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    Higher Chinese so difficult

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    • F Offline
      fightingmom
      last edited by

      jtoh:
      jerytan:

      My son taking higher chinese in Ai tong and has been struggling with his chinese since. He is now in primary 4 and i am thinking of changing him to another school that offer normal chinese next year. Please advise


      It's too drastic a move to switch schools. Have a talk with the school. Find out what they can do for him, whether they offer CL classes to weaker students. Your son can't be the first and only student to struggle with HCL so they must have solutions in place.

      Agree with jtoh totally that it is a drastic move to change school especially since your ds already have friends whom he made over the past 4 years. He will have to adjust to new environment and make new friends plus coping with the jump from P4 to P5... Not so advisable lei...

      Not sure about Ai Tong, but my dd's school allows parents to decide whether to let their DC take HCL in P5 by the end of term 4 in P4. However, school will review again in P5 and those children whom the teachers feel that they can't cope with HCL, the school will advise the parents to let them drop HCL and to concentrate on the 4 subjects.

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      • corneyAmberC Offline
        corneyAmber
        last edited by

        jtoh:
        jerytan:

        My son taking higher chinese in Ai tong and has been struggling with his chinese since. He is now in primary 4 and i am thinking of changing him to another school that offer normal chinese next year. Please advise


        It's too drastic a move to switch schools. Have a talk with the school. Find out what they can do for him, whether they offer CL classes to weaker students. Your son can't be the first and only student to struggle with HCL so they must have solutions in place.

        This is good advice, take bite size steps to a final solution if there are too much uncertainties.

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        • PiggyLalalaP Offline
          PiggyLalala
          last edited by

          fightingmom:
          jtoh:

          [quote=\"jerytan\"]My son taking higher chinese in Ai tong and has been struggling with his chinese since. He is now in primary 4 and i am thinking of changing him to another school that offer normal chinese next year. Please advise


          It's too drastic a move to switch schools. Have a talk with the school. Find out what they can do for him, whether they offer CL classes to weaker students. Your son can't be the first and only student to struggle with HCL so they must have solutions in place.

          Agree with jtoh totally that it is a drastic move to change school especially since your ds already have friends whom he made over the past 4 years. He will have to adjust to new environment and make new friends plus coping with the jump from P4 to P5... Not so advisable lei...

          Not sure about Ai Tong, but my dd's school allows parents to decide whether to let their DC take HCL in P5 by the end of term 4 in P4. However, school will review again in P5 and those children whom the teachers feel that they can't cope with HCL, the school will advise the parents to let them drop HCL and to concentrate on the 4 subjects.[/quote]Most schools will advise their pupils who do not do well in hcl to drop the subject and take normal chinese in p5. Same practice in Aitong too.

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          • corneyAmberC Offline
            corneyAmber
            last edited by

            Champion:
            Lynn2010:

            For those who can cope, HCL is good. So, whether the 3 pts or useful or useless, good to learn more.

            My DD1 is P4 this year too and I understand towards the end of Term 4, they will be given an offer to take HCL in P5? I am still quite clueless about this option as some of my friends / relatives have advised against taking HCL as that \"3 points are useless unless you are aiming for a SAP sec school :? \" :scratchhead:

            Would appreciate advice from parents here; :thankyou: :snuggles: :hugs:

            Actually no one can advise for your dd, you have to ask some questions to yourself and her.
            1. Why learn HCL? For grades or for immersion of higher mastery of the language because it is MT? If there is alternative, maybe school's HCL is not essential? HCL to me is accelerated CL.

            2. Do you want her to immerse in the cultural aspects in sec school, I.e. choice of SAP school?

            3. How is she coping with her other subjects? Does she need that extra time for her 4 subjects?

            All these things about extra 3 points is irrelevant for the thought process. It is a bonus in the school entry system only which should not be the driver. Learning and mastery of a language goes beyond school selection. This is what I say to a sista la... Kekeke.

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            • L Offline
              Lynn2010
              last edited by

              ksi:


              All these things about extra 3 points is irrelevant for the thought process. It is a bonus in the school entry system only which should not be the driver. Learning and mastery of a language goes beyond school selection. This is what I say to a sista la... Kekeke.
              Agree - 3 pts is irrelevant. I encourage my dd to take bcos, even if she didnt do well, it does not affect her PSLE aggregate score. Throughout the 3 yrs (p4 to p6), i told her to focus on CL and the extra learning for HCL will benefit her.

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              • B Offline
                BeContented
                last edited by

                ksi:
                Champion:

                [quote=\"Lynn2010\"]For those who can cope, HCL is good. So, whether the 3 pts or useful or useless, good to learn more.

