Effectiveness of Different Approaches to Kanji Education with Second Language Learners

Approaches to teaching Chinese characters as used in japanese (kanji) to adult
second/foreign language learners can be broadly divided into the Whole-kanji
method and the Component Analysis method. The Whole-kanji method involves
memorizing kanji as units. The Component Analysis method involves breaking
the kanji down into components, attaching meaning to those components and
memorizing a story which ties the components together. This study examines
the effectiveness of the two approaches with subject populations in JSL and
JFL settings. Five sessions of each method consisting of instruction in 30 kanji
were given to two subject groups. A Short Term Memory (STM) test followed
each of the first three sessions, a Long Term Memory (LTM) test was given at
the fourth session, and a Post LTM test was given one month later. The
Component Analysis methC?d promoted significantly higher retention in both
settings. These findings are discussed in terms of depth of processing, learning
styles and location of instruction.