Abstract

This paper reports a study on the development of the Chinese character recognition knowledge in 2 942 Hong Kong Cantonese-speaking elementary school children. 2 357 Chinese characters in the Revised Chinese Character List (2007) for Hong Kong Cantonese-speaking elementary school children were divided into 36 versions of test booklets to test the school children’s character recognition knowledge. Each test booklet consisted of a list of 130 to 132 character items, with 50% of linkage to the next test booklet in the series. The results suggest that the children’s character recognition knowledge grows as they progress in their education levels. The acquisition during the period of level two is rapid and marked. By level three, the school children’s ability reaches 91% coverage of the Chinese characters in the Revised Character List (2007). Furthermore, the study has classified the 2 357 Chinese characters in the Revised Chinese Character List (2007) by grade level.

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