Learning Mandarin - Too young for English?

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Too young for English?
(CRI)
Updated: 2006-08-24 10:04





Exam organizers are no longer surprised to see a preschool child sitting
an English exam, as a growing number of little kids are taking an English
qualification test originally designed for older students.

While most parents place high expectations on their child, foreign
language education experts are concerned that learning English at an
early age may harm a child's future development.

During the Children English Star Test this week, the average age of
first-level test takers was reported at 5 or 6 years old. The test was
originally designed for pupils aged 8 or above, according to the Shanghai
Foreign Language Testing Service, the test's organizer.

A registration official surnamed Li with the testing service said the
youngest test taker was only 4.

Children taking the Star Test will be required to illustrate a picture or
fulfill a communication task. Candidates that pass the test are given a
certificate issued by the testing service.

Jennifer Feng, a young mother, said that the increasingly important role
of English pushes parents to send their children to English classes as
soon as possible. "Competition is so fierce, no one can afford to see his
or her child lag behind."

Some key primary schools use the Star Test as admission criteria. That
also motivates a large number of kindergarten children to take the test.

Chai Mingjiong, professor of Shanghai International Studies University,
said: "Many children haven't mastered their mother tongue. Forcing them
to take up a foreign language will only cast a shadow on their future
study."

















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