Variations in Chinese Vocabulary Networks across Different Proficiency Levels and Their Implications for Teaching Chinese as a Second Language.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: Variations in Chinese Vocabulary Networks across Different Proficiency Levels and Their Implications for Teaching Chinese as a Second Language.
Authors: Yang, Kexin1 (AUTHOR) 783629621@qq.com, Zhuang, Huibin1 (AUTHOR) huibinzhuang@aliyun.com
Source: Asia-Pacific Education Researcher (Springer Science & Business Media B.V.). Jun2026, Vol. 35 Issue 3, p473-481. 9p.
Subject Terms: *Foreign language education, *Fluency (Language learning), *Second language acquisition, Morphemics
Abstract: Vocabulary acquisition has always been a core issue and challenge in teaching Chinese as a foreign language. This paper constructs a Chinese word-formation complex network based on the syllabus vocabulary of the Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language Education and employs the k-core decomposition method to identify a subset of Chinese characters with the robust word-formation capabilities. Using the "proficiency level" from The Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language Education as a reference for the learnability of vocabulary and characters, we explore the relationship between characters' word-formation capabilities and their learnability. We find that the vast majority of characters with robust word-formation capabilities are labeled as lower "proficiency levels," indicating that these words are easier for learners to master. Previous studies suggest that focusing on high-frequency word-formation components (such as roots in certain languages) facilitates the acquisition of new words. We propose that this complex network-based word-formation analysis method can, under the constraint of limited corpus resources, efficiently identify characters with robust word-formation capabilities. This provides valuable insights for developing vocabulary lists for Chinese language teaching, enabling learners to prioritize easily acquired characters with strong word-formation capabilities, thereby reducing their learning burden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Asia-Pacific Education Researcher (Springer Science & Business Media B.V.) is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
FullText Text:
  Availability: 0
Header DbId: ehh
DbLabel: Education Research Complete
An: 193809056
AccessLevel: 6
PubType: Academic Journal
PubTypeId: academicJournal
PreciseRelevancyScore: 0
IllustrationInfo
Items – Name: Title
  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: Variations in Chinese Vocabulary Networks across Different Proficiency Levels and Their Implications for Teaching Chinese as a Second Language.
– Name: Author
  Label: Authors
  Group: Au
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Yang%2C+Kexin%22">Yang, Kexin</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> 783629621@qq.com</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Zhuang%2C+Huibin%22">Zhuang, Huibin</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> huibinzhuang@aliyun.com</i>
– Name: TitleSource
  Label: Source
  Group: Src
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Asia-Pacific+Education+Researcher+%28Springer+Science+%26+Business+Media+B%2EV%2E%29%22">Asia-Pacific Education Researcher (Springer Science & Business Media B.V.)</searchLink>. Jun2026, Vol. 35 Issue 3, p473-481. 9p.
– Name: Subject
  Label: Subject Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Foreign+language+education%22">Foreign language education</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Fluency+%28Language+learning%29%22">Fluency (Language learning)</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Second+language+acquisition%22">Second language acquisition</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Morphemics%22">Morphemics</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Vocabulary acquisition has always been a core issue and challenge in teaching Chinese as a foreign language. This paper constructs a Chinese word-formation complex network based on the syllabus vocabulary of the Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language Education and employs the k-core decomposition method to identify a subset of Chinese characters with the robust word-formation capabilities. Using the "proficiency level" from The Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language Education as a reference for the learnability of vocabulary and characters, we explore the relationship between characters' word-formation capabilities and their learnability. We find that the vast majority of characters with robust word-formation capabilities are labeled as lower "proficiency levels," indicating that these words are easier for learners to master. Previous studies suggest that focusing on high-frequency word-formation components (such as roots in certain languages) facilitates the acquisition of new words. We propose that this complex network-based word-formation analysis method can, under the constraint of limited corpus resources, efficiently identify characters with robust word-formation capabilities. This provides valuable insights for developing vocabulary lists for Chinese language teaching, enabling learners to prioritize easily acquired characters with strong word-formation capabilities, thereby reducing their learning burden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Asia-Pacific Education Researcher (Springer Science & Business Media B.V.) is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=ehh&AN=193809056
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1007/s40299-025-01044-3
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 9
        StartPage: 473
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Foreign language education
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Fluency (Language learning)
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Second language acquisition
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Morphemics
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Variations in Chinese Vocabulary Networks across Different Proficiency Levels and Their Implications for Teaching Chinese as a Second Language.
        Type: main
  BibRelationships:
    HasContributorRelationships:
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Yang, Kexin
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Zhuang, Huibin
    IsPartOfRelationships:
      – BibEntity:
          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 06
              Text: Jun2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
          Identifiers:
            – Type: issn-print
              Value: 01195646
          Numbering:
            – Type: volume
              Value: 35
            – Type: issue
              Value: 3
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Asia-Pacific Education Researcher (Springer Science & Business Media B.V.)
              Type: main
ResultId 1