Air Writing as a Technique for the Acquisition of Sino-japanese Characters by Second Language Learners

Autor/in	Thomas, Margaret
Titel	Air Writing as a Technique for the Acquisition of Sino-japanese Characters by Second Language Learners
Quelle	In: Language Learning, 65 (2015) 3, S.631-659 (29 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0023-8333
DOI	10.1111/lang.12128
Schlagwörter	Second Language Learning; Japanese; Nonverbal Communication; Second Language Instruction; Psycholinguistics; Accuracy; Orthographic Symbols; Psychomotor Skills; Comparative Analysis; Adult Students; Memorization; Correlation; Statistical Analysis; Writing Instruction; Written Language + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Zweitsprachenerwerb; Japaner; Japanisch; Non-verbal communication; Nonverbale Kommunikation; Fremdsprachenunterricht; Psycholinguistik; Psychomotorische Aktivität; Adult; Adults; Student; Students; Erwachsenenalter; Studentin; Schüler; Schülerin; Gedächtnistraining; Korrelation; Statistische Analyse; Schreibunterricht; Geschriebene Sprache
Abstract	This article calls attention to a facet of the expertise of second language (L2) learners of Japanese at the intersection of language, memory, gesture, and the psycholinguistics of a logographic writing system. Previous research has shown that adult L2 learners of Japanese living in Japan (similarly to native speakers of Japanese) often spontaneously produce highly articulated movements of the fingertips or hands when learning or recalling Sino-Japanese orthographic characters ("kanji"). These movements, known in Japanese as "kusho" (air writing), trace out abstract representations of "kanji," or parts of "kanji," presumably as a kinesthetic aid to learning and recall. The current study tests that presumption with respect to learning, by comparing the accuracy with which adult L2 learners of Japanese (N = 75) memorize the shapes of complex, novel "kanji" under three different learning conditions. Results show that "kusho" is associated with a small but statistically significant advantage in accuracy of recall, compared to either passive visual inspection or the conventional technique of memorizing the shapes of "kanji" by iterative paper-and-pen copying. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01