                My DD1 is P4 this year too and I understand towards the end of Term 4, they will be given an offer to take HCL in P5? I am still quite clueless about this option as some of my friends / relatives have advised against taking HCL as that \"3 points are useless unless you are aiming for a SAP sec school :? \" :scratchhead:

                Would appreciate advice from parents here; :thankyou: :snuggles: :hugs:

                Actually no one can advise for your dd, you have to ask some questions to yourself and her.
                1. Why learn HCL? For grades or for immersion of higher mastery of the language because it is MT? If there is alternative, maybe school's HCL is not essential? HCL to me is accelerated CL.

                2. Do you want her to immerse in the cultural aspects in sec school, I.e. choice of SAP school?

                3. How is she coping with her other subjects? Does she need that extra time for her 4 subjects?

                All these things about extra 3 points is irrelevant for the thought process. It is a bonus in the school entry system only which should not be the driver. Learning and mastery of a language goes beyond school selection. This is what I say to a sista la... Kekeke.[/quote]Agree.
                If your dd can cope without affecting the 4 core subjects, do not detest HCL, always good to learn more šŸ™‚
                DS doesn't like CL much (does not detest also), but I still ask him to do HCL since we are Chinese, good to immerse in it & who knows, interest may come in later in life. As for the 3 points, it's a bonus, criteria is a pass.

                If really really cannot handle, still can drop after P5.

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • C Offline
                  Champion
                  last edited by

                  BeContented:
                  ksi:


                  Actually no one can advise for your dd, you have to ask some questions to yourself and her.
                  1. Why learn HCL? For grades or for immersion of higher mastery of the language because it is MT? If there is alternative, maybe school's HCL is not essential? HCL to me is accelerated CL.

                  2. Do you want her to immerse in the cultural aspects in sec school, I.e. choice of SAP school?

                  3. How is she coping with her other subjects? Does she need that extra time for her 4 subjects?

                  All these things about extra 3 points is irrelevant for the thought process. It is a bonus in the school entry system only which should not be the driver. Learning and mastery of a language goes beyond school selection. This is what I say to a sista la... Kekeke.

                  Agree.
                  If your dd can cope without affecting the 4 core subjects, do not detest HCL, always good to learn more šŸ™‚
                  DS doesn't like CL much (does not detest also), but I still ask him to do HCL since we are Chinese, good to immerse in it & who knows, interest may come in later in life. As for the 3 points, it's a bonus, criteria is a pass.

                  If really really cannot handle, still can drop after P5.

                  :snuggles: :hugs: Mummy BeContented and Dr. ksi; appreciates much :salute: :salute: :thankyou:

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                  • J Offline
                    jerytan
                    last edited by

                    definitely dropping HCL next year in P5 but wondering if Ai Tong offering NCL

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                    • P Offline
                      Pen88n
                      last edited by

                      jerytan:
                      definitely dropping HCL next year in P5 but wondering if Ai Tong offering NCL

                      Yes, Ai Tong offers CL only without the HCL. If I do not remember wrongly, Ai Tong limits the number of HCL classes by P5: 3 or 4 classes a year cohort only. The rest of the classes take CL only.

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                      • F Offline
                        Fresco
                        last edited by

                        Actually, HCL is not all that difficult. All languages need time and patience to learn and grasp properly. If you have already embarked on it, make it a point to master it reasonably well, it certainly beats the normal Chinese paper which is quite lame if you have acquired a higher standard through learning HCL.


                        To improve in the Chinese language, you need to read and read and read Chinese literature more and make good effort to converse in the language be it at home with family members or with friends. Learn through active use of the language and instil a passion for the language. A good start is to learn Chinese proverbs and idioms and appreciate the beauty of the language.

                        When my son first took up HCL, he too struggled and shunned the language. I made a point to converse in Mandarin at home to my kids and instead of using English and expose them more to Chinese books and workbooks. I let them watch more Chinese dramas on TV too. I did not engage any Chinese language tutor as I feel I can manage on my own teaching him. With my encouragement and constant coaching, he perservered and developed an interest for learning the language and even came to appreciate Chinese. He is especially excited when it comes to learning å„½čÆå„½å„ when writing essays. He pays good attention during chinese lessons and writes essays constantly. His Chinese has improved by leaps and bounds and even scored A* for his Chinese and distinction for HCL. I am very happy for his determination and perserverance. I never thought my son can overcome the so called difficulty in the Chinese language.

                        My advice is not to give up but to bite the bullet and preserver on. It takes a lot of hard work and passion. With encouragement and patience from parents, I am sure your son can push his boundaries to achieve better results in HCL.

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