There is an urgent need to address the critical demand for qualified Chinese language teachers against the background of China’s seeking greater Sino–foreign cultural and educational cooperation. The literature on integrating technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) in language teaching has been increasing in the last few years. However, most of these studies focus on English language teachers. The objective of this study was to examine pre-service teachers’ understanding of TPACK for teaching Chinese as a second language (TCSL). This study investigated the TPACK factor structure of 286 pre-service TCSL teachers via exploratory factor analysis, which yielded a six-factor structure. The results revealed that the teachers could not distinguish the boundaries between technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK) and technological content knowledge (TCK); and TPK and synthesized TPACK. Further, confirmatory factor analysis using structural equation modeling substantiated the validity and reliability of the adapted 32-item TCSL-TPACK survey instrument. The study also found that the teachers were slightly satisfied with their overall TPACK but were least confident of their technological knowledge (TK), and the more experienced teachers exhibited higher confidence in all six factors. These findings not only remind educators and policymakers of the need to revise current teacher training programs but also persuade TCSL student teachers to explore methods that can help integrate technology into lesson designs.

Previous studies have discussed the impact of social context on language maintenance and shift of Chinese fangyan in metropolises, but not enough in rural areas. To explore the language maintenance and shift of the Hakka fangyan among Mid-mountain Hakka (MMH), a sub-branch of the Hakka people who live in Hakka-Chaoshan adjoining areas, this study examined the language proficiency, use, attitudes, and group identity of 200 residents in Jiexi County using quantitative and qualitative data. Through an analysis of survey- and interview-based self-reported data, our results revealed that although MMH seemed able to maintain the Hakka fangyan at a good level overall, there was still a sharp intergenerational decline in fangyan proficiency, use, attitudes, and awareness of Hakka identity and culture. Furthermore, there may have been a shift from the predominance of Hakka-Chaoshan bilinguals to the predominance of Hakka- Putonghua bilinguals across generations. We also constructed a model of the factors influencing language maintenance and shift of MMH. This study helps enhance our understanding of the role of group identity in language maintenance and shift, and has important implications for the practice of fangyan protection in rural areas of China.

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