Going to School 上学 | Learn Chinese with Yoyo Mo

终于要开学了  

Zhōngyú yào kāixué le  

School is finally going to start  

暑假孩子每天在家  

Shǔjià háizi měitiān zài jiā  

During the summer vacation, children stay at home every day  

家长真的很累  

Jiāzhǎng zhēn de hěn lèi  

Parents are really tired  

今天我们来讲讲上学  

Jīntiān wǒmen lái jiǎngjiang shàngxué  

Today we are going to talk about going to school  (school education)

我们通常三岁后开始上幼儿园  

Wǒmen tōngcháng sān suì hòu kāishǐ shàng yòu'éryuán  

We usually start going to kindergarten after the age of three  

幼儿园三年分为小班、中班和大班  

Yòu'éryuán sān nián fēnwéi xiǎobān, zhōngbān hé dàbān  

The three years of kindergarten are divided into junior class, middle class and senior class  

6岁后开始上小学  

Liù suì hòu kāishǐ shàng xiǎoxué  

We start primary school after the age of six  

一共六年，从一年级到六年级  

Yīgòng liù nián, cóng yī niánjí dào liù niánjí  

It lasts six years in total, from the first grade to the sixth grade  

12岁上初中  

Shí'èr suì shàng chūzhōng  

We go to junior high school at the age of twelve  

一共三年，从初一到初三  

Yīgòng sān nián, cóng chūyī dào chūsān  

It lasts three years in total, from the first year of junior high school to the third year of junior high school  

15岁上高中  

Shíwǔ suì shàng gāozhōng  

We go to senior high school at the age of fifteen  

一共三年，从高一到高三  

Yīgòng sān nián, cóng gāoyī dào gāosān  

It lasts three years in total, from the first year of senior high school to the third year of senior high school  

18岁上大学  

Shíbā suì shàng dàxué  

We go to university at the age of eighteen  

通常是四年，从大一到大四  

Tōngcháng shì sì nián, cóng dàyī dào dàsì  

It is usually four years, from the first year of university to the fourth year of university  

专科是三年，医学生可能是五年  

Zhuānkē shì sān nián, yīxuéshēng kěnéng shì wǔ nián  

Junior college lasts three years, while medical students may take five years  

大学毕业你可以自己考研究生  

Dàxué bìyè nǐ kěyǐ zìjǐ kǎo yánjiūshēng  

After graduating from university, you can take the postgraduate entrance examination by yourself  

硕士研究生通常三年，从研一到研三  

Shuòshì yánjiūshēng tōngcháng sān nián, cóng yányī dào yánsān  

A master's program usually lasts three years, from the first year of postgraduate study to the third year of postgraduate study  

然后你可以继续考博士研究生  

Ránhòu nǐ kěyǐ jìxù kǎo bóshì yánjiūshēng  

Then you can continue to take the doctoral entrance examination  

博士好像没有年限  

Bóshì hǎoxiàng méiyǒu niánxiàn  

There seems to be no fixed duration for a doctoral program  

就看你什么时候能毕业  

Jiù kàn nǐ shénme shíhou néng bìyè  

It all depends on when you can graduate  

其实这个学生生涯挺长的  

Qíshí zhège xuéshēng shēngyá tǐng cháng de  

In fact, this student life is quite long  

前几年听说过要把小学缩短为四年  

Qián jǐ nián tīngshuō guò yào bǎ xiǎoxué suōduǎn wèi sì nián  

A few years ago, we heard that primary school would be shortened to four years  

可是一直没有实施  

Kěshì yìzhí méiyǒu shíshī  

But it has not been implemented yet  

我自己是读的重点大学的本科  

Wǒ zìjǐ shì dú de zhòngdiǎn dàxué de běnkē  

I myself studied for a bachelor's degree at a key university  

和一个普通大学的硕士研究生  

Hé yīgè pǔtōng dàxué de shuòshì yánjiūshēng  

And a master's degree at an ordinary university  

现在学历贬值很严重  

Xiànzài xuélì biǎnzhí hěn yánzhòng  

Nowadays, the devaluation of academic qualifications is very serious  

因为本科生、研究生太多了  

Yīnwèi běnkēshēng, yánjiūshēng tài duō le  

Because there are too many undergraduate and postgraduate students  

其实社会不需要那么多高学历的人  

Qíshí shèhuì bù xūyào nàme duō gāo xuélì de rén  

In fact, society does not need so many people with high academic qualifications  

不需要那么多的白领  

Bù xūyào nàme duō de báilǐng  

It does not need so many white-collar workers