Concerns raised about Chinese language Leaving Cert exam

Ireland is the only country to refuse to accept traditional script, according to the Leaving Cert Mandarin Chinese Concern Group.

A decision to rule out accepting traditional Chinese on the Leaving Cert Mandarin Chinese exam next year demonstrates a great misunderstanding about the language.

That’s according to members of the Chinese community here, who say it is discrimination to limit the written exam to just simplified Chinese, primarily used in mainland China, Malaysia, and Singapore. The subject is due to be examined for the first time in 2022.

There are two scripts in written Chinese: simplified Chinese, and traditional, which is the written language in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau.

While there are fewer strokes in simplified Chinese characters, both scripts are two systems of the same language much like American and British English.

Refusal

Ireland is the only country to refuse to accept traditional script, according to the Leaving Cert Mandarin Chinese (LCMC) Concern Group.

The group is made up of lecturers, parents, and students who are campaigning for the traditional script to be accepted in the exam. 

In an open letter to Education Minister Norma Foley, the group argues that converting simplified scripts into traditional scripts for the exam would take "just a click on the computer". 

"Both characters can be typed using the Pinyin system and can be easily converted into either form," it said.

Alice Chau, a co-founder of the group, said students are worried about losing marks in their exam for using traditional Chinese. 

Ms Foley has said previously the course was designed for students with no previous knowledge of the language.

“While heritage speakers are certainly allowed to study the course and sit the exam, the specification is not designed for them.” 

'Considerable advantages'

The LCMC Concern Group has also been advised that heritage or native speakers would have "considerable advantages" if traditional Chinese was included.

“We don’t understand why there is different treatment for Chinese speakers because they don’t say this about French or Spanish or German or any other language,” said Ms Chau. 

It would be like excluding a regional dialect of Irish from the Leaving Cert, she added. 

“It would never happen, but the department is saying this about Chinese.”

Mandarin Chinese is one of four new language specifications being introduced in line with Languages Connect. Ms Foley has previously said there are no plans to review or re-evaluate the requirement on students to use simplified Chinese characters.