Why Should Characters Be Introduced to Novice-Level Chinese in a Blended Learning Setting?

After many decades, the debate continues over when characters should be introduced to college-level Chinese programs in the U.S. This study aimed to assess the impact of early instruction versus delayed instruction of characters on oral and written competency development. A time-series design was used to track two novice-level cases in a blended learning setting for one semester at an American university. One case received the early introduction of character instruction, the other received the delayed instruction. The two participants completed eight oral and written tests after treatment, three repeated summative assessment tasks, as well as pre- and post-intervention attitude questionnaire survey. The findings suggest that the early instruction case performed better than the delayed instruction case in both oral and written tests. Additionally, the delayed instruction case changed attitudes toward the timing of character instruction. Implications for Chinese as a foreign language education are discussed.