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Unlocking the Keys to Literacy: Phonology, Rhetoric, and Early Chinese Pedagogy

Project description

Education strategies in Early China

During the transition from the Warring States to the Han dynasty, Classical Chinese served as a lingua franca. Pedagogical methodologies emerged during the Han dynasty aimed at teaching literacy acquisition strategies through the analysis of selected texts. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) programme, the EduCanon project will explore the interplay between education, societal structure, and the literary canon. It identifies recurring text themes and patterns using close reading and digital tools. Furthermore, the project delves into the significance of sounds, pronunciation, and recitation in early Chinese literacy practices, exploring how alliterations, rhymes, and rhetorical devices contribute to the enhancement of reading and writing skills. Additionally, it examines gender bias in classical Chinese sources.

Objective

This project aims to provide valuable insights into early Chinese literacy and education, contributing to interdisciplinary studies while offering a unique perspective on the role of linguistic and phonological devices in knowledge acquisition and transmission in early China. The proposed research focuses on literacy during the transition from the Warring States to the Han period (481 BCE–220 CE). It investigates the complexities of early Classical Chinese, which served as a lingua franca among intellectuals and was utilised by scribes, officials, and scholars. It revisits overlooked aspects of Early China, such as childhood education and practises of literacy acquisition, shedding light on the interplay between education, societal structure, and literary canon.
The project uncovers pedagogical methodologies employed during the transformative Han dynasty period, elucidating strategies in literacy acquisition through the analysis of selected texts, including lexicographies, Classics, and historical records. It adopts a cutting-edge interdisciplinary approach, synthesizing insights from phonology, rhetoric, educational theories, philology, history, and linguistics.
By combining close reading with digital sinological tools to analyse texts, this project aims to identify recurring themes and underlying structural patterns in texts that were used as educational materials. The project studies the significance of sounds, pronunciation, and recitation in early Chinese literacy practises, contributing to our understanding of how cultural prominence influenced knowledge transmission. It further explores how alliterations, rhymes, and rhetorical devices were systematically employed to enhance the teaching and learning of reading and writing skills. It also acknowledges the gender dimension, examining historical gender bias in classical Chinese sources and evolving roles of education for genders in early China.

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Coordinator

TALLINN UNIVERSITY
Net EU contribution
€ 151 901,76
Address
Narva Road 25
10120 Tallinn
Estonia

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Region
Eesti Eesti Põhja-Eesti
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost
No data