KiasuParents - Parenting in Singapore

kidznme wrote: ↑

Sun Oct 27, 2019 2:47 pm

Hi,

I am looking for Chinese tutor to home tutor my kids in Sec 1 and Sec 3 Express stream.

Location: Tampines
Preference:
-Ex MOE/Current MOE teacher
- Must have proven credentials/track records

Please PM me.

TIA!

chenlaoshi shld be capable

Any recommendation for secondary Chinese tuition centre? Can advise? Thanks.

Seeking advice on behalf of a friend. Kid is taking O levels next year. Kid got A for PSLE Chinese but my friend did consistent revision with child. Since Sec 1, wanted to revise herself. Grades drops to 53% for Sec 3 Year end.

Recently started a private tutor for a few lessons. Small group of 3-4 kids and all Sec 3. First 3 lessons, tutor just gave 1500 individual characters and went through one character at a time with this kid, when the rest were doing other work. Maybe their standard is higher than hers. Still I wonder - at this stage, shouldn't vocab be reviewed as a phrase instead of individual character??!

Then every lesson, just watched youtube videos together and tutor would pause now and again to talk about the content. So when kid came home, could not remember enough/could not explain clearly in Mandarin what the videos were about. Kid copied down the phrases that popped up on video but did not know what they meant. Teacher did not explain and no time to ask.

No worksheet, no handouts. Very worrying. Checked with teacher but she just said first kid must recognise all characters before we can do anything else.

We do not have experience with Chinese tutors. Any parents with experience with effective tutors, please share your views. Thanks.

Hi manorway,

- Regarding knowing individual characters, it is fundamental, since the progression towards understanding a passage is: 笔画 (strokes) > 字 (character) > 词 (phrase) > 句 (sentence) > 段 (paragraph) > 篇 (passage). 词语 are formed by combination of 字 and it is usually possible to infer the meaning of the 词语 based on the 字‘s meaning. However, this can be done via self-directed learning.

- As for the video they watch, is it related to topics that can help in 实用文, 作文 （议论文）and/or 口试? Besides, copying without understanding is ineffective.

- Do they do any guided practice on paper 1 and paper 2 components?

- Personally, in lessons, I will focus on areas that require guidance and discussions, i.e. more technique based, so as to maximize the effectiveness & efficiency of the weekly class time
( - identifying 词语搭配 and 关键词 and explaining the difference in meaning & usage of the choices in cloze passage,
- discussing/explaining content of passage in comprehension esp. those parts with underlying meaning as well as understanding what kind of response different types of compre questions are targeting at,
- discussion & mind-mapping in preparation for various themes/topics that can appear in email writing, argumentative/discursive writing and oral).

Chen Laoshi, what is the difference in weightage or coverage for express and HMT? If my child is not offered to do HMT in Sec 1, is it advisable for him to take HMT tuition in sec 1 with the hope that he can qualify for HMT in sec 2? Thanks.

KiddyLow wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 30, 2019 12:34 pm

Chen Laoshi, what is the difference in weightage or coverage for express and HMT? If my child is not offered to do HMT in Sec 1, is it advisable for him to take HMT tuition in sec 1 with the hope that he can qualify for HMT in sec 2? Thanks.

Hi KiddyLow,

For CL vs HCL format and weightage, do take a look at my old post:
https://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/foru ... i#p1892321

As for the situation you mentioned, IMO, unless the child's foundation + interest and passion in the language is strong, I would rather him/her focus to do well in CL - do more external reading, strengthen understanding of textbook syllabus which involves not just syllabus text but also rhetoric approach approaches, learn the must-know idioms and proverbs because even those who do well in PSLE CL and/or HCL tend to find Sec HCL challenging.

Baring in mind there are numerous other subjects to handle, relying on tuition to lay the foundation for Sec HCL may not be as straightforward as one may hope.

