Dr. Jeff R. Watson Dr. Wayne He ( 何文潮 )

Textbook / workbook Grammar book Teacher’s manual Free online audio & flashcards

Reading, writing, listening, speaking + computing Handwriting is introduced gradually Keyboarding allows students to recognize more vocabulary

Not just typing—students need to know pinyin, tone, and character

Practice exercises Listening & speaking exercises Composition Lab and homework Using examples from Chinese for Tomorrow, Volumes 1 and 2 第一、二册的例子

 Exercises for computing and learning characters in each chapter (e.g. V.1, L.3, p. 114)  Type the following passage: 王小年請他的中國朋友去看電影，可是她的 中國朋友不喜歡看電影。他問王小年去不去 打球， …  Type the following pinyin sentences and select the correct characters  Circle the correct character to fill in the blanks. ( 不、吓、下、丁、才 ) 課以後我們才去吃中 國飯。

Example from the Chinese for Tomorrow Teacher’s Manual, Volume 1:

 Varied listening & speaking exercises to reinforce learned vocabulary (e.g. Volume 1, p. 148)

 Vol. 1 – simple sentences and short compositions starting in Lesson 1 (e.g. p.58)  Vol. 2 – more in-depth compositions (e.g. p.241)

 Two groups: Experimental & Control  Qualitative & quantitative research methods  1 st -year College Chinese – 160 contact hours  Treatment spanned AY (2 semesters)

Research QuestionsData Gathering Instruments Data Gathering Modes 1) How do students perceive their learning experience when using the Computer Chinese approach vs. a more traditional approach?  Video-taped non-participant observation  Learning Strategy survey  Motivation survey (2 iterations)  Post-course group discussion  Post-course structured interview  Observation  Interview  Self-report 2) How do students perform in terms of speaking & reading proficiency after using the Computer Chinese approach?  ACTFL-developed Prochievement Test  ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview  Language Testing

 N=24 sophomores  22 male; 2 female  No prior formal experience with Chinese  23 native speakers of English; 1 Korean  Textbook: Chinese for Tomorrow  Software: NJSTAR

 N=23 sophomores  18 male; 5 female  No prior formal experience with Chinese  23 native speakers of English  Textbook: Integrated Chinese  Software: KEY

Experimental Control Experimental Control

Experimental Control Experimental Control

Experimental 3.16 Control 3.54 Experimental3.36 Control 2.86

 Experimental Group + Communicative, conversational focus + Integrated grammar + Delayed character-writing + Functional organization with recycled vocabulary + Computer program: NJSTAR + Typing ability allows for earlier writing of paragraphs - Dependence on Pinyin which is later phased out - Definitions sometimes associated with Pinyin instead of Hanzi - Some concern about handwriting requirements in advanced courses

 Control Group + Functional dialogs with storyline + Handwriting flashcards + Decent conversation activities + Computer program: KEY - Handwriting exercises led to memorization of stroke order – not meaning association - Limited focus on pronunciation - Some concern about handwriting requirements in advanced courses

 Experimental Group (N=4) + Fu  Li

 Control Group (N=3) + Fu  Li

 Developed & validated by ACTFL  Geared toward students with lower-level proficiency  40 multiple-choice items  18 novice-level; 22 intermediate-level items  10 vocabulary  10 grammar  20 reading proficiency

 Both groups demonstrated similar yet unique learning strategy development.  Experimental group reported using reading as a memorization technique.  Control group reported using writing as a memorization technique.  Both groups demonstrated similar performance on the prochievement test while the Experimental group demonstrated a slight non-statistically significant edge. But 36% of the Experimental group reached the Intermediate level of ACTFL rating in the test while the Control group only 13%.

 Both groups generally showed similar patterns in motivation, attitude and confidence.  The experimental group held favorable attitude toward typing on the computer for learning vocabulary  The control group was generally more favorable to writing characters than the experimental group. However, on the second survey (post-treatment), BOTH the Experimental group AND Control group reported a more positive attitude toward typing than writing.  On the first survey (mid-term), the Control group reported more confidence in their speaking. On the second survey (post- treatment), the Experimental group reported more confidence in speaking.