Applied Research On The Correlation Between Elementary Chinese Syllables And Characters

. Syllables and characters are both the basis of Chinese language learning, especially for beginners. A solid grasp and comprehension of both aspects determines whether students on beginner level can progress smoothly in their further pursuit of higher levels of Chinese language. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct a thorough research on the content of syllables and characters that beginner-level students need to learn. The implications of the research can be used to guide Chinese language teaching and learning in practice.This thesis firstly studies the content of rudimentary syllables and characters in the book of The Graded Chinese Syllables. Characters and Words for the Application of Teaching Chinese to the Speakers of Other Languages. Based on the analysis of the specific arrangement of syllables and characters, it provides the statistical result of syllable-character reference.Combining more similar analysis based on two textbooks-Boya Chinese Elementary Second Edition and Developing Chinese Elementary Comprehensive Course, my thesis compares the similarity and difference among these textbooks about the arrangement of syllables and characters. It provides a calculation of syllables of high coincidence rate, of high character references, and of high frequency, as well as their corresponding characters. On the one hand, it proves the importance of learning syllables as such, on the other, it provides an insight that the importance of characters and syllables should not be only determined by the amount of characters a syllable refers to. The criteria should be diversified and determined from multiple perspectives.Based on the previous research, the thesis also provides suggestions for the teaching of Chinese language and the compilation of textbooks. On the aspect of syllables, textbooks should increase comprehensive and integrative exercises about syllables in various forms. In classroom, instructors should pay more attention to the teaching and practicing of syllables as integrated. More emphasis should be given to syllables of high coincidence rate, of high character references, and of high frequency. On the other aspect of characters, a separate section of character learning for beginner level learners should be added before texts. The teaching of syllables and characters should go hand-in-hand in classrooms. And it is also possible to use the relationship between syllables and characters to help students learn Chinese language.