HKDSE 2020: What to bring for every subject
From proper identity documents to HKEAA-approved calculators, here is a checklist of every tool you need to tackle the public exams
If you’re ever facing a stressful or complicated situation, one way to take control is by making a checklist. Pilots use them to make sure planes are safe before they fly. Surgeons use them to make sure they are not operating on the wrong patient, or the wrong part of a patient.
If you want to learn more about how checklists can change your life, you might like to read The Checklist Manifest by Atul Gawande.
In the meantime, for those of you writing the HKDSE – or any other important exams or tests, here are the things you need to take with you:
Must-bring items for every exam:
- HKID card or another valid form of photo ID
- HKDSE admission form
- Blue or black ballpoint pens
- HB pencils and erasers (for maths papers)
- HK$500 cash (for lunch and emergency taxi rides)
- Octopus card (with at least HK$100 on it)
Recommended items for every exam:
- Correction pens or tape
- Highlighters (to highlight important
words in essay questions) - Extra ballpoint pens and pencils
- Gum or sweets if you think you’ll need them
- Water bottle
- Jacket and rain gear
- Last-minute revision notes (but put them away before you enter the exam room!)
- Smart phone (put that away too!)
- Tissue packs or napkins
For the non-language exams:
- Calculators, with a “HKEAA approved” or “HKEA approved” label, and with nothing written on the back. If it is electronic, make sure it’s battery-powered, silent, and with no printout or graphic/word-display facilities or dot-matrix technology on the display
For the Mathematics and/or Geography exam:
- Graduated rulers with gridlines
- Protractor
- Drafting compasses with lead refills
- Flexible curves (optional)
- Set squares (optional)
For the listening exams:
- A radio no bigger than 46cm x 15cm x 15cm with batteries (for exams taken at radio centres)
- Working earphones – ones with a 3.5mm-diameter plug that has two insulating rings on it
- A spare radio and batteries
For the Technology and Living (Fashion, Clothing & Textiles) exam:
- HKEAA-approved miniature figures – they should not be labelled, or include details such as design lines, facial features, or descriptions
- HKEAA-approved basic blocks in scale, including bodice, sleeve, skirt, and trousers – they should not be labelled or have words on them
- Colour pencils
- 1/5 scale ruler
For the Ethics and Religious Studies exam:
- HKEAA-approved Bibles (maximum two copies for different language versions or translations), and with no attachments (like labels or stickers). The only writing allowed in it are your personal details (name, class, address). Texts and verses can be underlined or highlighted
For the Design and Applied Technology exam:
- Calculator
- Graduated ruler
- T-squares
- Set squares
- Flexible ruler
- Protractor
- Compasses
- French curves
- Flexi curves
- Circle and ellipse template
- Drawing board
- Colour pencils
For the Information and Communication Technology exam:
- Flowcharting templates (with or without names of symbols printed on them)
Edited by Charlotte Ames-Ettridge
You might also like:
HKDSE 2019: Exam tips from an expert for English language Paper 2: Writing
HKDSE 2019: Top exam tips for English Language Paper 3: Listening and Integrated Skills
HKDSE 2019: Top tutors' tips on how to prepare for and ace your maths exams