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Tse S.K., Wong M.Y., Lee T.N. and To-Chan S.P. (2014). Emergent writing of Chinese Characters by Pre-schoolers in Hong Kong, Han-Character and Classical written language Education, 34, 213-235. doi: 10.15670/HACE.2014.34.1.213.

幼兒中文, 寫作

Title

Emergent writing of Chinese Characters by Pre-schoolers in Hong Kong
香港幼兒書寫漢字的過渡字研究

Journal

Han-Character and Classical written language Education
漢字漢文教育

Year

2014

Vol

Vol. 34
pp213-235

Author

Shek Kam TSE, Man Ying WONG, Toi Na LEE, Sing Pui TO-CHAN

Abstract

Should pre-schoolers start learning how to write Chinese characters? This has been a controversial topic among the public and education circle in mainland China and Hong Kong.
In the 60’s and 70’s, as writing was part of the requirement for Primary One admission tests, kindergartens had to start preparing children by drilling them into practicing writing. This was a painful experience for many pre-schoolers as their cognitive development at that age were not ready to differentiate and identify character structure and character stroke sequence. Many of them lost interest in learning Chinese characters, although some of them did pick up this required skill from mere drilling.
This practice has been discouraged by the Education Bureau of Hong Kong Government. However, some kindergarten teachers and parents still keep this practice.
This study will focus on free writing and drawing for preschoolers, and attempts to investigate if children are able to write characters during free writing and drawing sessions, through participant observation and case studies. The study will also make comparisons between what preschoolers write during free writing and drawing when there is no pressure and the conventional characters they would write during normal lessons.
At the tender age of 3 to 4, children are not able to follow through the conventional learning process of characters writing. Hence if they can also practice emergent writing where they are allowed to form emergent characters or even drawings during free writing, this can help them to recognize the characters though the stroke sequence or even the characters written may not be precise by conventional standards. This interim stage of learning has found to be important for reading and beneficial for preschoolers to write conventional characters better at a later stage.

不論在中國內地或香港, 「幼稚園學生應否學習書寫漢字?」 是一直備受爭議的課題. 香港教育局明確指出, 「書寫字詞」 的學習目的, 是讓兒童透過書寫正確的漢字, 利用文字表達意念. 而香港幼稚園學生的書寫教學, 以掌握漢字字形的平衡及比例, 並準確地掌握筆劃及形狀為目標. 故此, 除了透過抄寫字形的方式來學習書寫漢字外, 是否還有其他方法教導幼兒學習書寫漢字, 這是一個十分值得探討的研究課題. 本個案研究通過讓幼兒進行自由繪畫及書寫的方法, 觀察幼兒能否在 「自由書寫」 的活動中學習漢字書寫. 與此同時, 本研究將比較幼兒 「自由書寫」 和 「正式寫字練習」 的書寫表現. 研究結果發現, 大部分3至4歲的幼兒並未能按筆順整齊地書寫漢字. 相反, 幼兒正從書寫不規則線條, 慢慢過渡至正式文字;其中書寫的不完整文字可以稱之為 「過渡字」. 容許幼兒書寫 「過渡字」, 可以協助幼兒認字․以至學習筆順. 在這階段, 教師不應過於著重 「正字」 和 「筆順」 的問題, 因為強制幼兒寫 「美觀標準字」 和限制幼兒不可寫字, 同樣會阻礙幼兒書寫能力的發展. 因此, “過渡字” 的書寫, 有助幼兒閱讀能力和書寫能力的發展.

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