Mandarin B SL

[Callie]

Next year I really want to take IB mandarin B SL but I'm not sure if I'll be able to because i've heard it's really hard. I don't have a chinese background but I've been studying it for 3 years. We haven't learnt much though because my teachers are quite bad.

My other option is spanish ab initio but I'd really like to take mandarin because I really like the language.

If I get a tutor and start working on my mandarin now do you think I'll be able to take it next year (school year starts Feb)?

How many characters do you need to know? And has anyone with a non-chinese background ever done well at it?

I'd love for any IB students to share your experience

[Charizard]

Um well it would depend on your skills now. My school has made studying Chinese mandatory since the primary years so I know some people that came a few years ago without knowing anything about it and their Chinese seems to be fine. I have been taking Chinese since I was five but somewhere along the way forgot most of it and now I am a disgrace to my years of education; I can barely put together a grammatically correct sentence!

... And yet Chinese BSL is fine for me.

But yeah... if you're still counting the number of words you know then I'm not sure if you're ready to take it as an IB course. In the exam there'll be reading a passage and answering questions on it, and there'll be a writing part where you write one of their prompts. My teacher says there's usually a letter or email involved in that one. And there are a few orals dotted through the year. I forget what else there is but if you're not confident in your ability to read/write/speak at that level by the end of IB then don't risk your grade since you can still learn Chinese without taking it for IB.

[missbrokensmile]

I took Mandarin B SL last year and chose HL this year. I find Mandarin B HL bearable, even though my writing is atrocious (not the character writing itself, but the actual essay/letter/diary writing).

Generally speaking, IB languages are a lot harder than your average country's language curriculum, so keep that in mind. Are you Australian (as school starts for you in Feb)? Because the supposed Australian high school curriculum "equivalent" is much easier than the IB.

How many words do you know? The ab initio course has a word list of the minimum words you should know (which is about 1000, but they do recommend you know more). There is no prescribed word list as such for the B course, but that's the nature of it. I suggest you look around and find the ab initio papers. If they look okay to you (even if just slightly) you should be okay doing SL Mandarin. If you know at least 1000 words (or will by the end of the year), you should be okay for Mandarin B. Even though you do need to know more for B, you will pick it up as you go along in the course.

Also, if your teachers are bad, it's highly unlikely they're going to get any better. If you know for a fact that you're going to change teachers, then by all means choose Mandarin B. Good teachers make so much of a difference. I had an amazing teacher in year 10, and I ended up getting 95% - 99% all the time and that's why I chose Mandarin B next year, because I thought I was going to get her as a teacher. But I didn't. I got the other, not-so-good at teaching teacher, and am now getting 60% - 70%, though I am slowly working on it to build it up. It just means a lot more independent work on your part (and possibly tutors) if your teacher is not so great.

Obviously, if you get a tutor and work hard this year, it will be really beneficial to your Chinese next year. I recommend you try and learn as much as you can this year, to lighten the load next year. Also obviously, you will do so much better if you do a subject you like as you'll actually be motivated to study. Another tip: languages cannot be learnt overnight (unlike Economics or Biology, etc). You need to make sure you do a little bit every night to ensure retention and stop overwhelming yourself when it comes close to exams.

I'm not trying to discourage you from doing Chinese. I enjoy it myself quite a bit. Haha, I'm trying to get as many people in the years below me to chose Chinese But you do need to think about maximising your mark.

At my school, there are quite a number of non-Chinese students who did Mandarin B and did really well. A lot of them got 5, 6 or 7. There were a few students who were able to skip the first 2-3 years of their Chinese university course because the stuff they covered in IB was in the 1-2 years of uni and they'd already learnt it. So, it's entirely possible to do well even if you are non-Chinese.

A little bit about Spanish AB... I don't take the subject myself, but I have heard what others say. Even though it is an ab initio course, it's still quite hard, especially if you've never had any contact with it. If you've learnt languages like French, Latin, etc, that'll probably help you with Spanish. Obviously Chinese and Spanish are quite different, it's up to you to pick which one you'd prefer doing. Also, I heard Spanish is fun as well

Finally, my personal opinion... I do like Mandarin B. I find it exciting and fun (though not many would agree and say they like languages ). I find stuff we study in class is understandable (I can understand about 90% of the passages), but when it comes to the exam, it's harder. Usually I only understand the general message it's trying to convey, but that's not too bad because we learnt skills to guess and pick out what they're asking and what answer is required (this skill is essential with languages, where logic and reason isn't so intuitive as opposed to subjects in your native language). Once you have about a year's worth of language learning down in the IB, I recommend you work from harder or same level texts as your exam. Because this way you won't be too overwhelmed and can get into the rhythm and pattern.

Anyway, final thoughts: What I've typed is just my two cents. I'm biased, but I'd totally tell you to do Mandarin B But ultimately, it's up to you. Pick a language that you think you'll like and enjoy.

