Chinese Information Session

Sunday, 30 October
4pm to 6pm
Timeline for today’s session
1600: Start of meeting + Buffer time

1605: Overview of session + Ground rules

1610: Introduction of meeting host, Clarence

1620: Sharing by Aik Seng

1625: Review of Poll #1 + Interaction

1635: Review of Poll #2

1640: Overview of Chinese paper in GCE ‘O’ Level

Timeline for today’s session (cont’d)
1650: Tackling Essay Writing

1655: Tackling Comprehension

1700: Tackling Listening Comprehension

1705: Tackling Oral Exam

1710: Break

1715: Improving comprehension ability

1720: Improving quality of essays

Timeline for today’s session (cont’d)
1725: Learning / Studying for Chinese in general

1730: Exposure to Chinese on a daily basis

1735: Q&A + Sharing of meeting recording

1745: End of meeting

Ground rules

● If you would like to raise question(s) before the Q&A segment, you
may do so via the chat function (as shown below)
Ground rules (cont’d)

● Ensure that your microphone is kept muted (except during Q&A) to

avoid disturbing other meeting participants
● Do turn on your camera if possible, so that it doesn’t look like I’m
talking to a blank wall :)
● Most importantly, participate actively during the interaction segment
and Q&A, so that you can benefit from this session!
Background information about myself

● Strong language proficiency in both English and Mandarin

● Come from an English-speaking family
● Took Higher Chinese (HCL) and Pure Chinese Lit in 2019 O Level
● Took H2 Chinese Language & Literature (CLL) and H2 Translation
(Chinese) in 2021 A Level
● Currently serving full-time National Service
● Will be studying Chinese Language & Literature in Fudan University,
China (复旦大学) from 2024 onwards
Prior experience teaching Chinese

● Tutored S3 and S4 HCL students from January to March 2022

● Tutored a J2 CLL student during the same period
● MOE Teaching Internship Programme (MOE-TIP) in early 2022,
where I taught S2 and S3 EXP Chinese students
Why teach Chinese?

● Dedicated teachers who have helped me to develop my love for the

subject and subsequently, the language
● Deep interest in the language and its culture
● Hobbies are closely related to the study of Chinese (watching
C-drama and reading Chinese novels)
● Hope to inculcate the love of Chinese in future generations of
students
Sharing by Aik Seng
Let’s review the two polls on Slido…
Overview of Chinese paper in GCE ‘O’ Level
华文（总分：200分） 高级华文（总分：200分）

● 试卷一：写作（60分） ● 试卷一：写作（80分）
● 试卷二：语文应用与阅读理解（70分） ● 试卷二：语文应用与阅读理解（80分）
● 试卷三：口试与听力理解（70分） ● 试卷三：口试（40分）
Tips to tackle Essay Writing

● Read the question thoroughly before attempting the essay

● Spend about 15 minutes planning your essay
● Break down the question by identifying key words and general
direction of the essay
● Strongly encouraged to come up with an essay plan (大纲) so that you
are clear of what to write in your essay
● Proofread your essay after completing every paragraph
● Leave 5 minutes at the end for rectifying grammar / language errors
Tips to tackle Comprehension

● Before reading the passage, take some time to read the questions so
that you keep the question requirements in mind while reading the
passage later on
● Strongly encouraged to identify the gist of each paragraph in the
passage and make annotations in the margins
● Answer each question straight to the point
● For questions requiring you to narrate personal experiences (开放性问
题), remember to follow PEEL format when answering the question
Tips to tackle Listening Comprehension

● Read the questions for each audio recording carefully before listening
to the recording
● NEVER assume that an option is the correct answer until you have
listened to the ENTIRE recording
● Ensure that you get at least 7 hours of rest the night before the exam;
LC requires you to be fully concentrated
Tips to tackle Oral Exam
Reading Aloud (朗读短文)
● Spend about 2 to 3 minutes for
this section
● Be mindful of the articulation of
words, pace & volume, variation
of tone etc.
● Think about the different types
of tone for different characters
Spoken Interaction (会话)
● Pay attention to details in the
video and anticipate possible
topics that could come out
● Think of some questions that
could be asked and prepare
your responses accordingly
● Answer straight to the point
Break
Tips to improve comprehension ability

● Read the passage a few more times for better understanding

● Make annotations on each question to better grasp the question
requirements (eg. 作者如何刻画文中的人物？---> 问的是方法)
● Look at the mark allocation for each question to estimate how many
points you are supposed to provide (eg. 4m -> either 4 or 8 points)
● When answering 开放性问题, ensure that your personal experience
(个人例子) links well to the main point in your answer
Tips to improve quality of essays
记叙文
● Make use of 人物描写 when
describing people’s emotions or
reactions to something
● Ensure that your essay is 详略
得当 (ie. 详写人物的情感 / 事情
的来龙去脉，略写开头和结尾)
议论文
● Ensure that your introduction
raises the topic / point of
contention succinctly
● Topic sentences should be
straightforward and examples
should be relevant / up-to-date
How to learn / study for Chinese in general

● Read through all texts in textbook and jot down good phrases
● Revise words / phrases from 词语表 and read sample sentences daily
● Take spelling (听写) as an opportunity to improve your proficiency in
Chinese and avoid cheating during small tests as much as possible
● Take some time to read through passages / texts found in 早报逗号
and look at how students bring across their ideas effectively
● For those who are already doing well in the subject, challenge
yourself to read at least one 早报 news article daily
Exposure to Chinese on a daily basis

● Speak to your friends / family members in Mandarin where possible

● Listen to Chinese music (Mandopop) / Watch Chinese dramas so that
you get used to hearing the Chinese way of speaking
● Download the 早报 app and read Chinese news articles daily
● For those who wish to attain a higher level of proficiency in the
language, consider switching your mobile phone settings from English
to Chinese so that reading Chinese words become much more natural
to you
Any Questions?
Sharing of meeting recording

Scan the QR code for access to

today’s session. Each recording is Recording 1:
30 minutes long. Feel free to review
the recording in your own time :)

Recording 2:

Recording 3:
That’s all for today!