PSLE Tamil oral · Marking · Checked 30 October 2026
How the PSLE Tamil oral is marked.
Less is published about marking the Tamil oral than about any other part of it. This page sets out what is known, says plainly what is not, and turns it into a check you can run at home without speaking Tamil.
What is published
What is published about the Tamil oral marks?
The marks: 20 for reading aloud and 30 for the video-based conversation, 50 of 200 at Standard level. SEAB publishes no band descriptors. Its Tamil syllabus text uses a legacy font we could not read reliably, so we do not quote its objectives here.
Standard Tamil oral (SEAB 0007)
School documents| Part | What your child does | Marks | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading aloudRead aloud a passage shown on a computer screen. | Read aloud a passage shown on a computer screen. | 20 | 10% |
| Video-based conversationWatch a short video clip, then talk about it with the examiner. | Watch a short video clip, then talk about it with the examiner. | 30 | 15% |
| Oral totalOut of 200 for the whole subject | Out of 200 for the whole subject | 50 | 25% |
What schools say
What do schools tell parents the oral rewards?
In the conversation: your child’s own ideas, clearly expressed and developed, suitable vocabulary and a real two-way exchange. In the reading: clarity, fluency, accuracy and expression.
One school's Tamil oral workshop lists three expectations for the conversation: the pupil's own ideas about the video, expressed clearly and developed; suitable vocabulary; and a lively two-way exchange with the examiner.
Single sourceSource: Greenwood Primary — Tamil e-Oral parent workshop, 2022
Schools describe Mother Tongue reading aloud as assessed on clarity, fluency, accuracy and expression. SEAB publishes objectives, not a marking scheme.
School documentsSource: Haig Girls' School — P6 Mother Tongue briefing, 2025
Tamil is diglossic: the literary Tamil of reading and writing differs from everyday spoken Tamil. Standard Spoken Tamil has been part of the Singapore Tamil curriculum since 2008, and spoken Tamil is the medium of classroom interaction.
School documentsSources: NIE SingTeach — Tamil language education (2009); MOE — Primary Tamil curriculum parents' guide
What a mark is worth
What is one oral mark worth in the Tamil AL?
For Standard Tamil, the oral is 50 of 200 marks, so each oral mark is half a percentage point of the subject. Near the top of the scale, where AL bands are five points wide, ten oral marks can move a child a whole band.
Standard PSLE subjects are graded on Achievement Levels by percentage: AL1 is 90% and above, AL2 85–89%, AL3 80–84%, AL4 75–79%, AL5 65–74%, AL6 45–64%, AL7 20–44% and AL8 below 20%. The PSLE Score adds the four subjects' ALs, from 4 (best) to 32.
SEAB / MOE sourceSource: MOE — PSLE scoring system
A worked example. A child scoring 30 of 50 on the oral who improves to 40 gains 10 marks out of 200: five percentage points on the subject. From AL2 to AL4, each band is exactly five points wide, so that change alone can move the result up a band. In AL5 and AL6, where bands are wider, it moves a child towards the next band rather than across it.
The conversation is where those marks usually are: 30 of the 50, and the part a short routine at home improves most. For Foundation Tamil, the oral is 55 of 100, so each oral mark is a full percentage point.
Self-check at home
How can I tell where my child is, without speaking Tamil?
Record one practice answer and listen for what you can hear in any language: how often they stop, how long they keep going, and whether they give a reason.
Five-question self-check · PSLEPrep’s advice
- Did I have to prompt them more than once to keep going?
- Did each answer last at least half a minute?
- Did every opinion come with a reason?
- Was there one real example from their own life?
- In the reading, were there long stops or skipped lines?
PSLEPrep scores PSLE English oral practice today: reading aloud and a conversation, with feedback a parent can read.
FAQ
Common questions
Is there an official marking scheme for the PSLE Tamil oral?View answerHide
SEAB publishes the marks for each part but no band descriptors. Schools describe what the conversation rewards: developed ideas, suitable vocabulary and a two-way exchange.
How many marks is the Tamil oral worth?View answerHide
For Standard Tamil, 50 of 200: reading aloud 20 and the video-based conversation 30. For Foundation Tamil, 55 of 100.
How much can the oral change my child's Tamil AL?View answerHide
Each oral mark is half a percentage point of Standard Tamil. Between AL2 and AL4 the bands are five points wide, so ten more oral marks can move a child up a band.
Keep reading
PSLE Tamil oral: format, marks and how to prepare
Reading aloud and the video-based conversation, what each is worth, and a preparation plan.
Helping with Tamil oral when you speak little Tamil
A ten-minute routine for English-speaking homes, with no Tamil needed from you.
How to answer the Tamil video conversation
The three questions schools describe, what a strong answer does, and how to practise each.
PSLE Foundation Tamil oral
Why the oral is more than half of Foundation Tamil, and how to prepare for it.
The Tamil oral in P5
What the P5 end-of-year oral looks like and how to use the year before the PSLE.
From prelims to the PSLE Tamil oral
The July prelim, the August oral, and a calm plan for the weeks between.
Higher Tamil and the oral
What Higher Tamil adds, why the Standard oral still matters, and how to decide.
Five mistakes that cost marks in the Tamil oral
Freezing, one-line answers, describing without opinion, switching to English, reciting a script: what each sounds like and the fix.
Tamil oral practice options compared
Free resources, paid courses, tuition and school resources: what each gives and what none of them does yet.
About this page
PSLEPrep is not affiliated with SEAB or MOE. Every exam fact on this page links to its source: SEAB's published syllabuses first, then MOE school documents and MOE-hosted teacher research, labelled by how strong the evidence is. Other figures come from SingStat and NIE. Where a source has not published something — the 2027 dates, the marking descriptors — we say so rather than guess. Checked 30 October 2026; next full check January 2027.