Improving the Single Mode of Teaching Chinese Ancient Poetry

Through the Introduction of Mobile and VR Technology

Huilin Yang

Department of Foreign Language, Donghua University, Shanghai, China

Keywords: Learning Affordance, Mobile, Virtual Reality, Learning Design.

Abstract: The current teaching method of ancient Chinese poetry is ineffective as it is mostly confined to textbooks

with an emphasis on memorization. Many people have poor practical application skills and struggle to relate

ancient Chinese poetry to situations they see in the real world. Therefore, the teaching of ancient Chinese

poetry needs to be improved with the use of modern media technology. After researching the affordances of

a variety of media, the affordances of mobile and virtual reality are most associated with learning ancient

poetry. Therefore, this article initially introduces the affordances of these two media. As for the mobile, there

are portability, locationality, interactivity, and communicative. As for VR, there are immersive, spatial-fidel-

ity, interactive, social, and incentive mechanism. Based on the affordances, the article introduces two learning

modules. Firstly, it is a mobile module that can take pictures, and locate and then identify scenery with reflec-

tions of poetry. This module can encourage users to create poems and cultivate their poetic context. Secondly,

it is a VR module that allows users to learn ancient poetry in a fully immersive world. Users can deepen their

understanding by experiencing the poetry world in person. Moreover, the module incorporates some of the

game's mechanism especially the incentive affordance. Learners can pick their favorite historical character

after completing certain learning tasks. It can encourage users to learn as much as they can.

1 INTRODUCTION

Chinese culture is profound and has a long history.

Ancient Chinese poetry has been handed down from

the Spring and Autumn Period to the present day.

However, the poetic literacy of modern people is not

very good. It is difficult for people to really under-

stand a poem and apply it to real life. For example, in

ancient times, a waterfall could be "Its torrent dashes

down three thousand feet from high, as if the silver

river fell from azure sky" (Xu 2013) and a lotus

flower could be "It rises spotless out of the slimy

mud; it stays subdued in the clear water" In these

days, however, many people lack this linguistic abil-

ity. When they see a view that they find magnificent

or elegant, only use simple and poor words such as

“good” and “beautiful” to describe it. So, the devel-

opment of Chinese ancient poetry education in China

faces difficulties

The teaching of ancient poetry has been integrated

into Chinese language teaching since primary school.

According to the new curriculum, no less than 160

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8864-801X

great poems need to be memorized at the primary

level (Pu 2021). In junior high school, ancient poems

account for about four-tenths of one percent (Li

2020). In senior high school, they account for a simi-

larly large proportion, and most of them are master-

pieces by famous writers. In addition, the require-

ments for the development of ancient poetry skills are

very demanding in the curriculum. While most of the

requirements for learning ancient poetry in primary

school require simple comprehension and recitation,

in senior secondary school, the main focus is on the

development of appreciation skills. In other words,

students are expected to take the initiative in explor-

ing and discovering the beauty contained in ancient

poems (Lai 2021). In practice, however, the effective-

ness of teaching ancient poetry is not very satisfac-

tory. There is a relatively large gap between the actual

teaching outcomes and the curriculum objectives. The

percentage of dissatisfaction among students is high

and students found that it is difficult for them to apply

ancient poetry to practice (Ji 2020, Rong 2007). There

are three main reasons for this pitiful phenomenon.

Yang, H.

Improving the Single Mode of Teaching Chinese Ancient Poetry Through the Introduction of Mobile and VR Technology.

DOI: 10.5220/0011916400003613

In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on New Media Development and Modernized Education (NMDME 2022), pages 585-590

ISBN: 978-989-758-630-9

 2023 by SCITEPRESS – Science and Technology Publications, Lda. Under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

585

First, it is heavily influenced by exam-oriented edu-

cation. In Chinese, many secondary school teachers

simply count the study of ancient poetry as an index

for the final examination, emphasizing rote memori-

zation and which makes students' understanding

mostly superficial (Zhang 2022). Second, student par-

ticipation is limited. The teacher explains more in the

secondary school classroom, but students are less in-

volved. This makes students learn ancient poems in a

spoon-fed way, lacking the space for independent

thinking and feeling (Wang 2020). Moreover, most of

the teaching of ancient poetry is restricted to the text-

book and to the classroom. Students lack the oppor-

tunity and motivation to learn on their own in their

daily lives.

In recent years, some teachers have gradually re-

alized this problem. They have found that teaching

ancient poetry is always at a bottleneck stage due to

the single mode of teaching and the relatively low

motivation of students to learn on their own. They try

to solve this problem through some read-aloud teach-

ing methods, comparative reading for appreciation

methods, and so on (Bai 2012). Although there is a

certain degree of improvement, it is difficult to make

qualitative changes. There are also some professors

who have realized a good way of contextualizing

teaching. By setting up a context, the abstract ancient

poems become embodied and more vivid. Students

are able to relate ancient poetry to real circumstances.

The main subject is really shifted from the "teacher"

to the "student", which will actually increase students'

participation (Wang 2021). However, the current con-

textualized teaching is limited to guiding students to

do self-images (Wang 2021) or using simple images,

videos and audio to create a context (Wang 2021),

which does not fully allow the learner to have an im-

mersive experience.

