What effect do mixed sensory mode instructional formats have on both novice and experienced learners of Chinese characters?

The effectiveness of mixed sensory mode presentation for beginning and experienced learners of Chinese characters as second language was investigated. Experiment 1 found that inexperienced 7th graders performed better on meaning recall in the mixed visual–audio mode than the visual mode presentation, but the superiority of these two formats was reversed for pronunciation. Experiment 2 revealed that 2 years later, the same learners performed better on both pronunciation and meaning in the mixed mode than the single mode presentation. The mixed format enhanced experienced learners' learning and different modes of presentation should be taken into account for second language instruction. Copyright © 2008 Elsevier.