Educational Robot AI-Assisted Reading Promotes Foreign Children's Chinese Acquisition: An Experimental Study

Abstract

Three foreign children from Grade 1 of an international primary school in Hangzhou, China, were selected for a six-week after-school autonomous AI-assisted reading experiment using educational robots. The reading materials used were the electronic audio picture books Fun Chinese 1000 Characters, Illustrated Tang and Song Poems and Illustrated Three-Character Classics. At the end of the experiment, it was found that their recognized Chinese characters exceeded 2,000 characters, with a reading comprehension accuracy rate of 80%, which was about 10 times higher than that of the control group. Furthermore, the students who participated in the AI reading experiment demonstrated better accuracy and standard Mandarin pronunciation in their Chinese spoken expression than their non-participating classmates. They also developed a love for Chinese and ancient Chinese poetry and established good reading habits. This experiment effectively and economically promoted Chinese language acquisition among foreign children using educational robots with AI-assisted reading. Both children and parents highly appreciated this approach, and it provides valuable experience and reference for second language acquisition in the digital age.