FIRST-YEARS OF ENGLISH-CHINESE PROGRAM CELEBRATE UPON PASSING THE CHINESE PROFICIENCY TEST LEVEL 2 

Glen Barlin

University of Caloocan City and Huaqiao University

Photo courtesy of Liu Shan Shan 刘珊衫, Huaqiao University Teacher 

Freshmen of the Bachelor of Secondary Education major in English with Chinese as a Second Language (BSE English-Chinese) program at the University of Caloocan City (UCC) passed the Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi (HSK) 2 or the Chinese Proficiency Test Level Two which was conducted online by the Ateneo Confucius Institute on March 11, 2023.

The Ateneo Confucius Institute released the result of the said proficiency test last March 21, 2023. Thirteen out of the fourteen first-year students under the BSE English-Chinese program successfully passed which translates to a passing rate of 92.86%.

With the help and support of instructors from Huaqiao University, namely Teacher Liu Shan Shan 刘珊杉 and Teacher Fang Fang 芳芳, the UCC program coordinator, Ms. Margaret Baello, and the UCC College of Education (COE) Dean, Dr. Ramona A. Prado the first-year BSE English-Chinese students sowed the seeds of their hard work.

On behalf of Huaqiao University 华侨大学 in Xiamen 厦门, China 中国, the Chinese teachers of the first year students congratulated the students who passed the examination, namely: Hannah Mae M. Avingoza 梅晗娜, Seira Elaine D. Delos Santos 唐森蝶, Alliyah Collene R. Diciembre 林欣怡, Ma.Ella G. Empiengco 马依依, Rinoa Marie Amalia Z. Laxa 雷如云, Dara Faith P. Marquez 戴坆秋, Darianne G. Mendoza 高瑞安, John Mark Khean S. Oracion 马克, Asher Klein Pioquinto 柯兰, Monica G. Pugales 莫嘉仪, Maureen Aika B. Subang 苏月晴, Paula Simone Todio 孟宝拉, and Maria Jessica G. Yu 于雪丽.

Asher Klein Pioquinto

Photo courtesy of UCC BSE English-Chinese Circle Facebook Page

Asher Klein Pioquinto 柯兰, the examinee who got the highest mark with a score of 100 and 96 out of 200, shares his experiences: “Before taking the HSK 2 Examination, I did not (even) think of getting a high score. My goal was just to pass the exam. Fortunately, I got a higher score than I expected. I was both shocked and amazed at the moment I saw my score. I was so proud of myself.”

"My strategy for answering the examination is to always find keywords in the listening part and understand the reading part by (simply) reading it over and over again. I got this from our Chinese teachers, and as I tried this strategy, it worked for me, luckily. I also left all frustration behind and just focused on the exam," Asher added.

He also shared who his inspiration is. “My inspiration is my mom; I know that she will be proud of me if I achieve something unexpected. I love to see her proud of me which makes me feel as if my hard work and all my hardships have paid off.”

Lastly, he expressed his gratitude to all the people who helped him pass the exam. "Thank you to all of my classmates. They just want the best for everyone. We help each other when one finds it difficul to work on on something. I'd love to see all of us succeed. I know that all of us are great and we just need to keep pushing and fighting for our dreams. I believe that a dream doesn't become reality through magic; we need to have determination and hard work to make it real."

It is indeed a great achievement for the BSE English-Chinese students to pass the Level 2 Chinese Proficiency test. They are now one step ahead. Huaqiao University teachers showed delight as their students exerted much effort to pass the examination. They believe that through their teaching methods and approaches, all English-Chinese first-year students were able to pass (the Chinese examination).

Teacher Liu Shanshan 刘珊杉, a Huaqiao University teacher, said that she hoped that all the English-Chinese students could pass the exam with high marks. “确实大部分同学通过也是很不容易的，因为今年大家的网络非常不好。所以，我还是估计他们继续努力，争取全部通过三级考试” - "It is true that it is not easy for most students to pass through because this year’s Philippine Internet connection is not good. Nevertheless, I still expect them to continue to work hard and strive for them to pass the level three Chinese proficiency examination," she added.


  “俗话说，一分耕耘一分收获。同学们顺利通过HSK2级考试正是你们努力的见证。希望这次考试的成功将激励你们勇攀高峰，在中文学习这条道路上越走越远. - "As the saying goes, no pain, no gain. The success of the HSK2 exam is a testimony to the efforts of the students. I hope that this success will inspire you to climb higher and higher on the road of learning Chinese," said Teacher Fang Fang.

Photo courtesy of Margaret Baello, University of Caloocan City’s BSE English-Chinese Program Coordinator