Intentional Language Teaching and Early Chinese Language Development: A Longitudinal Multilevel Study

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 9:45 am - Gold 4
  In Roundtable Session: Language and Literacy Development in Multilingual Contexts

Abstract

Guided by sociocultural theory, this study examined how kindergarten teachers' intentional language teaching influences children's Chinese language development. A two-wave longitudinal design involved 52 teachers and 329 children from 19 Shenzhen kindergartens. Using cross-lagged panel modeling (CLPM) and multilevel structural equation modeling (SEM), we explored dynamic relations among six core skills—phonological awareness, morphological awareness, vocabulary, Chinese character recognition, orthographic awareness, and name writing—and assessed the effects of different teaching dimensions. Results revealed strong stability and reciprocal influences among language skills. Teachers' intentional teaching significantly predicted children's progress, with both domain-specific and cross-domain effects. These findings underscore the importance of multifaceted, strategic teaching approaches and contribute to a deeper understanding of early Chinese language development.

Authors

• Yongjia Yu, University of Hong Kong

• Carrie Lau, University of Hong Kong