Cover not available
Article published In:
Chinese as a Second Language (漢語教學研究—美國中文教師學會學報)
Vol. 56:1 (2021) ► pp.49–76

Staying afloat

Emic perceptions of learning Chinese characters

| SIL International

This qualitative study gives an emic account of the experiences of adult L2 learners studying Chinese characters. Using semi-structured interviews and written journals of Americans who have spent time in China, the study uncovers core experiences and common patterns, giving voice to the holistic experience of learners, including affective aspects. The results of the study show that the very complexity of Chinese characters simultaneously attracts and deters learners. Learners experience an ever-growing realization of deeper complexity and greater volume. The struggling that ensues compels learners to actively find strategies to enable them to remain afloat in the learning process: (1) breaking down the complexity, (2) managing the incoming volume, (3) finding satisfaction in using the learning, (4) leading their own learning, (5) making use of resources, and (6) maintaining their learning. Findings from this study suggest practical applications for both L2 learners and teachers of Chinese characters.

Keywords: Chinese characters, Chinese as a foreign language, language learning, learning strategies, adult language learning, Mandarin study, L2 learners
Article outline
  • 1.Learning Chinese characters
  • 2.Research design and methods
    • 2.1Research questions, limitations, and significance
    • 2.2Data collection
    • 2.3Participants
    • 2.4Methods
    • 2.5Data analysis
      • 2.5.1Transcription and importing
      • 2.5.2Initial coding
      • 2.5.3Memoing
      • 2.5.4Focused coding
      • 2.5.5Theoretical coding
    • 2.6Researcher positionality
  • 3.Research findings
    • 3.1Initial perspective: Attracted and daunted
      • 3.1.1Attracted
      • 3.1.2Daunted
    • 3.2Growing realization of deeper complexity
      • 3.2.1Multiple language skills
      • 3.2.2Multiple styles of characters
    • 3.3Struggling with enormity
    • 3.4Finding strategies to keep going
      • 3.4.1Breaking down the complexity
      • 3.4.2Managing the incoming volume
      • 3.4.3Finding satisfaction in using the learning
      • 3.4.4Leading one’s own learning
      • 3.4.5Making use of resources
      • 3.4.6Maintaining the learning
  • 4.Conclusion and practical applications
  • References
Published online: 7 December 2021
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/csl.21011.wal
References (37)
Abadzi, H.
(2012) Can adults become fluent readers in newly learned scripts? Education Research International, 1–8. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Allen, J.
(2009) Why learning to write Chinese is a waste of time: A modest proposal. Foreign Language Annals, 41 (2), 237–251. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Arrow, J.
(2004) Learning Chinese characters: A comparative study of the learning strategies of students whose native language is alphabet-based and students whose native language is character-based. [Thesis]. [URL]
Carton, D.
(1981) Situational learning modules for the adult education foreign language course. The Modern Language Journal, 65 (4), 383–386. JSTOR. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Chen, T.
(2019) Joint contributions of multilevel linguistic knowledge to character meaning retention in L2 Chinese. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 48 (1), 129–143. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cheng, C.-C.
(1977) In defense of teaching simplified characters. Journal of Chinese Linguistics, 5 (2), 314–341. JSTOR.Google Scholar
Creswell, J. W.
(2014) Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th ed). SAGE Publications.Google Scholar
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N.
(2018) Qualitative inquiry & research design: Choosing among five approaches (Fourth edition). SAGE.Google Scholar
Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S.
(Eds.) (1998) Strategies of qualitative inquiry. Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Ehrman, M., & Oxford, R.
(1990) Adult language learning styles and strategies in an intensive training setting. The Modern Language Journal, 74 (3), 311–327. JSTOR. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Everson, M. E.
(1998) Word recognition among learners of Chinese as a foreign language: Investigating the relationship between naming and knowing. Modern Language Journal, 82 (2), 194–204. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Feldman, L. B., & Siok, W. W. T.
(1999) Semantic radicals in phonetic compounds: Implications for visual character recognition in Chinese. In J. Wang, A. W. Inhoff, & H.-C. Chen (Eds.), Reading Chinese script: A cognitive analysis. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.Google Scholar
