Transforming Hanzi Instruction: Problem, Practice, and Prospect
汉字教学转型的可操作性与设想
Prof. Phyllis Ni Zhang 张霓教授
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With the advancement of digital Chinese writing, the traditional approach to learning Hanzi will no longer be the norm. Hanzi writing is being gradually replaced by digital processing. To determine the effects of the digital mode of Hanzi learning, this author has conducted a study on college-level beginner’s classes comparing the traditional hand-writing approach and a typing-based approach. The data show that students’ Hanzi performance successfully met or even exceeded expectations in terms of reading and essay writing. Look forward, transforming the Hanzi instruction is not merely an upgrade of tools, but also a reconceptualization of Hanzi learning and literacy development as a different learning process. Based on this outlook, L2 Chinese Hanzi instruction must be repositioned and restructured. While discussing my teaching approaches and research results, I will also explore these three areas: 1) AI advancement and its pedagogical implications; 2) main issues of the typing approach that need to be addressed; and 3) prospects of the sustainability of digital Hanzi literacy development.
Phyllis Ni Zhang is an Associate Professor of Chinese and International Affairs in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures, The George Washington University (GWU). She has served as the director of the GW Chinese language program and the director of the MA in Chinese Language and Culture Program. Her research interests include functional grammar, L2 Chinese proficiency development and assessment, and technology-enhanced instruction. She has authored several textbooks. Her recent publications include a proficiency-oriented multimedia series Developing Chinese Fluency (published by Heinle-Cengage Learning, U.S.), 表达Biaoda, 你我他Ni Wo Ta, and 中级教程Transitions. Prof. Zhang has served on the board of Chinese Language Teachers Association, U.S. (CLTA-US) and CLTA Steering Committee, the board of Journal of Technology and Chinese Language Teaching (JTCLT), and has served as a JTCLT editor.
在人工智能引领的数字化时代，汉字手写方式正在逐渐被各种数字化方式所取代，传统的汉字教学也面临转型升级。 过去几年中，笔者在自己所教授的大学初级班相继进行了传统手写、写打并举、打字为主三种教学尝试。读写技能评测的初步研究数据显示， 打字为主的训练方式在打字准确率、汉字写作产量、阅读理解几个方面的成效均超出预期。从未来发展看，汉字教学转型不仅是工具的升级，而且也是对汉字技能训练的重新认识、探索、和重建。为此，除讨论操作方式和研究结果外，我将从以下方面进一步探讨数字化汉字教学：1）智能技术对汉语教学的启示； 2)打字模式有待解决的问题；3）汉字技能可持续性发展的设想。
张霓为美国乔治华盛顿大学东亚系中文副教授、中国语言文化硕士项目主任。 主要学术研究包括功能语法及中文句法、外语教学法、技术强化下的中文教学模式、二语能力发展及语言水平评测，并编写了多部中文教材。近年来主要编写结合现代技术的Developing Chinese Fluency《流利表达》中文系列教程，已出版的有多媒体初级教程 《你我他》、中级教程 Transitions, 中高级教程《表达》。张霓教授曾任CLTA（全美中文教师学会）理事， 并任 TCLT（《科技与中文教学》）学刊编委及编辑。