The Oral Test Announcement: Who Goes First?
In a Level 2 Chinese class, the teacher plays a 40-second announcement about next week’s oral assessment. Students hear it twice. The announcement says: “下周三下午一点开始口试。第一组一点到一点二十，第二组一点二十到一点四十。第三组先在外面等，不要进教室。每个人抽一个题目，准备三分钟。迟到超过十分钟就不能参加，要等下个月补考。” The candidate is in Group 3. She has a chemistry test that ends at 12:50 in a building six minutes’ walk from the Chinese classroom. She also has a lunchtime choir rehearsal until 1:05. She hears “第三组先在外面等” but is unsure whether Group 3 should enter the classroom at 1:00 or wait outside. Her friend says, “第三组一点二十开始，所以你可以一点十分到。” The candidate wants to attend choir, avoid being late, and know exactly what to do with her bag and preparation time.
1. According to the announcement, when should the candidate be outside the classroom, and is the friend’s claim that Group 3 starts at 1:20 supported? Explain using the schedule.
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The friend’s claim is not supported. The announcement gives Group 1 1:00–1:20 and Group 2 1:20–1:40. If Group 3 started at 1:20, it would overlap Group 2, and the announcement gives no sign of parallel rooms or groups. The natural reading is that Group 3 follows Group 2, so its slot begins around 1:40. “第三组先在外面等，不要进教室” means Group 3 waits outside while the earlier groups are inside; it does not mean Group 3 enters at 1:00. The candidate should be outside well before 1:40, ideally by about 1:30–1:35, because each person draws a topic and has three minutes’ preparation. Arriving at 1:10 would be unnecessarily early, but it would not make her late; the risk is that the friend’s “1:20 start” could make her relax and misjudge the real waiting time.
2. If she arrives at 1:50 and her group’s slot began at 1:40, how does “迟到超过十分钟” apply? What is the safest interpretation?
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The rule says “迟到超过十分钟就不能参加”, literally more than ten minutes late. From a 1:40 group start, 1:50 is exactly ten minutes, so a literal reading might not trigger the penalty. But that is a risky interpretation. “迟到” may be counted from the individual’s turn or from the group’s reporting time, and the teacher may treat 1:50 as the boundary. The safest plan is not to rely on the exact wording: arrive by 1:40 at the latest, and preferably 1:30–1:35, so there is no dispute. If she is delayed, she should speak to the teacher immediately rather than slip into the room, because the announcement also says to wait outside and not enter the classroom.
3. What should she do about the choir rehearsal and chemistry test? Give a practical plan and one question she should ask the teacher.
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The chemistry test ends at 12:50, and the walk takes six minutes, so she can reach the Chinese classroom area at about 12:56. Choir runs until 1:05; if the choir room is also close, she can attend and then go straight to the classroom, arriving around 1:11. That leaves plenty of time before a roughly 1:40 Group 3 start. She should keep her bag with her, wait outside the classroom as instructed, and use the waiting time to review, not to enter and disturb the earlier groups. A useful question is: “老师，第三组大概几点开始？我需要提前几分钟到教室外面抽题？” This asks for the missing detail without challenging the announcement. She should not ask to change groups unless the choir makes her late, because the teacher has already set the schedule.