Concurrent and longitudinal predictors of beginning writing in Chinese: the unique role of copying skills

Pure copying skill (copying of unfamiliar scripts) and delayed copying (copying of unfamiliar Chinese characters presented previously) can both be important correlates in learning to write Chinese. The present study tested both traditional literacy-related skills and copying skills among 267 Chinese kindergarteners (mean age = 5.52) to examine the relations between these skills and Chinese beginning word dictation, or spelling, both concurrently and one year later. A series of hierarchical regression analyses revealed that both pure and delayed copying skills contributed a relatively large amount of unique variance to Chinese spelling both concurrently and subsequently. Mediation analyses showed that with the auto-regressor effect included, delayed copying had both significant direct and indirect effects on Time 2 spelling performance, while morphological awareness, phonological awareness, orthographic awareness, and pure copying contributed to subsequent Chinese spelling mainly through their influence on Time 1 spelling performance. This study highlights the importance of copying for Chinese dictation/spelling acquisition.