Comparing Chinese Enrichment (Primary/Preschool)

[Pen88n]

It has been a while since I have had time to get on forum due to busy work.


I had benefitted from feedbacks and comments from other parents in this forum when I was initially choosing a Chinese enrichment centre for my ds. I thought it is time for me to share my experience on the 2 centres my ds has attended over the last year so that other parents can have some opinions to make their decisions as well.

I signed my ds for Molin last year. Mid this year, I withdrew him from Molin and he started lessons with Jiang. These are what I’ve observed of the 2 centres:

Molin:
- dedicated teachers and smaller class size
- follow school syllabus closely and every lesson covered school text in advance in detail
- spelling and worksheet all based on school syllabus
- teacher does not guide much for compo writing, not much emphasis
- reading material is newpaper topics rewritten to suit level of student

Jiang (jing ying class):
- bigger class size, teacher does not communicate much to parents
- own textbook and worksheet following their textbook
- homework based on school text and expect kid to cover on their own / with parents
- longer class hours: 1.5 hours to cover their own textbook and 1.5 hours for creative writing
- creative writing more emphasis and cover wide topics
- reading material is hua pao from China, and kids have to do worksheet on that as well

I personally think Molin would suit kids who need guidance in Chinese for school, as they cover school syllabus in greater detail, basically like tuition. Jiang does not have that coverage for the jing ying class as they expect kid / parents to be able to handle that in their homework. However, if one is looking for more enrichment than tuition for kid, then Jiang would be better as their exposure to the language beyond textbook is much better. Their coverage for creative writing is also good.

Hope this helps other parents.

[doraemon]

Hi pen88n,


may i know how old is your ds? wondering whether jiang is suitable for 4 yr old or molin? my son is now in berries, thinking of switching. thanks!

[mathsparks]

Pen88n:

Molin:

- dedicated teachers and smaller class size
- follow school syllabus closely and every lesson covered school text in advance in detail
- spelling and worksheet all based on school syllabus
- teacher does not guide much for compo writing, not much emphasis
- reading material is newpaper topics rewritten to suit level of student

Molin has different enrichment class for compo/compre, hence the lack of emphasis in the regular enrichment class.

[Pen88n]

Doramon,


Seriously, I do not think Molin or Jiang suits young kids like your 4-yr-old. They are more catering to primary school kids, esp. for upper primary. Their syllabus is the "textbook cum homework" type, certainly not for young kids whereby you would want language learning to be thru’ play and fun.

Mathspark,

I think you are right. My ds attended the usual 2 hours class in Molin for higher Chinese. They have compo every 3 weeks, and teacher did not spend much time in class covering compo topics. For Jiang, compo is a weekly task: teacher goes thru compo, and then student writes in class within the time alloted.

I personally think the 3 hours Jiang class a little too long, but my ds likes it and he feels that he is learning more there.

[Pen88n]

Doraemon,


Maybe Molin has a class for 4-yr-old and their coverage may be more learn thru’ play and fun. Not sure about that and you need to find out more.

However, both these centres are more "well-known" for their primary / secondary school chinese enrichment.

For younger kids, the ones I know are Berries, Eduplus, Tienxia…

[maisy]

Dear Fellow Parents

My child is coming to 3 years old (born in 2006) so rightfully should be a Nursery-1 student. My problem is because he is a year -end child, when compared to his peers who may be born in Jan- July 2006, he is still a "baby" as he has yet to turn 3 and hence is not able to handle separation anxiety as well as tho who had already turned 3 since 6 months ago…etc etc…

He only recently managed to attend halfday playgroup on his own (after 2 months of crying) - i left him on his own from 2nd day onwards … as i was told the earlier i let go , the quicker they adjust …but yet , he went on to cry for 2 months even tho i only sat in on 1st day (even the 1st day i sat in 1 hr out of the 3 hours…hahaha)…

my question is : for such Chinese Enrichment classes, eg Hua Langauage / Tien Hsia … do they allow parents to sit in for at least the 1st 3-4 lessons ? My child comes from a complete English-speaking environment , where both sets of grandparents are english-speaking as well … as such, i am aware of the importance of starting him early on Chinese Enrichment so that when he reaches Pri 1, he won’t find Chinese foreign or worse, finds it a chore.
That said, my concern is what if he ends up crying and the centre forbid me to sit in with him ? He has recently managed to settle in in PG after 2 months of crying …and the last i want is to "frighten" him w more separation anxiety…but yet i m aware of the benefits of early introduction of the chinese language… I recently wanted to sign up for trial at Tien Hsia but upon hearing the reception said i cannot enter the class at all, i changed my mind as i was worried my child will not be able to handle all that stress …

