Reaction to 2026 Leaving Certificate Mandarin Chinese (Higher Level) by Amelia An, Chinese teacher at The 91制片厂.
The exam begins with four comprehension texts and students听probably shouldn鈥檛听be too surprised with the vocabulary being tested. Many of the scenarios were new, such as donations to an animal charity, an invitation to a graduation听part, concert听regulations听and the cultural roles of tea and coffee. Yet while the contexts might not be inherently familiar, most of the central topics were already covered during Leaving Cert preparation or in class.听Things like school subjects, places, clothes, and everyday vocabulary are all very familiar areas.听If students have a strong foundation of vocabulary, they can probably spot the answers quite quickly and secure very high marks.听What was nice to see was the range of forms and themes as the exam becomes more comprehensive. The exam setter has always striven to select texts that听compare and contrast听elements of Chinese culture with those of Ireland or the wider world. Text 4 on the cultural differences associated with tea and coffee consumption is one that will spark recognition in many of the young people sitting the exam.听
Things听become听more interesting in the writing sections.听This year, the questions felt much more creative and听definitely more听challenging.听While Q5 (a) relied on the more basic vocabulary of polite interactions, (b) and (c)听required听a very specific听set of terms and characters that not every student would know. Out of the six topics, a few were completely new, such as writing about a housewarming party or after-school听clubs. Interestingly, due to the nature of Mandarin Chinese, students translating the prompts will have need to be attentive to the different application of tenses. Many of the prompts spoke about听future听and so students will听have needed听to know how to reflect that in the听appropriate grammar听in order to听properly excel.听
One question that really stood out was Question 6: 鈥淒escribe one of your听favourite听websites or mobile applications.鈥� This was听definitely one听of the听more听challenging questions. It reminded me of questions like 鈥渋ntroduce your听favourite听book,鈥� from 2025听LC听but this time it moved into the world of technology. This has a nice overlap with material prepared for the oral exams earlier in the year. Most will have prepared something on the use of technology with an eye towards A.I., so this prompt will have been very approachable for听the听if they could dig a little deeper into their ideas.听I think that听shows a clear trend. The exam is no longer only testing traditional topics like family, hobbies, and daily routines.听They鈥檙e听starting to bring Chinese into the context of modern life and current issues.听
Overall,听I think this听shows that the Leaving Cert exam is becoming more comprehensive as it ranges across forms and topics and trends towards greater variety.听It鈥檚听moving beyond basic vocabulary and encouraging students to explore听a wider range of topics and express their ideas in more depth.听