Source:
https://scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2108314/listening-and-oral-sections-dse-chinese-language-exam-are-still
Comment/ Letters

Listening and oral sections of DSE Chinese language exam are still important

The reading and writing part of exams can be modified to give students more options. Photo: Dickson Lee

The outgoing chief of the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority, Tong Chong-sze, has recommended that the oral and listening components of the Chinese language papers for the Diploma of Secondary Education exam be scrapped, in order to lessen the pressure on students (“Hong Kong exam authority chief suggests trimming Chinese ‘paper of death’ to reduce student stress”, August 11). His suggestion is well-intentioned, but I cannot agree with him.

Firstly, Dr Tong argues that, as Chinese is Honkongers’ mother tongue, “they should already be familiar with the subject”, especially listening comprehension and speaking. However, even native speakers may experience difficulty in performing certain tasks when using the language.