Why does Shanghai perform so well on PISA scores?
Diligence. The answer is just as simple. I am a 11-grade student in Shanghai right now. Honestly, the questions in PISA test are mostly very easy for Shanghai students. There is no need for Shanghai government to chose some 'good schools' to perform well in PISA. In Shanghai, most students in public schools have to take all the courses that the school arrange for them. And most of these courses are quite challenging for students to learn. We are not only demanded to be good at Maths, but also are hoped to do well in all subjects, such as Physics and Chemistry. Why are we so crazily asked to do so? Because we have to prepare well for the college entrance examination, the 'Gaokao'. Without a perfect score in the 'Gaokao', you will never get a chance to go into the best colleges in China! As a result, Shanghai students spend most of their time learning, doing exercises, attending tutoring classes. Everyday in my school, we have one A3-paged test exercises for each subject, filled with difficult questions, on average. According to this year's school survey, most students spend at least 5 hours doing their homework, and more than 50% students attend at least 2 tutoring classes at weekends. Some Shanghai students have even no time to develop a hobby because the homework and the tutoring courses have already occupied all of their free time. In short, the heavy school work, which focuses on students' academic performance, forces students to do well in every subject. Since the foreign tests cover far less knowledge than Chinese tests, those tests are quite easy for us. Let me give you an example.Recently, as I am preparing for the SAT test, my SAT teacher always says that 'a Chinese student without a perfect Math 800 can not be called a Chinese student.'Because the topics in the SAT math, which are supposed to puzzle US high school students, are covered in Shanghai's middle school math curriculum. Most Western standardized tests, like the SAT Math test, are just a piece of cake for Chinese students.
How long should it take to get from HSK1 to HSK3 in Mandarin Chinese?
This is a subject question because a few things will go into factor:LocationStudy Habits/ ReviewingPrograms/Language School/UniversityUsageLanguage is a tool more than anything so you have to use it to improve. Going from HSK 1 to 3 means know 600 vocabulary words and being able to have basic conversation. From my opinion since I’m studying for HSK 4 right now, you should be able to make the improve in one year if you can dedicate 7–10 hours of studying per week.Location: Are you based in the US, China or another country because this is a gift or curse. I’m in Shanghai so I use Chinese daily but I’m not sure of your situation. If you are living in an English based country, you’ll have to make an extra effort to speak Chinese. If you’re not in China, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong; than I recommend moving to your local China town and joining some Chinese language meetups and language exchanges.Study Habits/ Reviewing: Again you need to review EVERY SINGLE DAY. Do something different to switch it up also. Some days I review my lecture book and do all the activities; listening, reading, writing, and etc. Other days I’ll watch some Chinese movies or game shows. Once a week I go to a language exchange just to talk about anything.Programs: What program are you enrolled in? If you study full-time, usually M-F 3–4 hours, than 2 semesters should carry you to HSK 4–5. If you are part-time than again two semesters will get you to HSK 3. Self teaching is great but you need that professional lecture for a strong foundation.Usage: Speak, Listen, Read, and Write Chinese EVERY SINGLE DAY.If you are in Shanghai, I recommend Mandarin Spring. I take classes there and I’m looking to take the HSK 4 after 1.5 studying with them.I’m based in Shanghai and work for an Chinese education group. If you are interested in Chinese lesson in-class, online, or getting a job here in Shanghai. Feel free to contact myself. Deshawn@mandarinspring.com
Where is the best place to study Mandarin in China?
