NZ Scholarship Chinese common mistakes
NZ Scholarship Chinese · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Writing the essay in a heavily rehearsed, formulaic structure (fixed four-paragraph frame with stock connectives) regardless of the prompt, so the argument does not actually address the task wording.
Candidates memorise model essays and sample sentence patterns from practice papers because they believe this secures grammar marks; under time pressure they default to the rehearsed frame rather than planning to the specific question.
What to do instead
Before writing, spend 3-5 minutes converting the prompt into a one-sentence thesis and 2-3 sub-claims in the margin. Check each paragraph opens with a claim that answers the prompt, not a generic transition. Practise timed plans for ten different prompt types.
Producing an argument that is purely descriptive or narrative (retelling a text, summarising a film, describing a personal experience) without taking and defending a position, so the response never engages the analytical demand.
The prompt often invites personal response, and candidates equate 'personal response' with storytelling; they also lack practice in constructing evaluative claims about unfamiliar texts.
What to do instead
For every response, write a thesis that makes an evaluative judgement (e.g. that a character's choice reveals a tension in the text) and test each paragraph: does it state a claim, give evidence, and explain significance? Do this on unseen short texts weekly.
Quoting or citing evidence without analysis, leaving quotations to speak for themselves, or paraphrasing plot instead of examining specific language choices.
Candidates are trained to include quotations for 'evidence' but are not taught to unpack diction, syntax, imagery or register; they fear misreading the text so they avoid close comment.
What to do instead
Adopt a fixed micro-analysis routine: select a short quotation, name the technique, explain its literal and connotative meaning, then link it to the argument. Practise three-sentence analyses of single phrases until it becomes automatic.
Responding to a text in translation as though it were originally Chinese, ignoring that imagery, idiom and cultural reference may be altered, and failing to comment on the translator's choices or the cultural context.
Candidates assume meaning is transparent across languages and do not consider that a translated text is an interpretation; they also lack vocabulary for discussing translation.
What to do instead
When a text is translated, explicitly note translation as a factor: identify idioms or culture-specific terms and discuss what may be lost or gained. Build a small glossary of terms such as 直译, 意译, 文化语境 and use them in commentary.
Misreading classical or literary Chinese (文言文/书面语) constructions, treating function words and rhetorical particles as modern colloquial equivalents and therefore mistranslating or misinterpreting the passage.
School courses increasingly emphasise modern Chinese, so candidates have limited exposure to classical syntax, and they guess at unfamiliar structures rather than parsing them.
What to do instead
Revise high-frequency classical function words (之, 其, 而, 以, 于, 者, 也) with their range of functions, and practise parsing short classical passages clause by clause before translating. Keep a personal table of constructions with example sentences.
Writing Chinese that is grammatically serviceable but lexically flat and register-inappropriate: repetitive vocabulary, English-influenced collocations, and informal spoken forms in a formal analytical response.
Candidates translate from English mental drafts and rely on a narrow active vocabulary; they do not distinguish written and spoken registers, and they rarely revise for lexical variety.
What to do instead
Maintain a collocation notebook organised by function (expressing contrast, causation, evaluation) and deliberately upgrade repeated words in a redraft. Read formal Chinese commentary and note register markers such as 书面语 connectives and four-character phrases.
Losing control of accuracy under exam pressure: character errors, wrong measure words, aspect and complement errors, and inconsistent use of 的/地/得, which cumulatively obscure meaning.
Handwriting under time pressure degrades, and candidates self-edit only for content, not language; common errors have become fossilised through lack of corrective feedback.
What to do instead
Keep an error log of your own recurring mistakes and check specifically for them in a final five-minute proofread. Drill high-frequency characters and measure words in context, and practise writing timed responses by hand to build stamina.
Treating the listening or viewing passage as a memory test, trying to transcribe everything and then producing a response that misses the question's focus or the speaker's attitude.
Candidates fear missing detail so they write continuously instead of listening for structure; they are unused to note-taking in Chinese and to inferring tone and implication.
What to do instead
Practise structured note-taking: record only signposting, key claims, and evaluative language, using abbreviations and a two-column layout for content versus attitude. Answer past-style questions from notes without replaying the passage.
Presenting cultural content as generalised or stereotyped statements (about family, education, festivals, or regional identity) rather than as specific, evidenced observation, and treating 'Chinese culture' as monolithic.
Candidates draw on simplified textbook generalisations and personal anecdote, and they lack frameworks for discussing cultural variation, change over time, or regional difference.
What to do instead
Qualify cultural claims with specifics: name a source, a period, a region, or a text, and acknowledge diversity within Chinese-speaking communities. Practise converting a broad claim into a precise, defensible one with evidence.
Mismanaging time and task weighting: spending too long on comprehension or planning and leaving the extended response rushed, unbalanced, or unfinished, with no time to proofread.
Candidates do not know their own pace, and they over-invest in early questions because those feel safer than the demanding extended writing.
What to do instead
Rehearse with strict timing under exam conditions: allocate minutes per section in advance, set a hard cut-off for each, and reserve a fixed block for planning and proofreading. Log actual versus planned times after each practice to calibrate.