Chinese Language

CHINESE LANGUAGE

The Chinese Language (CL) Department aims to develop students into confident and competent Chinese Language users who are able to appreciate their own culture.

Department Mission 
Providing quality teaching to develop students into proficient users of Chinese Language who can communicate effectively with others, appreciate Chinese culture and acquire knowledge and wisdom through the language.

Department Vision
Engaged learner who loves the language, proficient user who communicates well.

Department Key Thrusts 
In order to achieve our mission and vision, the Chinese Department is underpinned by 4 key strategic thrusts, namely Customized Curriculum, Effective Pedagogies, Accurate Assessments, and Supportive Programmes. The 4 areas complement each other to benefit students’ learning.

1. Customized Curriculum
   The Department is fully aware of the diversified learning needs of our students. Some students may use Mandarin very frequently at home, while some may rarely speak Mandarin at home. Some students are visual learners, while some are kinetic learners. Aligning with MOE’s syllabus, the Department adopted the modular system (Bridging, Core and Enrichment) which caters to different learning needs of our students. Each module adopts different strategies to maximize students’ potential in learning the Chinese Language. Appropriate learning resources such as spelling lists, supplementary worksheets and writing tasks are also thoughtfully designed to reinforce students’ learning and build their confidence.

2. Effective Pedagogies
   In order to make our students learn well, the Department adopts various pedagogies to make learning Chinese Language fun and effective. ICT-integrated Lesson appeals to students’ interest and leverages on multiple online resources such as Xuele and iMTL Portal to promote self-directed learning and collaborative learning. Drama-based Lessons makes lessons come alive and deepens students’ understanding in comprehension and composition. Oral Interactive Lessons provides structured approach to improve students’ oral communication skills. Word-Rationale Pedagogy makes learning of Chinese characters interesting and fun and at the same time nurtures creative spirits of our students.

3. Accurate Assessments
   Information gathered from our assessments enable us to understanding students’ learning needs better. Apart from summative assessments (formal exams) which provides us data to analyse students’ achievements in learning, structured formative assessments (informal test) provides timely information on how well students have managed listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. Teachers also applied formative assessment principles in their daily teaching to monitor individual student’s progress. The Department strives to conduct every assessment accurately to know our students well.

4. Supportive Programmes
   Besides learning from textbooks, the Department also designed and implemented a number of programmes to support students’ learning of the language and culture. These programmes also provided platforms for students to showcase their talents in Chinese Language and apply their learning in an authentic environment. Here are some our signature programmes:

Major Programmes

1.  Speech & Drama
   The Speech and Drama guides the students’ language learning through storytelling and role play. It aims to stimulate student’s interest in learning Chinese Language in a fun and exciting environment. The students will start to build confidence in speaking Chinese Language. The course is designed to complement the Applied Learning Programme (ALP) of the school and will commence in Term 2.

2.  Mother Tongue Language Fortnight and Cultural Camp
   The Mother Tongue Fortnight and Cultural Camp aims to engage the students to learn their mother tongue languages in a creative and fun way. The Mother Tongue department will be organising activities such as Penmanship competition, traditional games and cultural activities to provide students with authentic opportunities to use their Mother Tongue Languages as effective tools to learn new things.

3.   Reading Programme
   To cultivate interest and develop proficiency in Chinese Language, the Department has chosen eChinese Animated Online Magazine and weekly magazines as supplementary learning materials. ‘eChinese Magazine’ provides a vivid, engaging and interactive learning platform for the learning of CL which will enhance our children’s interest in the subject. The learning content also synchronizes with the textbook and provides opportunities for students to cultivate a self-study habit. In order to promote the culture of reading, the Department also selected award-winning books to guide students to acquire reading skills through our reading lessons.

Useful Links

1. Etutoronline (http://www.ezhishi.net/)
   The school has chosen eChinese Animated Online Magazine and weekly magazine as supplementary learning materials. ‘eChinese Magazine’ provides a vivid, engaging and interactive learning platform for the learning of CL which will enhance our children’s interest in the subject. The learning content also synchronizes with the textbook and provides opportunities for students’ self-study.