Pre-service Chinese language teachers’ conceptions of assessment: A person-centered perspective

Teachers’ conceptions of assessment are a significant indicator of teacher assessment literacy. This study contextualized pre-service teachers’ conceptions of assessment in Chinese second language education. An exploratory factor analysis generated eight first-order factors and the following confirmatory factor analysis found a hierarchical model, reflecting a noticeable influence of prior learning experiences and official assessment regimes on conceptions. A follow-up latent profile analysis showed three profiles. Improvement-oriented was the most prevalent profile, but more than 40% of the participants were categorized as negative. The study substantiated the need to develop an integrative and balanced understanding of assessment in teacher education to prepare pre-service teachers for teaching in international contexts.

ICT in Homework as a Way to Increase the Cognitive Interest of Students in Learning Chinese

In recent years, Russian schools have increasingly introduced Chinese as a second foreign language in their programs. Given the specificity of the object (characters, tone), the number of fixed lessons (for non-core classes two hours per week) and the number of students per class (average 10 people) educational outcomes, identified in the GEF, can be achieved only by combination of classwork and homework. The study attempts to trace the connection between the integration of ICT in homework and increasing the cognitive interest of schoolchildren while learning Chinese. For this purpose, in the 2019-2020 academic year, a pedagogical study was conducted in which four Chinese language teachers and 44 7th-grade students from three state-funded General education institutions in Moscow took part. The results showed that the integration of ICT in homework itself did not lead to an unambiguous increase in interest in the subject. Nevertheless, electronic homework could have caused an increase in the entertainment quality of the assignments.

ISU DAN MASALAH PEMBELAJARAN DAN PEMUDAHCARAAN MENGENALI AKSARA CINA DI SEKOLAH RENDAH JENIS KEBANGSAAN CINA KUCHING [ISSUES AND PROBLEMS IN LEARNING AND TEACHING CHINESE CHARACTERS AT CHINESE VERNACULAR PRIMARY SCHOOLS KUCHING]

This report is part of a study on the development of Chinese character recognition modules. This report focus in the issues and problems in the learning and teaching of Chinese characters among Chinese students and teachers in Chinese vernacular primary schools, Kuching. The purposive sampling is conducted in the selection of seven first-level Chinese language teachers. Data collected using a semi-structured interview and analyzed using keyword thematic techniques. Some of the identified issues in relation to student’s learning are: (1) Unable to recognize the form of characters and meaning of Chinese characters effectively, and (2) Unable to write Chinese characters correctly. While the issues generated in relation to teacher’s teaching are: (1) No emphasis in recognizing and acquisition of the Chinese characters during learning and teaching, and (2) Lack of awareness of the teaching approaches according to the characteristics of Chinese characters. The findings indicated that further studies related to the development of Chinese character recognition modules, reviews of Chinese characters learning in textbooks, the use of appropriate and effective methods to aquire Chinese characters are greatly needed to ensure the quality of the learning and teaching Chinese.

PELAKSANAAN KEMAHIRAN BERFIKIR ARAS TINGGI (KBAT) DALAM PEMBELAJARAN DAN PEMUDAHCARAAN BAHASA CINA DI SEKOLAH MENENGAH [THE IMPLEMENTATION OF HIGHER ORDER THINKING SKILLS (HOTS) IN THE TEACHING AND LEARNING OF THE CHINESE LANGUAGE IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS]

The purpose of this research was to identify the level of understanding and the incorporation of Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) in the teaching and learning of the Chinese Language among Secondary Schools teachers in Selangor. The respondents were 183 Chinese Language teachers from 145 secondary schools in Selangor. Questionnaires were administered to collect data in this research. A descriptive analysis was done to obtain the mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentage to identify the secondary school Chinese Language teachers’ level of understanding towards HOTS and the incorporation of HOTS in the teaching and learning process in their classrooms. The findings showed that teacher’s understanding and knowledge towards HOTS were satisfactory with an average mean above 3.5; while the mean for the incorporation of HOTS in teaching and learning implied that this aspect has to be improved. The findings were able to provide useful input on the level of implementation of HOTS among Secondary School Chinese Language teachers in Selangor.

Differentiation of radical processing strategies in character decoding by L2 learners of Chinese according to L1-type

This study investigates the productive use of semantic and phonetic radicals for Chinese character decoding by Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) learners at different levels of L2 proficiency, focusing on the application of radical knowledge according to the learners’ L1 language families. Using a pseudo-word test developed by Williams, Clay. 2014. The development of intra-character radical awareness in L1 Chinese children: Changing strategies. Journal of the Chinese Language Teachers Association 49(2). 1–26 to measure subject preference for semantic versus phonological decoding processes, subjects are asked to match a provided definition and pronunciation with a character in a multiple choice format which included two pseudo characters designed with radicals which corresponded with the provided definition or pronunciation, respectively. The results demonstrate that reliance on semantic or phonological radicals for character identification varies according to the L1 of the CFL learners; subjects whose L1 is relatively orthographically transparent predominantly make use of phonological processing strategies at all levels of proficiency, whereas those whose L1 are more orthographically opaque demonstrate more malleable processing preferences, with relatively strong semantic radical reliance in the early stage of their language learning, and considerable variability between semantic and phonological processing at intermediate and advanced proficiency levels. The findings suggest that developmental trends of using radical decoding strategies differ among CFL learner groups with varying L1 literacy strategy preferences.