The "O" Level results are out and besides the Sec 4 of 2009.The Sec 3 of 2010 also have gotten their "O" Level Chinese results back.Our students have done exceptionally well in the exams and were mentioned earlier in previous posts at June.
Firstly, Jeremy Ma,from Anglican High Higher Chinese student,this year Sec 4 have gotten an A2 for chinese,outpassing the expectations of many.He has also achieved a Distinction in the Oral.He joined 8 tuition lessons during the June Holidays where he learned primarily the skills of Oral Exam.As he is busy of with CCA and school work,he is unable to continue with the CCA and he might get A1.
Shawn Chiang from NUS High School of Mathematics and Sciences(NUSHS) last year Sec 4,scored C5 for the "O" Level Chinese.A big improvement from his expected results.
From a person who normally fail his paper with D7 or E8 and with little confidence of the language, to someone who is more confident now and even able to relate a news incident in fluent mandarin to the oral examiner.He joined the tuition when he was Sec 2 and carried on for 2 and a half years once per week till Sec 4.He came from an english speaking background thus he lacks the foundation of the language which needs time for him to build.Before the tuition when he was asked to write newspaper article reviews,he had to look up the dictionary for practically most of the words but now he is able to communicate his thoughts.
I know that using a traditional and inflexible way of teaching him Chinese he will be bored and thus will not put in the effort.I try to use interactive tools,the internet,news websites like omy.com to give him contact with hot news topics that might come out in exam.He also learnt how to use the computer to type out his compo,allowing the process to be faster so as to overcome the fear of writing long essays. (400-500 words)They turn out to be more effective than the old way of teaching textbook.We also give him pen-and-paper assignments like top school paper to prepare him properly for the "O" Level.
For example there was once his school was sent to Community Involvement Programme(CIP) work,to send rations to the elderly living in the one-room flat.He was later asked to write a composition on that.Not sharp in his language he is unable to express his thoughts.During tuition both of us looked up the websites to view videos and pictures to aid him in expressing his thoughts to me so that i can help him.It was a success and the teacher commended him on his work.
Su Jintian last year Sec 4 from CHIIJ Katong Convent Sec has gotten B3 for Chinese.IN 2007,she joined my tuition when she was in Sec 2.At that time she was getting around 50 plus in her exams.Her mom expected more and found me by recommendation.
Her school does give a lot of assignments like book reviews,newspaper article reviews,textbook practices.Especially book reviews as the book that the school assigned to Jintian was too difficult for her to understand.She had to consult me everyday in one week of the holidays.Especially during the school holidays she will have a heavy load comprising of internet work which she will always bring to tuition to ask me. She is a fast learner.She has a lot of activities and CCAs resulting in her not being able to do my tuition work.IF not with her intelligence she will be able to get A1 easily for Chinese.When she reach a Sec 4, she stopped tuition allowing more time with her other subjects.If she had continue i will guarantee she will have a higher chance of getting A1.She is a bit of a pity.She scored 8 points,preparing to enter Temasek JC.
16.1.10
13.1.10
Sec 1 Chinese Difficult?
Are you finding hard to adapt to rapid changes in Chinese?The school year has started for many and there are a lot of things you need to adapt to.Especially from primary school to secondary school,you are in a total new environment and the increased number of subjects is shocking.My son who is in sec1 this year fortunately is able to cope well with his studies.
For students going towards secondary school chinese what you can find the most different is that the textbooks are much difficult and the style of writing is slightly different.You will also learn applied Chinese like writing formal letters, if you are in higher chinese,formal writing and summary will be routine for you.Of course the word limit will increase.
It's actually quite normal for students to take some time to adapt to the this new "Chinese" environment.But for those with weak foundation in Chinese,it is a challenging feat for them.With little exposure to Chinese at home during the holidays,they might struggle with school work in the term.
For express Chinese students some schools require them to do newspaper articles and compositons are no longer picture based instead on situational.