Thank you chenlaoshi. We have shown your reply and convinced the parents to stop this tuition service. I am not convinced the tutor's approach is suitable for the child's needs. There are no guided practices in the 3 lessons, except for 1 comprehension passage. I understand that it takes time to improve, so to be fair to the tutor, I am not looking for improvement after 3 lessons but more issues with the tutor's methods and how lesson time is used efficiently.

Please PM me if you have classes for O level (2020). Thanks.

chenlaoshi wrote: ↑

Wed Nov 27, 2019 8:49 am

Hi manorway,

- Regarding knowing individual characters, it is fundamental, since the progression towards understanding a passage is: 笔画 (strokes) > 字 (character) > 词 (phrase) > 句 (sentence) > 段 (paragraph) > 篇 (passage). 词语 are formed by combination of 字 and it is usually possible to infer the meaning of the 词语 based on the 字‘s meaning. However, this can be done via self-directed learning.

- As for the video they watch, is it related to topics that can help in 实用文, 作文 （议论文）and/or 口试? Besides, copying without understanding is ineffective.

- Do they do any guided practice on paper 1 and paper 2 components?

- Personally, in lessons, I will focus on areas that require guidance and discussions, i.e. more technique based, so as to maximize the effectiveness & efficiency of the weekly class time
( - identifying 词语搭配 and 关键词 and explaining the difference in meaning & usage of the choices in cloze passage,
- discussing/explaining content of passage in comprehension esp. those parts with underlying meaning as well as understanding what kind of response different types of compre questions are targeting at,
- discussion & mind-mapping in preparation for various themes/topics that can appear in email writing, argumentative/discursive writing and oral).

During my time, I remember doing 10 year series for some subjects but I don't recall any for chinese.

Can someone please help to explain if it is advisable to practise 10 year series for O level Chinese too?

If so, is it something that school teachers will make sure students do or we have to buy the 10 year series ourselves?

manorway wrote: ↑

Mon Dec 02, 2019 12:21 am

Thank you chenlaoshi. We have shown your reply and convinced the parents to stop this tuition service. I am not convinced the tutor's approach is suitable for the child's needs. There are no guided practices in the 3 lessons, except for 1 comprehension passage. I understand that it takes time to improve, so to be fair to the tutor, I am not looking for improvement after 3 lessons but more issues with the tutor's methods and how lesson time is used efficiently.

Please PM me if you have classes for O level (2020). Thanks.

Don't mention it, manorway. Yes, general speaking, 1.5 hr x 4 x 12 = 72 hours = 3 days of tuition time a year. It's really about maximizing the effect and efficiency of each lesson. Ideally, it should be a supplement in addition to their own learning & revision, not merely a substitute - thus my preference in covering the more technical aspects which requires more explanation & guidance and discussion.

(Apologies, my schedule is already fully filled while my only Sec sch group class next year is for Sec 1 HCL.)

manorway wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 08, 2019 12:40 am

During my time, I remember doing 10 year series for some subjects but I don't recall any for chinese.

Can someone please help to explain if it is advisable to practise 10 year series for O level Chinese too?

If so, is it something that school teachers will make sure students do or we have to buy the 10 year series ourselves?

Actually, 10 year series has been around all the time.

For CL, majority of the school teachers will no go through 10 year series. If they do, it's usually practices on specific components, such as Paper 1 email writing. Thus, it's better to do on your own.

Do note that there were changes in exam format in 2012 for CL and 2014 for HCL. Largest change was Paper 1 letter writing switched to email writing - so for the other components, still can do as practice.

chenlaoshi wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 08, 2019 11:45 am

For CL, majority of the school teachers will no go through 10 year series. If they do, it's usually practices on specific components, such as Paper 1 email writing. Thus, it's better to do on your own.

My son's Chinese teacher said that the publisher's answers do not really meet the O Levels standard. Doing the ten year series yourself and using the publisher's answers as a guide may not be good enough.

The school' s Chinese Dept came up with their own answers to help the students prepare for exams.