I am in 2 minds because
(1) I am mindful of the separation anxiety / stress level he is going through…and i m mindful of not introducing more of it , if he is not ready to take on more stress…; AND

(2) As he is turning 3 this yearend … he effectively will be 4 yrs old by January 2010 (if going by calendar year…and not by month of birth)… and i can say by then , he will still not be able to utter a single word of chinese even tho he will be N2; much less to understand the language… hence, there is a pressing need to start soon, if not now…

(3) Finally , do they really forbid parents to sit in? Even if the child is crying his lungs out & tearing the roof apart ?? Or has the receptionist at Tien Hsia misrepresented certain policy by mistake?

Can any kind parent please enlighten ?
What should i do? (To me, the most ideal is if the centres allow me to at least sit in for a few lessons…then i will hv no qualms but to sign my kid up right away )
Thank you v much!

[ChiefKiasu]

maisy:

... my question is : for such Chinese Enrichment classes, eg Hua Langauage / Tien Hsia ... do they allow parents to sit in for at least the 1st 3-4 lessons ?...

Most of these services do allow sit-ins for special cases where the child is unable to adapt to the environment for the first few lessons. They certainly do not want a crying kid to distract the rest of the class. Some of the smaller outfits, eg. Forever Education in Katong Mall, allows parents to sit in anytime they want. You might want to consider such outfits first until your child is used to the classroom environment before moving on to services that have policies against sit-ins.

[titank]

ChiefKiasu:

tcdl:

... Aftering reading through the whole thread, I am still rather confused as to which is the best for my kids...

That's because everyone's situation is different and you need to map the feedbacks to your own needs.

I believe your requirements are close to mine: 1 younger pre-schooler and another in Primary school. Also staying in the East.

We only have to worry about Chinese so far for our children, because we are an almost entirely English-speaking home. Somehow, we did not manage to institute a Chinese-speaking discipline despite our many sparodic efforts.

You are right in focusing on the composition writing part, but don't forget the oral and comprehension parts either. IMO, Molin and Tien Hsia are amongst the top enrichment services you can have for Primary Schoolers, although I'm not sure they are as effective for pre-schoolers. I note that some of the community, such as MMM, has got good experience with Molin for her 4yo kid.

For pre-schoolers, I focus on getting my daughter used to sounds and characters. So I send her to Yuquan for the Chinese idioms class and Berries for the daily communications skills. I have had excellent results since we started her last June when she was 3. She can rattle off Chinese idioms and even recognise quite a few Chinese characters now. Understanding them is, of course, a different story . But the idea is to get them used to the sounds, so that when they encounter them in future, the \"right brain\" learning will merge with the \"left brain\" understanding. She enjoys both Berries and Yuquan... so the only problem is the waking up early on weekends and the hit on our wallets

Chief KS,

You started go Berries & Yuquan for age 3 daughter? Now think until head big big to select which one for my DD where would be so call Age 4 in 2010 (Birthday Not Yet Over).

[maisy]

ChiefKiasu:

Most of these services do allow sit-ins for special cases where the child is unable to adapt to the environment for the first few lessons. They certainly do not want a crying kid to distract the rest of the class. Some of the smaller outfits, eg. Forever Education in Katong Mall, allows parents to sit in anytime they want.

Thanks Chief. Actually I was pretty keen to try out Tien hsia or Hua Language ... While I've heard rave reviews abt Tien Hsia, I have not heard much about Hua Language .... Actually Hua Language (marine parade outlet) timing suits my child better..... Do you (or any parents here) have any experience with Hua .... is it worth trying out? Do they hire native teachers just like Tien Hsia? And would u know if they allow sit-in?

BTW, Will check out Forever Education too .. thanks

[ChiefKiasu]

maisy:

... Thanks Chief. Actually I was pretty keen to try out Tien hsia or Hua Language ... While I've heard rave reviews abt Tien Hsia, I have not heard much about Hua Language .... Actually Hua Language (marine parade outlet) timing suits my child better..... Do you (or any parents here) have any experience with Hua .... is it worth trying out? Do they hire native teachers just like Tien Hsia? And would u know if they allow sit-in?


BTW, Will check out Forever Education too .. thanks

In truth, there is no right-or-wrong enrichment programme... just right-or-wrong teacher for your kid. And whether you as the parent are willing to put in 15mins a day to review the classes with your child to do the necessary reinforcement. Always check out the chemistry between your child and the teacher.