How do metalinguistic awareness, working memory, reasoning, and inhibition contribute to Chinese character reading of kindergarten children?

Yang, Xiujie; Peng, Peng; Meng, Xiangzhi

doi:10.1002/icd.2122

Cited by 19 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 80 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Chinese is an opaque language with complex mappings between sound and meaning. Learning to read Chinese is known to rely heavily on phonological skill at syllable level and semantic skill at morphological and lexical levels (Li et al, 2012; McBride‐Chang et al, 2003; Tong et al, 2009; Yang et al, 2019; Zhang et al, 2012). While we acknowledge the importance of these linguistic skills, our findings further showed that children require an additional PSF to put the two aspects of linguistic knowledge into effective use for reading.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…One of the most widely studied skills is linguistic skills. Due to the morpho‐syllabic nature of Chinese characters, both phonological skills (e.g., syllable skills) and semantic skills (e.g., vocabulary and morphological skills) were demonstrated to have unique contributions to early reading outcomes (Li et al, 2012; McBride‐Chang et al, 2003; Tong et al, 2009; Yang et al, 2019; Zhang et al, 2012). Another related set of skills are general cognitive skills, such as executive functions (EF), which refers to a collection of cognitive processes responsible for directing our own thoughts and behaviours to attain a specific goal.…”

Section: Figurementioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Phonological–semantic flexibility and its role in reading for Chinese kindergarten children

Fong

2023

Infant and Child Development

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The present study aimed to examine the role of phonological–semantic flexibility (PSF) in learning to read Chinese. PSF refers to a specific flexibility applied to process the dual linguistic dimensions of words (i.e., sound and meaning). A correlational study (Study 1) was conducted to determine the unique contribution of PSF to three aspects of early reading abilities, including word reading accuracy, word reading fluency and reading comprehension. A total of 190 Chinese kindergarten children were tested on a PSF task and a range of cognitive, linguistic and reading tasks. Results of hierarchical regressions showed that PSF uniquely and significantly contributed to the reading abilities beyond the effects of established cognitive factors (IQ, working memory, inhibition control, and cognitive flexibility) and linguistic factors (syllable skills, morphological skill and vocabulary skill). In the second part, an intervention study (Study 2) was conducted in which two groups of kindergarten children received explicit training on PSF (27 children) and colour–shape flexibility (26 children) respectively. Children in the PSF group showed significantly more improvement in PSF and word reading fluency than the control group. Overall, the present study demonstrated the theoretical and practical importance of PSF for learning to read Chinese.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Figurementioning

confidence: 99%

Phonological–semantic flexibility and its role in reading for Chinese kindergarten children

Fong

2023

Infant and Child Development

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Studies collectively found that morphological awareness and orthographic knowledge predict later Chinese word reading (e.g., Tong et al, 2009;Lin et al, 2018). In particular, in studies that compared the contributions of multiple cognitive-linguistic skills, orthographical knowledge was found to be the strongest predictor (e.g., McBride-Chang and Ho, 2009;Yang et al, 2019). As studies of early Chinese learning suggest that the underlying abilities may be different as compared to alphabetic scripts owing to the characteristics of the Chinese writing system, understanding of Chinese language development is needed to expand our understanding of the processes that are language specific and universal.…”

Section: Theoretical Framework Underlying Chinese Word Reading and Ch...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The early language gap between first- and second-language learners: acquisition of Chinese characters among preschoolers

2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

For culturally and linguistically diverse children, early second language (L2) development is important for school achievement and social inclusion. These children face challenges in acquiring L2, especially in Hong Kong, where the dominant Chinese language contrasts strongly with their home languages. Studies that compared the language abilities of first language (L1) and L2 students in English-speaking contexts have reported young L2 learners’ disadvantage in using the dominant language in oral language and comprehension at school entry. The findings raise the question of whether L2 learners who fall behind their L1 peers in language abilities will be further disadvantaged, showing a weaker development gradient. This study used the Chinese Character Acquisition Assessment (CCAA) to compare character acquisition of 491 L2 children aged from 3 to 6 years against that of 240 of their L1 peers from Hong Kong kindergartens. The CCAA is comprised of six subtests and assesses children’s abilities to make associations among character written form (orthography), sound, and meaning. Results showed that L2 learners had greater development in meaning and sound associations across class levels, implying that they may first develop oral language related abilities. In addition, results indicate that diverging gaps between L1 and L2 learners’ Chinese character acquisition existed across class levels for the associations involving written character form, but not in regard to associations between character meaning and sound. This study highlights the Chinese learning needs of L2 preschoolers and provides understanding of their abilities in mapping among character written forms, sounds, and meanings. The findings suggest the importance of supporting L2 children’s oral language at earlier stages of Chinese learning, and the need to provide instructional support to compensate for their relative weakness in literacy at school entry.

show abstract

“…The two studies used the “Chinese Character Recognition Test Battery and Assessment Scale for Primary School Children” compiled by Wang and Tao (1996) to measure children's Chinese character reading. After conversion, the proportions of total characters were 12.24% and 37.73%, respectively (Yang and Qiao, 2021; Yang et al, 2018). Other studies using self-compiled Chinese character recognition tests found that children in K3 could recognize about 25–83% of the total characters.…”

Section: “Readiness Level”: Quantity Of Characters In Children's Chin...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The difficulty and challenge in Chinese children’s character reading: An analysis based on Chinese curriculum standards and Chinese character reading research

Liu,

Wang,

Wang

et al. 2023

Journal of Chinese Writing Systems

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Chinese character reading is the focus of Chinese teaching in the lower grades of primary school, and it is also a difficult point and challenging problem in the transition from kindergartens (K3) to primary school. To understand the learning slope of children's Chinese character reading in this transition, this study assessed the requirements of Chinese curriculum standards for compulsory education over the years based on the number of Chinese characters being learned by children in the lower grades of primary school. The results showed that the requirement of 1600 Chinese characters was, is, and will be the “should level” required at this stage of education. Comparing it with the levels achieved by children in kindergartens and primary schools in the empirical research from 2005 to 2021, it was found that the slope of children's Chinese character reading was not in the transition between K3 and Grade 1 but rather between Grades 1 and 2. The study proposed that to alleviate the slope in this transition, we should pay more attention to Chinese character teaching in Grade 2, improve the abilities of Grade 2 students’ Chinese character reading, and help them reach the requirements of the curriculum standards, in order to prevent the pressure of Chinese character reading from Grade 2 flooding back into Grade 1, causing parents to worry about their children's Chinese character reading before entering primary school.

show abstract

How do metalinguistic awareness, working memory, reasoning, and inhibition contribute to Chinese character reading of kindergarten children?

Cited by 19 publications

References 80 publications

Phonological–semantic flexibility and its role in reading for Chinese kindergarten children

Phonological–semantic flexibility and its role in reading for Chinese kindergarten children

The early language gap between first- and second-language learners: acquisition of Chinese characters among preschoolers

The difficulty and challenge in Chinese children’s character reading: An analysis based on Chinese curriculum standards and Chinese character reading research

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About