TEACHING CHARACTER FORMATION RATIONALES WITH A COMPUTER-ASSISTED COURSEWARE FEBRURARY 2010 BO FENG, B.A., GUANGZHOU INSTITUTE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES M.A., EASTERN ILLILOIS UNIVERSITY M.F.A, UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST M.A., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Zhongwei Shen This research conducts a literature survey in the areas of Chinese character error analysis; SLA theories in interlanguage and transfer; systemic characteristics of the Chinese writing system; as well as psycholinguist researches in Chinese character acquisition. CFL learners face critical issues in character acquisition, such as confusions caused by the lack of phonetic awareness, semantic awareness, and contextual interferences. In order to assist CFL learners cope with these issues effectively, it is necessary to develop a computer-assisted courseware utilizing multimedia and web technologies to turn character formation rationales into advance organizers which can be used by CFL learners to restructure newly acquired knowledge and skills. The courseware emphasizes enhancing phonetic awareness, while giving sufficient coverage for semantic awareness and preliminary concepts of spatial configuration of character components.