New Chinese Language Curriculum Parents Forum 29 Apr 2006 The Singapore Education Service - Moulding the Future of Our Nation

Chinese Language Curriculum and Pedagogy Review Committee set up in Feb 2004 in response to changing home background of students Background

Generational Shifts in Use of CL in Homes

Differentiated Objectives for Range of CL Students  All CL students: enthuse them to learn CL  Majority of students: focus on oral communication and reading; writing to reinforce language skills  Students with ability and interest: develop fluency in all four language skills and good understanding of Chinese culture  Core group of students: achieve both high proficiency in four language skills and an intuitive understanding of culture and contemporary developments in China

Key Recommendations New CL Curriculum for Primary Schools  New Pedagogical Approach  Modular Approach

The Pedagogical Approach

有效识字 Recognise Characters Effectively 读写跟上 Follow on with Reading and Writing 多听多说 Listen and Speak More 快乐学习 Enjoy Chinese Language Learning

Listen and Speak More  Language learning begins with ability to converse in the language  Knowing sounds and tones of a language will help students link sounds and meanings  Students will be actively encouraged to express themselves using the language

Recognise Characters Effectively  A range of character recognition strategies will be taught explicitly to students  No “one-size-fits-all” strategy  Teachers and students will be encouraged to adapt strategies to suit their needs

Character Recognition Strategies  Pinyin Romanization Approach( 注音识字 )  Pictorial Approach ( 看图识字 )  Rhythmic Approach ( 韵语识字 )  IT-based Approach ( 电脑识字 )  Character Logic Approach ( 字理识字 )  Word Family Approach ( 字族文识字 )

Character Recognition

Character Recognition Strategies  Character Logic Approach ( 字理识字 )  人 : a single person  从, with two “ 人 ”: to follow or join another person  众， with three “ 人 : a sizeable number of people and usually means a crowd  木 : wood or a tree  林 with two “ 木 ”: forest  森 with three “ 木 ”: jungle

Character Recognition Strategies  Word Family Approach ( 字族文识字 ) 有水把茶泡， 有饭能吃饱。 有足快快跑， 有手轻轻抱。

Teaching Reading  Early reading helps students acquire the language faster  It helps students consolidate characters learnt  Children love stories  Teach students reading strategies explicitly

Script Writing  Script writing will be given less emphasis in lower primary  At the onset, students will learn to write mostly basic characters and characters they commonly encountered in their daily life  It will help students appreciate the form of CL characters

Script Writing  Not required to write the characters many times  Augment with structured processes such as  writing using fingers ( 书 )  demonstration ( 示 )  tracing ( 描 )  evaluating ( 评 )

Essay Writing  Essay writing skills will be taught systematically  At lower primary, students will be taught to compose simple sentences ( 写话 )  As they move up the levels: Sentences → Paragraphs → Short Essays ( 写段 ) ( 写篇 )

sound 音 form 形 Listen and speak more Recognise characters effectively Early Reading Writing meaning 义 汉字 Incorporate learner’s experience Enjoy learning CL

Modular Approach Greater customisation and flexibility

Students with little or no home CL exposure 70-80% Core Module 20-30% Bridging Module Core Module 70-80% Students with interest and ability 20-30% Enrichment module 70-80% Core Module Majority of students Modular Approach (P1-2) School-based Curriculum 20-30%

B R R B PSLE C C C C C C E E E E E E P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 PSLE - only Core Modules Legend B: Bridging R: Reinforcement C: Core E: Enrichment

Student Grouping  P1 students are divided into B/C/E groups based largely on:  teacher’s evaluation of students’ language competency (e.g. through daily communication, classroom performance and P1 results)  home language background

Pilot Instructional Materials Greater emphasis on oral and reading

Comparison of Existing & Pilot Materials ExistingPilot 1.Textbook 课本 2.Workbook 作业本 2.Activity Book (includes writing) 活动本 3.Writing Exercise Book 习字本子 3.Character Cards 字宝宝

Comparison of Categories of Characters Existing TextbookPilot Textbook 1.Characters for Reading 2.Characters for Writing 3.“Meet-Once” Characters 见面字

Categories of Characters  Characters for Writing 识写字  Required to read and write these characters  Characters for Reading 识读字  Required to read these characters only  “Meet-Once” Characters 见面字  To retain the authenticity of the passages  Only required to read these characters in context

New Structure for Textbook  Core Module  Complementary Reading  Language activities  Listening and Speaking

Core Module Main PassageComplementary reading

Core Module Language activities Listening and speaking activities

New Structure for Textbook  Bridging Module  Activities-based  Enable students to acquire oral-aural skills, as well as learn some vocabulary

Bridging Module Oral-Aural activities Vocabulary of Core modules

New Structure for Textbook  Enrichment Module  Extended Reading  Students are not expected to learn new characters

Enrichment Module

Summary of Different Modules BridgingCoreEnrichment  Oral-aural activities  Vocabulary of Core modules  Main Passage  Complementary reading  Character recognition  Language activities  Listening and speaking activities  Extended reading

Preparing Schools for New Curriculum

Seeding Pedagogical Change

Preparing Schools for New Curriculum

Sharing sessions

Training sessions

Parent support

Parent Support  Encourage children to speak to family members in both Chinese and English  Encourage your child to read good Chinese and English books  Public libraries  Books with attractive illustrations to start the child  Audio books, electronic books

Parent Support  Expose your child to good Chinese and English television programmes, e.g. cartoons  Tap on the environment such as road signs and advertisements to engage your child in Chinese conversations during outings

Parent Support

 Do not excessively correct children’s mistakes  Build up their confidence  Children are more willing to use the language, thus, will acquire it better  Allow the children to learn through meaningful games

Parents’ Feedback  Welcome feedback from Parents  Schools will engage parents with their customised communication efforts  Parents could stay closely in touch with schools and provide feedback to the teachers regarding different aspects of the curriculum (e.g. instructional materials, implementation measures etc)

Making CL Learning Meaningful and Engaging