The Pros and Cons of Studying Higher Chinese in Primary School

If you are currently unsure of whether you or your child should take Higher Chinese in primary school, then this article is the one for you! To aid in your consideration, here are some advantages and disadvantages of studying Higher Chinese.

The Pros

Exposure

Students in secondary school concentrate on writing and understanding Chinese. In this example, PSLE Higher Chinese students are well-trained with higher-order thinking comprehension questions and thematic based composing necessary in Secondary Chinese, making it simpler for them to grasp and score for Secondary Chinese.

Higher Chinese Scores Result in More Bonus Points

Higher Chinese in PSLE can earn a student up to 3 points if they apply to SAP Secondary School, such as Catholic High School, Chung Cheng High School, or River Valley High School. According to this MOE article, pupils who received a Distinction, a Merit, or a Pass in Higher Chinese for PSLE and a PSLE Score of 14 or below will have an advantage in being assigned to SAP Secondary schools. Higher Chinese grades would be the deciding factor between students sharing the same PSLE score who applied to the same SAP school. As a result, it is easy to understand how important the additional bonus points that come with Higher Chinese might be.

Preparing for the Future

Students do not take PSLE Higher Chinese. However, those who want to study Higher Chinese in secondary school must have a PSLE score of at least 8 to be considered. For instance, suppose you are studying PSLE Higher Chinese and achieve at least a Merit and Distinction. In that case, you will most likely be given an opportunity to take Higher Chinese in Secondary school even if your total PSLE score falls within 9-14 and if you obtain an AL 1 / AL 2 grade for your Standard Chinese subject. Higher Chinese students will receive a -2 point premium upon admission to JC, and it is considered a language subject for GCE O Level L1R5. You can also opt out of Chinese topics in JC if you have passed Higher Chinese in GCE O Levels.

Nevertheless, while taking Higher Chinese might be helpful, one must weigh the benefits and drawbacks before deciding on whether you should take it as a PSLE subject.

The Cons

May Impact Your Overall Academic Results

Higher Chinese adds on as an additional topic, implying that your time needs to be split, and there would be less time for each of the other courses. The more time you devote to managing your Higher Chinese, the less time you have for different topics. Because the amount of time available to prepare for PSLE is already restricted, failing to balance time adequately among the five issues puts the wagon before the horse. As a result, you must ensure that you can balance your time and effort properly to not only do well in Higher Chinese but also maintain a solid record in your other academic disciplines.

Struggles

Many students who take Higher Chinese struggle with learning and mastering this topic. Why is it so? Some of them fail to advance to Higher Chinese because they do not have adequate academic assistance or someone to help them with Higher Chinese. Some of them are just not academically inclined but yet push themselves to study the subject knowing the long-term rewards it might offer them later.

On the other hand, other students are unwilling to devote their already restricted time to work on a new topic with stricter prerequisites. If you wish to take Higher Chinese, you should mentally prepare yourself; if not, you should talk with your parents or your personal PSLE Higher Chinese Tutor in Singapore and seek guidance. Generally speaking, you may struggle to stay up for your Higher Chinese courses if you are unwilling to devote more time and effort to mastering this topic.