38 - Chapter 35

Sa Bina had not brought Lou Sie with her to school today. There seemed like little point in having her travel with her and back, unless she planned to go anywhere after school. She left her guards at the gate and entered the academy

Her different look garnered attention immediately from those who had seen or interacted with her the day before. Sa Bina paid it no mind. She was going to focus on the actual schooling, and leave the nonsense to others. She would still have fun, but would try not to escalate situations more than she strictly had to.

Today consisted of Literature, Law, Arts and History in that order so was sure to be an interesting day. Thankfully her wandering around the day before had been sufficient for her to get a good understanding of how the school was laid out. She had no trouble finding her first class. She had arrived only a little early, and the professor was already present.

“Greetings Professor.” started Sa Bina. “I am Lady Sa Bina. I am joining your class starting today.”

“Greetings Lady Sa Bina.” replied the professor. “I am Professor Li Dandan. Welcome to the class. I noticed that you joined the basic class, not the entry class. Do you know the reason for that?”

“No professor.” replied Sa Bina. She had thought it was odd that her schedule showed her with basic classes for all her subjects, and not entry classes. “Yesterday was my first day. I am just following the schedule that I was given by the Deputy Head.”

“In that case, it may have to do with scheduling as much as anything else.” mused the professor. “Or the Deputy Head wanted us to test you for suitability in the class. Tell me Lady Sa Bina at what level would you judge your reading ability.”

“I have no reference point on which to make the comparison, professor.” replied Sa Bina thoughtfully, half in teacher mode herself. “However, were I to be pushed, I would say it would depend on the part that you are talking about.”

“How would you split up something so simple as reading.” asked the professor, obviously testing Sa Bina’s reasoning capabilities.

“Well generally reading is split into seven areas.” responded Sa Bina. “Reading comprehension, reading accuracy, reading fluency, sight word reading, decoding, non-word reading and knowledge of literature. Comprehension is about understanding what you read. Accuracy is about reading the words correctly, fluency is how quickly you read, sight word reading is about reading without having to sound out words, decoding is about sounding out words, non-word reading is a way to test the ability to read nonsensical words. The knowledge of literature is about actual familiarity with the appropriate reading material. The first six are technically part of teaching language and not literature. The last is about understanding how language is used to convey thoughts, feelings and ideas to others.”

That was a far more comprehensive list than Li Dandan was expecting. Some that even she had not thought to include in her teaching methods, though she would be sure to correct the oversight going forward. This girl was at a comprehension level well beyond the scope of this class, so why would she be assigned here?

“Did you test for the subject before you joined?” asked the professor.

“No, I did not feel I would have the requisite knowledge to pass the literature course.” replied Sa Bina honestly.

“I think there has been a misunderstanding.” replied the professor. “Based on your descriptions, where would you rate your abilities based on our class structure?”

“For the first six parts, I would rate my abilities as advanced, though that is more based on gut feel than any hard evidence at this point.” replied Sa Bina. “For the seventh part, I would rate my abilities as entry level, having no familiarity with the local literature. Hence overall I would not be qualified to pass a literature class.”

That would make sense thought the professor. This students language use was at an extremely high level. If she was lacking any understanding of what she called local literature, then of course, based on the course name she would think that she was not qualified in the subject. Not for the first time Li Dandan considered the option of changing the name of the class to better articulate what the class actually covered.

“And that is why I mentioned a misunderstanding.” replied the professor. “I would have to test you to be sure, but you should actually be in the advanced class. It would require you to spend the time and get familiar with the local literature. This class uses literature as a way to teach the use of language. As long as you spend the time and catch up on your reading, then you should have no difficulty in passing the class. Just to be safe, I want you to spend some time in this class to take the standard test that is administered before entering the advanced class. You can ignore the questions that reference specific works in this instance.”

That was how Sa Bina spent her first class sitting another exam. This one was not as straightforward as the mathematics or economics ones. While she was able to read and comprehend the language at high speed and high fidelity, what she lacked was an understanding of the underlying rules inherent in the language. A lot of the questions were more about the rules, than an actual demonstration of language usage.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

As she focused on the questions, a strange effect took place. Sa Bina started to remember rules she had never learned. It was like staring into the murky depths of a pond, for the water to change to crystal clarity, but only exactly where you were looking. Utilising whatever was granting the ability to fill in the gaps in her knowledge, she was able to answer the majority of questions. She tried to use the mysterious ability she had on questions that required knowledge of content as opposed to an understanding of the language and nothing happened. It seemed her mysterious ability only worked when it related to language. Though that was an interesting notion. What defined a subject as a language had been open to interpretation for as long as language existed, and her personal definition was extremely broad. This was something that she would need to test to understand the full limitations of her ability.