Giovanni, F. B. d’Arcais
(1994) Order of strokes writing as a cue for retrieval in reading Chinese characters. European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 6 (4), 337–355. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Glaser, B. G., & Strauss, A. L.
(1967) The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Aldine Transaction. [URL]
Ho, C. S.-H., & Bryant, P.
(1997) Learning to read Chinese beyond the logographic phase. Reading Research Quarterly, 32 (3), 276–289. JSTOR. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Knowles, M. S., Holton, E. F., & Swanson, R. A.
(2005) The adult learner: The definitive classic in adult education and human resource development (6th ed). Elsevier. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kuo, M.-L. A., & Hooper, S.
(2004) The effects of visual and verbal coding mnemonics on learning Chinese characters in computer-based instruction. Educational Technology Research and Development, 52 (3), 23–34. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Ma Yue 马跃
(2020) Contrastive linguistic approaches as a key to dilute the stereotype of Chinese as a superhard language. Chinese as a Second Language Research, 9 (2), 313–336. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
MacNaughton, W., & Li, Y.
(1999) Reading and writing Chinese: A guide to the Chinese writing system ; the student’s 1,020 list, the official 2,000 list (Rev. ed., 2. pr). Tuttle.Google Scholar
McGinnis, S.
(1997) Tonal spelling versus diacritics for teaching pronunciation of Mandarin Chinese. The Modern Language Journal, 81 (2), 228–236. JSTOR. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Merriam, S. B.
(Ed.) (2007) Non-Western perspectives on learning and knowing. Krieger Publishing Company.Google Scholar
Merriam, S. B., & Bierema, L. L.
(2014) Adult learning: Linking theory and practice (First edition). Jossey-Bass, a Wiley brand.Google Scholar
Packard, J. L.
(1990) Effects of time lag in the introduction of characters into the Chinese language curriculum. The Modern Language Journal, 74 (2), 167–175. JSTOR. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Romagnoli, C., & Conti, S.
(2019) How and how much? Vocabulary learning strategies and vocabulary size in CFL. Chinese as a Second Language, 54 (2), 93–121.Google Scholar
She, H. H., & Ke, C.
(2007) Radical awareness and word acquisition among nonnative learners of Chinese. Modern Language Journal, 91 (1), 97–111. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Shen, H. H.
(2005) An investigation of Chinese-character learning strategies among non-native speakers of chinese. System, 33 (1), 49–68. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2013) Chinese L2 literacy development: Cognitive characteristics, learning strategies, and pedagogical interventions. Language and Linguistics Compass, 7 (7), 371–387. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Strauss, A. L., & Corbin, J. M.
(1991) Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques (3. printing). Sage.Google Scholar
Taylor, I., & Olson, D. R.
(2012) Scripts and literacy: Reading and learning to read alphabets, syllabaries and characters. Springer Science & Business Media.Google Scholar
Walker, G. L. R.
(1989) Intensive Chinese curriculum: The EASLI model. Journal of the Chinese Language Teachers Association, 24 (2), 43–83.Google Scholar
Wang, L.
(2014) The effects of single and dual coded multimedia instructional methods on Chinese character learning. Chinese as a Second Language Research; Berlin, 3 (1), 1–25. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wlodkowski, R. J., & Ginsberg, M. B.
(2017) Enhancing adult motivation to learn: A comprehensive guide for teaching all adults. John Wiley & Sons.Google Scholar
Xing, J. Z.
(2006) Teaching and learning Chinese as a foreign language: A pedagogical grammar (Vol. 11). Hong Kong University Press. [URL]
Xu, Y., Chang, L.-Y., & Perfetti, C. A.
(2014) The effect of radical-based grouping in character learning in Chinese as a foreign language: The effect of radical-based grouping in character. The Modern Language Journal, 98 (3), 773–793. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Yang, L., & Zhao, Z.
(2018) Profiling L2 writing development: The case of CFL learners in intermediate classes. Chinese as a Second Language Research; Berlin, 7 (2), 221–247. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Zahradníková, M.
(2016) A qualitative inquiry of character learning strategies by Chinese L2 beginners. Chinese as a Second Language, 51 (2), 117–137. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Zhou, J.
(2018) Component skills of reading among learners of Chinese as a second language [Ph.D., University of Hawai’i at Manoa]. [URL]