Edited March 22, 2010 by missbrokensmile

[Caustica]

If you've only studied Chinese for three years, I strongly advise you against taking it for IB. Chinese is an incredibly difficult language to learn; I'm sure you already know that by now. My classmates have been studying it since P1 (I live in HK so even though I go to an int'l school, we all still learn [a bit of] Chinese), and I suspect when they get to IB, they will still find it hard. I suppose SL should be quite a bit easier than HL, which has some form of Literature in it (I think), but still: unless you are willing to dedicate an incredible amount of time towards Chinese, and I doubt you'll want to, because it's IB and you're going to be busy as hell, don't take it! This decision will save your life.

However, I confess to being slightly biased; I've always hated Chinese

[missbrokensmile]

There's not really much literature. Actually, there isn't any at all. You might look/study at prominent authors/literary figures, but that's about it. You don't study their works in depth - you just need to be aware of them and the sort of work they do. Mandarin B is actually quite interesting as you study a lot relevant topics to today's society and as your language ability is higher than ab initio, you're not just superficially looking at the topics. Though this of course could be a negative aspect, as you do need higher order thinking/writing abilities for Mandarin B, as opposed to ab initio.

Obviously, Chinese is a very hard language, with no comparison really (to any other languages,　Asian or otherwise, since they have an alphabet of sorts and clear set grammar rules). But really, what you need to take into consideration is:

1. Interest - what subject you think you'll like better

2. Your learning curve/process - your Mandarin B learning curve as opposed to Spanish ab initio

The bottom line is, no matter what language you pick, you'll have to work hard, especially since languages are hard, and also because of the degree of difficulty of Chinese and your non-contact with Spanish, having to learn a completely different language. You're going to have to put in effort for both languages. But just one you might put in less effort, as you'll be able to pick it up easier and the other, you'll just have to work harder.

Edited March 22, 2010 by missbrokensmile

[Caustica]

There's not really much literature. Actually, there isn't any at all. You might look/study at prominent authors/literary figures, but that's about it. You don't study their works in depth - you just need to be aware of them and the sort of work they do. Mandarin B is actually quite interesting as you study a lot relevant topics to today's society and as your language ability is higher than ab initio, you're not just superficially looking at the topics. Though this of course could be a negative aspect, as you do need higher order thinking/writing abilities for Mandarin B, as opposed to ab initio.

There's no literature in B? Not even HL? DAMN. Why is there literature in A-level

[missbrokensmile]

Haha, that's because in B you're still "learning" a language

[Charizard]

Yes, lots of people in my school are (very) competent at Chinese but they drop from A to B in hopes of getting easy grades. According to a friend of mine BHL isn't necessarily easier than A2SL, it's just very different. The emphasis in A was on literature; they were reading Jane Eyre and Madame Bovary (and some other pieces that I am doing in English!) in Chinese A and when they moved down it became focused on the language: there they were assessed on reading and writing and speaking. <br><br>But yeah as for taking BSL, it may or may not be difficult for you depending on how strenuously you've been studying for the three years you have taken Chinese. I mean, it really boils down to: Can you write a letter in Chinese? (Usually the topic is something simple so vocab isn't a huge issue.) Can you hold a discussion/oral presentation for a few minutes? Can you read a short passage and answer a few questions about what it's about? Go and approach the Chinese teacher in your school and see if you can get a few example sheets.<br>

[soadquake981]

Oh damn. I'm taking the Mandarin B SL exam this May, and I've only been learning Mandarin for four years. I don't have an option though... my IB coordinator says that IB doesn't take ab initio seriously, and that it's better to just do poorly (or mediocre) on the SL exam.

[BustinJieber]

It really depends on the curriculum your school offers. My IB school works with an outside chinese school to offer all Chinese IB courses, and they are hardcore. The Chinese I've learned up until now in regular Chinese school is now obsolete, and I couldn't feel any more assimilated. I scored 6/32 on the entrance exam.

It's really based on your Chinese background and how many years you've been studying it. Where I'm from, Chinese B SL/HL is for immigrants that have been in Canada for 2-4 years. I've never been schooled in China, so my Chinese skills are really lacking

As for the language, if you're far enough you should be studying many, many chinese poems and literary works. You'll also find that there are craploads of characters that look very similar and VERY many idioms.

[scarlettjazz]

I really would not recomment it, especially if your previous teachers haven't been good. It is VERY difficult. I find it the most difficult of all of my subjects and I have been learning mandarin for 4 years (no tutor though). Good luck!

[Furaxis]

There is a big gap in the difficulty between previous learned Chinese and Mandarin in IB for most second language learners. However if you are willing work hard towards learning and practicing the language, SL should definitely be bearable. Usually the hardest part for second language Chinese learners is reading comprehension and the grammar.

HL is usually targeted towards students with a Chinese background who are born into a non Chinese speaking society since they would be able to learn and practice it at home.

[ppincus]

Old thread, but if it's any reassurance to those who are planning to take IBSL Mandarin, let me give you some perspective. Prior to entering the IB I only took Mandarin for 2 years. The first year I studied a Mandarin 1 textbook, and then the 2nd year jumped directly to a Mandarin 3 textbook (partly because I self-studied the words and sentence structures in the Mandarin 2 textbook). I'm in my fourth year learning Mandarin (so IBY2) and am predicted a 6. I'm quite happy with that knowing my past experiences with the language. As long as you're reading texts and taking notes of SOME but not all the structures and words, and doing this on a common basis then it should be fine. Good luck!