She finished the paper and looked up to see the professor mid lecture on some straight forward rules for language use. Sa Bina had been so engrossed in the exam paper and the realisations about her ability that she had completely zoned out. She had not noticed the other students enter, nor the start of the lecture. Sa Bina sat back and listened to the lecture, a few more gaps in her knowledge filling as result.

As the professor took a small break in her lecture, Sa Bina caught her eye. The professor motioned for her to bring the paper down.

“Are you done already?” asked Li Dandan. “You can take more time to ensure that you have answered everything that you are able to.”

“I have completed the examination, professor.” replied Sa Bina serenely, as she handed over the paper. “The only questions that are left relate to the content of literature with which I have no familiarity.”

“Take a seat while I mark this exam,” replied the professor. Then proceeded to give the class a task to complete, before sitting at her desk to mark Sa Bina’s exam paper.

As Li Dandan started to work though the answers Sa Bina had given, her emotional response started at surprised and ended at astounded. The level of detail and the articulation of complex points was well beyond the ability of any 13 year old she had taught previously. Li Dandan was forced to confront the fact that Sa Bina’s grasp over the rules of the language were beyond her own capabilities. Sa Bina had just delivered a master class in the language in the form of examination answers.

Though that did raise points of incongruity. How was it possible for a student to know the language so well, and yet have not even basic knowledge of the content. It was as if someone had created a class in the architecture of the language, and taught that to Sa Bina, and ignored any other written works. However, that should have been impossible. If such a revolutionary method for teaching language had been developed, then surely she would have become aware of it.

Just where had this girl come from? What was her background? While Li Dandan did not have those answers, she did know that the girl was supremely over qualified for this class. Yet what to do with her, if this was the only slot Sa Bina had available, then there would be no other class she could join. Perhaps an answer could be found in her other classes. She did say that this was only her second day. Perhaps Sa Bina’s abilities would extend to other subjects and require her schedule to be revised.

“Lady Sa Bina.” said Li Dandan. “Please spend the time remaining in the class to support your fellow students in improving their language skills. I will prepare a book list for you, in priority order, for you to cover your deficiencies in this class. Perhaps a review would be appropriate at the end of your first week to ensure that you are in the correct classes for your subjects. I will ask the Deputy Head to make the appropriate arrangements.”

“Thank you professor.” respond Sa Bina. “I am happy to help any of my fellow students that need help.”

She spent the rest of the lesson helping two rather meek girls who struggled to read. She felt that the girls may have a form of dyslexia, but could not be sure without more testing. She did her best to adapt her teaching strategies to support her new students. Something that did not go unnoticed by her professor.

At the end of class, the bell rang, and it was time for her to go to her law class. Before she could leave, the professor called her to her desk.

“What classes do you have today?” asked Li Dandan. “Also, here is the list of books you will need to be conversant with to pass the advanced literature class.”

“I have literature, law, arts, and history today.” replied Sa Bina, taking the list and briefly perusing it. All are at the basic level.”

“What are the other class levels for your other subjects?” asked Li Dandan while scribbling a note.

“I am taking advanced mathematics, economics and management and basic geography.” replied Sa Bina. “ In that order on the odd days in my schedule.”

Li Dandan briefly let surprise show on her face before she schooled her expression. A 13 year old, with the ability to pass four advanced classes, perhaps even more. She really didn't know what to make of this strange child.

“This is a note for Hu Ru, your law professor.” replied Li Dandan, handing Sa Bina the hastily scribbled note. “It will make the class introduction more smooth for you. Make a start on the reading list and I will speak to the Deputy Head when I am able. For the time being, while you are in this class, take the time to help and support your fellow students.”

Sa Bina thanked the professor and left to make her way to her first law class. She took a quick peek at the book list again. There were around 32 books on the list, which at eight books per class level made sense. She would ask Lou Sie to get all the books and arrange them in order in her room to make it easy for her to get through them.

She then took a look at the note Li Dandan had given her to pass on to Hu Ru. The note read.

Hu Ru, this student Lady Sa Bina, is joining your class for the first time today. Her language abilities are on par with a scholar, she is missing only the subject matter expertise. This is just to save you time when you meet her. Li Dandan.

Interesting thought Sa Bina, that will certainly change the tenor of the first conversation with professor Hu Ru.