Youth Chinese Test (YCT)
an international standardized test of Chinese language proficiency, assesses the primary and middle school students' abilities to use Chinese as a second language in their daily and academic lives.
YCT is divided into writing and speaking tests, which are independent to each other. The writing test consists of four levels, namely, YCT (level I), YCT (level II), YCT (level III), and YCT (level IV).
The speaking test consists of two levels, YCT Speaking (Primary Level) and YCT Speaking (Intermediate Level).
YCT Level 1
- The YCT (Level I) assesses test takers’ ability in daily use of Chinese. Test takers who are able to pass the YCT (Level I) can understand and use some of the most common Chinese phrases and sentences and possess the ability to further their Chinese language studies.
- The YCT (Level I) is intended for young students who have studied Chinese for three months, with 2-3 class hours per week. These students have mastered 80 commonly used words and related grammar patterns.
- The YCT (Level I) test is made up of listening comprehension and reading comprehension sections and contains a total of 35 items. All the items on the test paper are displayed in pinyin.
YCT Level 2
- The YCT (Level II) assesses test takers’ ability in daily use of Chinese. It is the counterpart of the Level I of the Chinese Language Proficiency Scales for Speakers of Other Languages and the A1 Level of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEF). Test takers who are able to pass the YCT (Level II) can understand and use some simple Chinese phrases and sentences and cope with basic level communications.
- The YCT (Level II) is intended for young students who have studied Chinese for a semester (half an academic year), with 2-3 class hours per week. These students have mastered 150 commonly used words and related grammar patterns.
- The YCT (Level II) test is made up of listening comprehension and reading comprehension sections and contains a total of 40 items. All the items on the test paper are displayed in pinyin.