华文 · Updated 23 August 2026
Three papers, 200 marks, one Achievement Level. Most parents meet PSLE Chinese one component at a time and never see how the marks actually divide — which makes it hard to judge where a term of effort is best spent. This page sets out the whole subject, with every figure read from the SEAB syllabus rather than from a tuition-centre summary.
The whole subject
Weightings are of the Chinese grade and sum to 100%. 试卷三 is one paper on the syllabus but two separately timed sittings on different days, which is why it appears twice below.
| Paper | Component | Time | Marks | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 试卷一 | 写作 — Composition | 50 minutes | 40 marks | 20% |
| 试卷二 | 语文应用与阅读理解 — Language Use & Comprehension | 1 hour 40 minutes | 90 marks | 45% |
| 试卷三 | 口试 — Oral | About 10 minutes | 50 marks | 25% |
| 试卷三 | 听力理解 — Listening Comprehension | About 30 minutes | 20 marks | 10% |
| Total | 200 marks | 100% | ||
试卷一 · 写作 — Composition
One piece, chosen from 命题作文 (a set title) or 看图作文 (picture composition). At least 100 characters. A dictionary approved by SEAB may be used.
试卷二 · 语文应用与阅读理解 — Language Use & Comprehension
The largest paper, in four sections: 语文应用 and 短文填空, 阅读理解一, 完成对话, and 阅读理解二 across two passages. 40 questions in total.
试卷三 · 口试 — Oral
两个部分: 朗读篇章 (reading aloud, 20 marks) and 会话 (video-based conversation, 30 marks). Ten minutes of preparation beforehand to read the passage silently and watch the video clip.
试卷三 · 听力理解 — Listening Comprehension
Ten multiple-choice questions worth 2 marks each. Recordings cover 对话, 通告, 广告, 说明, 介绍 and 故事.
The biggest paper
Four sections and forty questions. Note the shape: 34 of the 90 marks are multiple choice, and the remaining 32 come from open-ended answers on two passages, which is where the marks are hardest won.
| Section | Format | Questions | Marks / weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| 语文应用 | 多项选择式 — MCQ | 15 | 30 / 15% |
| 短文填空 | 多项选择式 — MCQ | 5 | 10 / 5% |
| 阅读理解一 | 多项选择式 — MCQ | 5 | 10 / 5% |
| 完成对话 | 多项选择式 — MCQ | 4 | 8 / 4% |
| 阅读理解二 (2 篇章) | 开放式 — open-ended | 11 | 32 / 16% |
试卷三
Oral and listening together carry 35%— more than composition and within reach of 试卷二. They are also the two components a child can rehearse in the exam’s own format at home, because the task is fixed: read a passage aloud, then talk about a video clip for a few minutes. They are also the part most tuition covers least — see what Chinese tuition costs and covers.
口试 · 25%
朗读篇章 — read one short passage aloud. 20 marks, 10% of the grade.
会话 — the examiner talks with the child about a short video clip. 30 marks, 15% of the grade.
听力理解 · 10%
Ten multiple-choice questions, 2 marks each, across recordings that include 对话, 通告, 广告, 说明, 介绍 and 故事. About 30 minutes. Note this is not a translation of the English listening paper — the two differ in question count, marks per question and picture use.
The Chinese listening format in full →A common confusion
Higher Chinese (syllabus 0015) is a separate subject sat in addition to Standard Chinese, and it has two papers rather than three. A child taking Higher Chinese still sits the Standard Chinese oral and listening — those marks come from 0005, not 0015.
| Chinese (0005) | Higher Chinese (0015) | |
|---|---|---|
| Papers | Three — 试卷一, 试卷二, 试卷三 | Two — 试卷一, 试卷二 |
| Composition | 40 marks / 20%, 100+ characters | 40 marks / 40%, 200+ characters |
| Language use & comprehension | 90 marks / 45% | 60 marks / 60% |
| Oral | 50 marks / 25% | None |
| Listening | 20 marks / 10% | None |
Foundation Chinese (0025) is a third, different syllabus with its own structure. We have not read that syllabus directly, so we do not set out its marks here rather than repeat figures we cannot source.
Grading
The three papers total 200 marks, which converts to a single AL from AL1 to AL8 for Chinese. AL1 is 90 and above, AL2 is 85–89, AL3 is 80–84, AL4 is 75–79, AL5 is 65–74, AL6 is 45–64, AL7 is 20–44 and AL8 is below 20. The bands are criterion-referenced — a child is measured against the mark, not against how everyone else did.
Questions parents ask
What is the weightage of each PSLE Chinese paper?
PSLE Chinese (syllabus 0005) has three papers worth 200 marks in total. 试卷一 写作 (composition) is 40 marks, or 20%. 试卷二 语文应用与阅读理解 (language use and comprehension) is 90 marks, or 45% — the largest single component. 试卷三 holds two separately timed parts: 口试 (oral) at 50 marks or 25%, and 听力理解 (listening comprehension) at 20 marks or 10%.
Is PSLE Chinese listening comprehension a separate paper from the oral?
No. Both 口试 and 听力理解 sit inside 试卷三, though they are sat as separate sessions on different days. This differs from English, where Listening Comprehension is its own Paper 3. Together the two halves of 试卷三 carry 35% of the Chinese grade.
How many marks is PSLE Chinese oral worth?
50 marks, which is 25% of the Chinese grade — the second-largest component after 试卷二. It splits into 朗读篇章 (reading aloud) at 20 marks or 10%, and 会话 (conversation about a video clip) at 30 marks or 15%. The whole thing takes about ten minutes, after ten minutes of preparation.
Does Higher Chinese have an oral exam?
No. Higher Chinese (syllabus 0015) has only two papers — 写作 at 40% and 语文应用与阅读理解 at 60% — with no oral and no listening component. Students taking Higher Chinese also take Standard Chinese, and it is the Standard Chinese paper that carries their oral and listening.
Which part of PSLE Chinese is easiest to improve?
We would point to 试卷三. The oral and listening together carry 35% of the grade, and both are structured, repeatable formats — the oral in particular rewards practice at reading aloud and at speaking to a video prompt for two to three minutes. We would not claim any component is easy; we would say the oral is the one where a child can rehearse the actual exam task at home most directly.
How is PSLE Chinese graded?
As an Achievement Level (AL) from AL1 to AL8, awarded on the total mark across all three papers. AL1 is 90 marks and above, AL2 is 85 to 89, AL3 is 80 to 84, and so on. The AL is criterion-referenced, so it reflects the mark achieved rather than a ranking against other candidates.
Where we help
PSLEPrep is not a whole-subject Chinese course — we do not teach 写作 or 阅读理解. What we do is the oral: 朗读篇章 and 会话, scored against the same criteria the examiner uses, with the child speaking to a real video prompt. That is the 25% on this page.
Marks, weightings and durations on this page are read from the SEAB PSLE Chinese Language syllabus (0005) and Higher Chinese Language syllabus (0015), both for examination from 2017. Where SEAB does not state something, we say so rather than estimate.