For Higher Chinese they have the pressure of remaining in higher chinese stream.Most schools wil set a banchmark whereby higher chinese students have to pass in the overall results in order to stay in higher chinese.I have seen many people drop to express chinese at the end of sec1 and 2.Most often is that they cant cope with the high standard.A high standard includes increasing the length of the compo(800-1000 words at least) Lengthy and difficult passages resulting in people not being able to finish the paper.And of course applied Chinese like newspaper articles,book reviews and letter writing.
The method to scoring well in Chinese is totally different with that of primary school.During primary school,as long as you work hard,do those exam papers and assessment books you are able to score well.If your child is in a elite school where academic competition is stiff,Chinese might be the subject that separates the First in level to the tenth in level.Chinese is one subject sometimes even top students cant cope with.It can be your "friend" which will pull you up and your "enemy" that pull you down.Therefore Chinese might be crucial if you want your son to do outstandingly well.
But in secondary school the principle of "language cant be learnt overnight" will start to surface.Therefore we need time to build up the language ability.
Xpress students
I will place emphasis on news.They are the source for questions likely to come out in the "o" level.Newspaper article reviews can come out in compo paper,Oral exam conversation can be on a news topic even in the main paper comprehension passages can be tool to test your knowledge of news.I will also use news portal websites like omy.com and xin.sg to enhance interactive learning following MM Lee's message.
Higher Chinese
I will also do the same for the higher Chinese students on the news segment.TO enhance every individual's writing skill,I would give them more opportunities to practice writing.With frequent practices,the mind will be able to flow with the hand when writing.For during the compo exam,time constraint will push you to " write while you think". I will also pass some high standard reading materials (maybe from China or taiwan) to the students for reading.Sompe examples include《 少年文摘》，<四方八面>和《直通车》。This will bring up the standard of chinese through frequent reading.
For students going towards secondary school chinese what you can find the most different is that the textbooks are much difficult and the style of writing is slightly different.You will also learn applied Chinese like writing formal letters, if you are in higher chinese,formal writing and summary will be routine for you.Of course the word limit will increase.
It's actually quite normal for students to take some time to adapt to the this new "Chinese" environment.But for those with weak foundation in Chinese,it is a challenging feat for them.With little exposure to Chinese at home during the holidays,they might struggle with school work in the term.
For express Chinese students some schools require them to do newspaper articles and compositons are no longer picture based instead on situational.
For Higher Chinese they have the pressure of remaining in higher chinese stream.Most schools wil set a banchmark whereby higher chinese students have to pass in the overall results in order to stay in higher chinese.I have seen many people drop to express chinese at the end of sec1 and 2.Most often is that they cant cope with the high standard.A high standard includes increasing the length of the compo(800-1000 words at least) Lengthy and difficult passages resulting in people not being able to finish the paper.And of course applied Chinese like newspaper articles,book reviews and letter writing.
The method to scoring well in Chinese is totally different with that of primary school.During primary school,as long as you work hard,do those exam papers and assessment books you are able to score well.If your child is in a elite school where academic competition is stiff,Chinese might be the subject that separates the First in level to the tenth in level.Chinese is one subject sometimes even top students cant cope with.It can be your "friend" which will pull you up and your "enemy" that pull you down.Therefore Chinese might be crucial if you want your son to do outstandingly well.
But in secondary school the principle of "language cant be learnt overnight" will start to surface.Therefore we need time to build up the language ability.
Xpress students
I will place emphasis on news.They are the source for questions likely to come out in the "o" level.Newspaper article reviews can come out in compo paper,Oral exam conversation can be on a news topic even in the main paper comprehension passages can be tool to test your knowledge of news.I will also use news portal websites like omy.com and xin.sg to enhance interactive learning following MM Lee's message.
Higher Chinese
I will also do the same for the higher Chinese students on the news segment.TO enhance every individual's writing skill,I would give them more opportunities to practice writing.With frequent practices,the mind will be able to flow with the hand when writing.For during the compo exam,time constraint will push you to " write while you think". I will also pass some high standard reading materials (maybe from China or taiwan) to the students for reading.Sompe examples include《 少年文摘》，<四方八面>和《直通车》。This will bring up the standard of chinese through frequent reading.
10.1.10
RGS P6 Yicheng was asked what did she learn during the sch holiday program.
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