hanyu Pinyin.
Hanyu pinyin is used on elementary school exam papers. This covers all papers for primary 6. In secondary school papers, this is not covered. This is fantastic news for pupils who struggle with Hanyu Pinyin.
Primary school students can still complete their examinations, though passing the paper in high school will be difficult. As a result, effective Chinese instructors frequently concentrate on improving students’ comprehension abilities. Fortunately, students with a strong foundation in Chinese frequently perform better in the understanding exam.
Understanding Capabilities
The second exam paper will mainly assess a student’s ability to grasp the passage. Then they respond to the inquiry. Through translation or explanation, a student’s understanding may increase.
Chinese teachers are helpful in this aspect since they will explain new terms. They also clarify complicated terms to assist students in comprehending the book. However, a basic grasp of the Chinese language is required. This will assist you in comprehending a tutor’s explanation. Furthermore, as your vocabulary grows, so will your vocabulary. Therefore, your comprehension of sections and answering the questions will improve considerably.
There are no shortcuts to learning Chinese. As a result, most Chinese school teachers will spend more time explaining complicated terms in close passages.
The difficulties arise when kids do not have adequate learning time in school. This is done to familiarise children with new phrases and terminology. As a result, being more familiar with new Chinese terms will benefit students since it increases their odds of encountering the word on their test. Using a dictionary for reference will then be particularly beneficial.