Dear Michelle, Anne and colleagues
I felt very encouraged by the news from Michelle. My school is in the
similar situation as Trinity School. We had 13 non-native boys sat GCSE this
summer and 8 got A*, 3 A, 1 B, 1C after three years learning (4x35min per
week). The school is a bit scared to let them continue to do Chinese AS
this year, so the present solution is to give the boys who want to continue
mandarin 2 periods on timetabled lesson, 2 off-timetabled lesson (2 hours
per week). We expect them to sit AS in two years time. By the end of the
first year, they may sit Asset language Intermediate level exam.
We did a little experiment last year, one non-native boy sat AS this summer
(after three years GCSE course with A*) and he got a B grade, 4 mark away
from grade A. He had 2 hours tutoring time outside school and 2 hours off
timetabled time from our school. He is satisfied with his result and
determined to carry on A2 next year. We still offer him 4 off-timetabled
lesson and of course, he still gets 2 hours tutoring time outside school. He
is confident that he will get a reasonable mark for A2. Even he may get a B
or the worst C, he still feels it worth trying.
Hope this will encourage more schools offer AS Chinese after GCSE course.
Regards
Holly Shao
Dulwich College
----- Original Message -----
From: "MTATE" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: 23 September 2008 21:25
Subject: Re: help re post GCSE
> Hi Anne (and anyone else interested!)
>
> I had three non-native students who took AS level Chinese last year
> (results A,B,C) after studying, like yours, for 6 years. This summer
> they took A2 - yes, very brave and I didn't know how they would do, but
> knew that they were a high calibre group! Results A, A, B!! It isn't
> impossible for them to get these high grades if they are highly
> motivated and have a great deal of support from us teachers.
>
> I used the newly published Hodder 'Edexcel Chinese for AS' book as
> part of the course, while it was still in the writing! The students
> really appreciated the depth of the topics covered in the book and were
> pretty good at honing the vocabulary to those words they thought most
> applicable to actually go away and learn. There are too many new words
> for them to be asked to learn, so I just helped them focus on high
> frequency words and very topic specific ones.
>
> For the A2 preparation, I gave the students the topics set each year
> for the Research Based Essay right at the beginning of the year and
> asked them to go away and have a look at those they thought they might
> be interested in studying in depth. They then studied these
> independently, mainly in English. After coming up with a draft essay
> in English, I asked them to start translating it into Chinese. Of
> course, I and some native Chinese teachers helped them a lot, as the
> themes were pretty technical. After drafting them in Chinese, we then
> simplified the essays together, so that the students understood and
> could remember exactly what they were writing. They then went away and
> learnt the essays.
>
> At the Edexcel guidance and feedback session on A level Chinese last
> autumn, the chief examiner Man Ling said that this method was totally
> acceptable, and that one of the main aims of the research based essay
> was for students to study an aspect of China in depth and become a
> little expert on it.
>
> If you are worried that A2 might be too difficult, then definately
> encourage your students to take AS level over two years. My students
> had 8 hours of Chinese a fortnight throughout the sixth form, as a
> guide!
>
> Hope this helps to encourage you and other teachers out there who may
> be worried about entering their non-Chinese students for exams at this
> level.
>
> Michelle
>
> ----Original Message----
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Date: Sep 23, 2008 21:05
> To:
> Subj: help re post GCSE
>
>
>
>
>
> I have a group of 11 students taking GCSE next year
> and am looking at how to continue with them in the Sixth Form. They
> will have had five years on timetable classes and are pretty good and
> well
> motivated so I expect some good grades. Most of them have also been on
> a home
> stay exchange with a student in Beijing.
> The lessons in the Sixth Form will probably have to
> be off timetable as my school are nervous about putting Chinese on
> curriculum as
> an AS or A level subject. The students want to study for a
> qualification and I am considering trying to get
> them through AS level in two years. Now there is the recently
> published good
> book with lots of resources this seems like it could be possible
> with motivated students and enough lessons. I think that A level may
> just
> be too unattainable.
>
> I would like to ask the forum
> - what experience do others have
> of teaching non native speakers to AS level and what results have
> they
> got -on or off timetable ?
> - some of my students want to study Chinese at
> University - how do the University Chinese depts cope with a student
> like
> this that has 7 years of school Chinese to AS level ?
> Anne Martin
> Trinity School
>
>
>
> ..............................................................................................................................
> Michelle Tate
> Head of Oriental Languages
> Katharine Lady Berkeley's School
> Wotton-under-Edge
> Glos. GL12 8RB
>
> Tel: 01453-842227
> Email: [log in to unmask]
> ..
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