Syllable-character mapping knowledge predicts reading development in Hong Kong Chinese beginning readers

There is solid evidence that the ability to segment syllables in speech streams and characters in text is crucial for young Chinese readers’ literacy acquisition. However, less is clear about the importance of their ability to correspond syllable and character in Chinese reading. In Chinese, one syllable always corresponds to one character without exception—termed “syllable-character mapping knowledge” in the study. The present study examined 80 Hong Kong Chinese kindergartners’ syllable-character correspondence knowledge and its predicting value of word reading longitudinally in terms of both initial level and growth rate. Chinese character reading was tested three times across 12 months with 6-month intervals (Mean age = 58.54 months at Time 1). The results showed that the syllable-character mapping knowledge in the second year of kindergarten uniquely predicted the initial level as well as growth rate of Chinese character reading in Hong Kong Chinese kindergarteners beyond age, nonverbal IQ, visual-spatial skills, phonological awareness, and morphological awareness at time 1. The findings suggest the importance of understanding the correspondence between spoken and written codes by unit in Chinese. Copyright © 2020 ARWA.