The HSK exam is an important benchmark for Chinese language learners around the world and it’s about to undergo major updates for the first time in over a decade. Read this article to learn everything you need to know about these upcoming changes and how they’re likely to affect your Mandarin learning journey.
Before we go into more detail about what’s happening with the new HSK, here are some key takeaways for those interested in understanding the reforms at a glance:
1. The new HSK will have three “stages” (Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced). Each stage will be divided into 3 different levels, making for a total of 9 levels. For comparison, the current HSK has 6 levels.
2. There will be no changes to the HSK in 2021. In March 2022, the advanced stage (levels 7-9) will be introduced.
3. The advanced stage will consist of only one exam.After taking it, students will be assigned to level 7, 8 or 9 based on their overall performance.
4. Changes to the existing HSK levels 1-6 aren’t expected to occur until 2024 at the earliest.
Read the rest of our article to discover more details about the new HSK exam!
What is the HSK and why do we need a new one?
The HSK is an international standardized test for Chinese proficiency established to assess the Chinese proficiency of non-native Chinese speakers (including foreigners, overseas Chinese, ethnic Chinese and Chinese minority candidates). It is used to measure how well test-takers can use the Chinese language in their daily, academic and professional lives. The name HSK is an acronym for the name of the test in Chinese, which is 汉语水平考试 (Hànyǔ Shuǐpíng Kǎoshì).
Before the current 6-level version of the HSK was released, there was another version of the test which consisted of 11 levels and had been around since 1992.This original 11-level test was much more difficult than the current version. It was primarily aimed at members of Chinese ethnic minority groups and students from other Asian countries. The higher levels included a variety of obscure cultural references and tested extremely advanced vocabulary and grammatical constructions.
The current HSK and its discontentsIn an effort to make the HSK more accessible to students with non-Asian backgrounds, this early version of the HSK was revised. The current version as we know it today was released in 2010. It consists of six different levels that get progressively harder as you go along.This reform was a success in that it made the test more accessible and likely helped to contribute to the HSK’s current popularity among Chinese language learners. However, many argue that the current version of the HSK is now too easy and that those who are able to pass the highest level, HSK 6, are still far from fluent.The makers of the current HSK claim that the test structure corresponds to the six levels of the respected Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) system, but many, if not most, language teachers outside China reject this idea.Instead of being equivalent to C2, the highest CEFR rating, the HSK 6 is commonly thought to be equivalent to a B2 or, at most, a C1 on the CEFR scale.One of the main reasons that the current exam is now being reformed (and made harder in the process) is to ensure that it’s more in line with widely accepted international standards for language proficiency.
What we know about the new HSK
In May 2020, Chinese Testing International, the organization that administers the HSK, announced via Twitter that the current HSK test and the Chinese Proficiency Standards on which it is based are both going to be reformed. Since then, more details about the upcoming changes have been released.The new HSK will consist of three broad stages: Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced. Each of these stages will then be divided into three levels, for a total of nine levels
Each of the first six levels of the new HSK will have its own requirements when it comes to the number of vocabulary words, characters, syllables, and Chinese grammar points that students are expected to master. Furthermore, each of these levels will be independent and self-contained.This structure will change at the advanced stage, however. While there will still be separate tests for levels 1-6, just like there are on the current HSK, there will only be one test administered for all three of the new HSK’s most advanced levels. All students at the Advanced Stage will take the same test before being assigned to either level 7, 8 or 9 depending on their score.According to Chinese Testing International, the Advanced Stage of the new HSK is aimed at students who want to study for Master’s or Doctorate degrees in China. It’s also meant to meet the needs of students who are majoring in Chinese or other sinology-related fields.
New HSK launch timeline
Because there is currently no suitable test for advanced Chinese language students, the Advanced Stage of the new HSK will be the first reform to be rolled out. The official launch of the single integrated test for all levels at the Advanced Stage is scheduled for March 2022.
Since levels 1-6 of the current HSK already meet the needs of beginning and intermediate students, they will not be revised immediately. Levels 1-6 will stay the same for the immediate future.It’s likely that new versions of levels 1-6 will be released sometime between 2024-2026. Next, the old levels 1-6 will slowly be phased out and may be completely replaced by a new level system around 2027.
Source :StudyCLI
