This module is about one question that comes before any Chinese revision: which qualification are you actually entered for? Cambridge IGCSE offers First Language Chinese (0509), Second Language Chinese (0523) and Mandarin Foreign Language (0547). Each has its own scope and task demands.
Everything else on the Chinese subject guide assumes you have answered this first. Revision for the wrong code can look productive and still miss what your papers ask.
What is this topic and why does it matter?
The three codes share a language, not a specification. A passage that suits one route may be too hard, too easy or the wrong task type for another.
The facts to confirm are the code, the exam year, the script and the response instructions. Your exam centre holds the entry, and the Cambridge syllabus for your exam year holds the details.
What do you need before starting?
Nothing beyond a copy of your entry confirmation, or a message to your school’s exam officer asking for it. If you cannot find the document yet, lesson one shows what to ask for.
A quick orienting example
The following is an invented note, labelled as such, from a fictional student named Mei Ling.
我的学校通知：我报考的科目是 0523。我家说华语，但我平时在家用英语写作业。
Her family speaks Chinese, yet the confirmed code is 0523 (Second Language). The sentence that matters is “我报考的科目是 0523”, the entry. Her home language does not change the code, so her practice follows 0523 material.
In what order should you study the lessons?
- Distinguish 0509, 0523 and 0547 using the actual entry: learn what a confirmed entry looks like.
- Check exam year and language route before using a model: models age and differ by route.
- Verify the applicable script and response instructions: confirm how answers must be written.
- Avoid inferring the right route from ethnicity or home language: replace assumptions with evidence.
- Choose a practice task that fits the confirmed qualification: put it all into a practice choice.
What are the common traps?
- Choosing a route from family background rather than the entry.
- Using a model answer without checking its exam year.
- Assuming a task type from one route appears in another.
- Treating a website, including ours, as the authority on your entry.
How should you use the practice set?
Work through the mixed practice set after the lessons. Log slips in the mistake log and retest queue, and use the summary selection studio once your route is confirmed. The Chinese tuition page explains how online one-to-one lessons fit around this.