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Chinese as a Second Language (漢語教學研究—美國中文教師學會學報): Online-First Articles

Effective character teaching methods for L1 English Chinese-as-a-foreign-language learners

A review of empirical research

| Iowa State University
Chinese character instruction has been one of the most challenging aspects in teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language (CFL). CFL teachers need access to a pool of effective character teaching methods to practice evidence-based and research-informed teaching. This synthesis study comprises an exhaustive search of literature published from 1952 to the present on character instruction for L1 English CFL learners and a systematic review of 22 articles identified through that search. The articles were cross analyzed in terms of research methods, learners’ proficiency levels, learning settings, methodological approaches, and theoretical bases. The analysis found an increasing number of studies on character teaching methods in the past ten years and that technology plays an important role in the design of these methods. Six categories of character instructional methods were identified out of the 39 methods examined in the literature. Within five of the categories, effective methods were identified, described, and discussed. Analysis of the data points out the strengths and weaknesses of the current research on character teaching and highlights the need for more research on character learning with younger learners and on using different approaches at the curriculum level. This article concludes by identifying the next steps to take and calling for more action research to examine the application cycle of these effective methods in classroom teaching.
Keywords: Chinese writing system, character teaching, Chinese script, Chinese orthography, Hanzi
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Literature review
  • 3.Methodology
    • 3.1Operational definition
    • 3.2Exhaustive search
    • 3.3Screening criteria used for identifying articles
    • 3.4Data recording and analysis
  • 4.Findings
    • 4.1General information and trend of the studies
    • 4.2Character instructional methods
      • 4.2.1The handwriting method
      • 4.2.2The pinyin typing method
      • 4.2.3The method that involves using radicals, bùjiàn (components), and chunks
      • 4.2.4Character presentation methods
      • 4.2.5Kinesthetic and haptic learning
      • 4.2.6Timing of character introduction
  • 5.Discussion
    • 5.1Critical factors that influence the methods
    • 5.2The non-existing “supermethod”
    • 5.3Strengths and weakness of the studies on methods
    • 5.4More studies needed
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Note
  • References
Published online: 12 February 2024
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https://doi.org/10.1075/csl.00033.zha
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Zhang, Shenglan
2024. Curriculum design in teaching Chinese characters to American students: when and what?. Chinese as a Second Language Research 13:1 ► pp. 29 ff. DOI logo

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