Some good answers here. I’d start by first asking yourself the following 3 questions:Which city in China do you want study in?You will need to consider:Climate, some parts of China have 5 month winters and other parts of China virtually don’t have a winter!Access to work opportunities, Beijing Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen are recommended for access to chambers of commerce, multinational companies and Chinese tech companies.How well is Mandarin spoken, Beijing, Qingdao, Dalian, Tianjin and Harbin are all great places to study MandarinCost of living, rent is half the price in most cities outside of Beijing and Shanghai. Cost of living though is relatively similar across cities for food with some differences in taxi fares and the cost of high-end food and drinks.Do you want to study at a University or a Private Language Program?University programs offer a campus experience, great student diversity and there’s an opportunity to impress Chinese people by studying at a famous university such as Peking University or Fudan University. Universities are also the best option for long-term visa support.Private language programs though tend to offer more attention from teachers, smaller class sizes, and flexible study dates.Which university or private language program do you want to study at?Here’s a few programs in China that have been reviewed by former students.Beijing Language & Culture University - BLCU (Beijing)Chongqing University of Technology (Chongqing)East China Normal University (Shanghai)Joy Mandarin Center (Beijing)Hutong School (Beijing & Shanghai)Nanjing Normal University (Nanjing)Nanjing University (Nanjing)Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (Nanjing)Peking University (Beijing)Suzhou/Soochow University (Suzhou)That’s Mandarin (Beijing & Shanghai)Tianjin Normal University (Tianjin)Tsinghua IUP Program (Beijing)Xiamen University (Xiamen)
How do I study for Chinese HSK 4 exam?
HSK (abbreviation of Hàn yǔ Shuǐ píng Kǎo shì) is a standardized test for non-native speakers to calculate their Chinese proficiency ability. It can be divided into 6 levels with corresponding requirements in the quantity of Chinese vocabulary and influency. Today, we are going to talk about hsk 4 like what hsk level 4 is, hsk 4 vocabulary list, and hsk 4 preparation.1. What is HSK 4?HSK 4 (also named Chinese hsk level 4) is the fourth level of HSK text. It requires you master at least 1,200 Chinese words and can communicate with native Chinese fluently. In recent years, it is gradually considered as the passport and prerequisite to study in China and apply for scholarship of Chinese universities. Besides, you are more likely to get promotion and raise salary in the international company if you achieved hsk 4 certificates.2. What is HSK 4 Scoring System?HSK 4 exam consists of listening, reading and writing three parts. 100 questions in total. You have to finish these questions in one hour and forty five minutes. To pass the exam, you have to achieve the a score more than the baseline of each parts, like listening 29-37 scores, grammar 28-36 scores, reading 30-38 scores and the comprehensive part 28-36 scores. The higher, the better.3. HSK 4 Vocabulary ListThe number of Chinese vocabulary for HSK 4 is set at 1,200. Download the vocabulary list from the Internet and practice them like pronunciations, writing and meanings. I’m sure you can find them easily. If you can’t find hsk level 4 vocabulary list, just message me your email and I will send you the vocabulary list document.4. How to Prepare HSK 4 Test?To figure out how to prepare HSK 4 exam, you need to make it clear what HSK 4 will test like the vocabulary, hsk 4 grammar, and understanding the sentence. I suggest you practicing with the help of HSK 4 mock test and previous HSK 4 test paper. Actually it’s not difficult to find some either. You can download documents or pdf from the Internet or you can buy some.
What is the problem with China's English exams? Why do so many Chinese students complain about it?
English in China is taught by the grammar-translation method. This method is best suited to dead languages such as Latin or ancient Greek when the expectation is it will not be used in speech, merely in the translation of documents, or possibly in their preparation. This is a hang-over from China's period of closure but was also, bear in mind, the standard method for the teaching of living languages in the days before people were as mobile as they are now and prior to IT. My joke, as an English teacher in China, was if you want to know some very, very minor point of English grammar, ask a Chinese student, they know it all... but you'll have to ask them in Chinese or they won't understand a word you're saying.This can get worse at college level. For example, the TEM8 exam, (test for English majors), in order to pass it, requires students to learn any number of useless facts about the birth and death dates of Victorian writers, the major exports of this or that English-speaking country and, in truth, a ton of stuff 99% of the people who live in those countries wouldn't know. Worst of all, the exams seem to be set up to 'trick' students and to show how clever the examiner is. Up to a point that's fair play, but the Chinese examiners can carry it to such extremes that it is no longer a test of how much the examinee knows but, rather, a test of the wit of the examiner in trying to fool the examinee into giving the wrong answer.There is a great deal more I could say on this topic. As an English teacher in China for seven years, it's something I've studied closely and it truly is bizarre.