With the advancement of science and technology,

the popularity of mobile electronic devices, and the

development of virtual reality technology, multime-

dia technology is no longer limited to playing audio

and video. There are many media with very rich af-

fordances (Norman 1999). That means the capabili-

ties of these media to interact with the users are mul-

tiple and varied. In other words, many actions are pos-

sible for the users. Using these affordances effec-

tively can lead to great teaching results. The mobile

affordances containing “locationality”, “potability”,

“interactivity”, “multimediability” (Schrock 2015),

and the “immersive”, “spatial”, “interactive”, and

“social” affordances (Dalgarno, Lee, 2010) that VR

devices have, can all help with the teaching of ancient

poetry. It enables the teaching of ancient poetry to go

beyond the classroom and to be truly contextualized.

It can also solve the problems of " limited student par-

ticipation", "low practicality" and "difficulty in con-

cretizing abstract concepts".

It is clear that the integration of technology men-

tioned above into teaching and learning will promote

efficiency and effectiveness. Blending some of the

excellent traditional teaching methods with the mod-

ern technological methods possible today can make

teaching ancient poetry less homogenous and fully in-

tegrated with real-life situations. It promotes the

teaching of ancient poetry beyond the classroom and

is suitable for a wide range of ages. It allows people

to learn ancient poetry anytime, anywhere, through a

variety of media implementations and allows them to

be fully immersed in a virtual world of ancient poetry.

It will promote understanding of the meanings con-

tained in ancient poetry, deepens the memory of an-

cient poetry, and facilitates attempts at ancient poetic

expression. This approach is no longer a test-based

education, no longer teacher-led, and allows students

to fully integrate ancient poetry with reality

Therefore, this article will first explain the peda-

gogical potential and advantages of mobile devices

and VR. Then, through modules and examples, the ar-

ticle will analyze specific examples scientifically

(Plass 2002). In terms of needs assessment, design of

learning activities, and theory of change, the article

will explain how mobile devices and VR devices can

be applied to the teaching of ancient poetry, and fi-

nally, propose relevant ideas and suggestions.

2 THE AFFORDANCES AND

RELATED MODULES

2.1 Learning Affordances of Mobile

Every object has an affordance. It is not just about

what features and functions the object itself has, but

what features and functions people can actually use.

The affordance of each item varies for different ob-

jects of use. For example, affordance is different for

mobile phones for pet dogs and for people with basic

literacy skills. For a pet dog, because it cannot read or

understand modern civilization, the affordance of a

mobile phone may only mean “hard”, “chewable”,

etc. But for a modern civilized person with basic lit-

eracy skills, a mobile phone has a variety of “af-

fordances”, such as “communicative”, “can access

the internet”, “multimediability”, etc.

Therefore, the object we are talking about now is

the mobile device and the subject is the modern per-

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586

son who has the ability and needs to learn. The prob-

lem that needs to be addressed is the pedagogical di-

lemma in teaching modern ancient poetry. In this sec-

tion, the article will describe what affordances mobile

devices possess that facilitate learning. They are

“portability”, “locationality”, “interactivity”, and

“communicative”.

The first is portability (Schrock 2015). mobile de-

vices can be used anywhere, anytime. This breaks

down the space limitations of traditional teaching.

Users can learn not only in the classroom but also in

other places. It applies to many teaching contexts. In

the field of language learning, for example, it is pos-

sible to use mobile to memorize words anywhere, an-

ytime. Such as in the underground or in the canteen.

It is also applicable in the field of experimentation,

where data can be recorded on the object of observa-

tion anywhere, anytime.

The second is locationality, the affordance that

makes mobile devices location-aware. It is a great

help to learn the background of some landmarks. At

the same time, this affordance allows the mobile de-

vice to be better connected to the real world so that

the practical and the theoretical can be truly inte-

grated.

Next is interactivity, where mobile interacts with

people by tapping on the screen to achieve a goal.

Mobile media can be made smoother by setting a

number of signifiers to suggest what the user should

do next.

The last one is communicative, a mobile device

that allows two or more users from the same or dif-

ferent regions to communicate with each other in a

variety of ways. When applied to teaching and learn-

ing, this communication allows users to learn from

each other and progress together.

These are some of the affordances of mobile de-

vices for teaching and learning. In the following sec-

tion, a hypothetical model is presented to explain ex-

actly how these affordances can be applied to the

teaching of ancient poetry and what pedagogical out-

comes might be achieved.

2.2 The Module of Mobile Learning

The module is designed to modernize the teaching of

ancient poetry through mobile devices.

2.2.1 The Need Assessment

Many people love ancient Chinese poetry, but it is

difficult for people to apply it to real life after memo-

rizing it. Not to mention the ability to create ancient

poems on their own. The current state of education

hardly addresses this issue. By the way, nowadays,

many poetries learning app simply allows people to

recite, lacking the ability to relate to the real world.

So, this module is for people who want to learn Chi-

nese poetry and want to apply it to their lives. They

can use the module at anywhere, such as on a street,

on a hill, by the water or even use it at a specific his-

torical or cultural site.

If they download the app on their mobile device,

then they will be able to know how the scene in front

of them is expressed in ancient Chinese poetry. It will

facilitate them to relate ancient poems to real life and

to develop a personal context for ancient poems. It

will also encourage them to create poems of their

own.

2.2.2 The Learning Design

This is a mobile device application. This application

can be installed on mobile devices of any system. It

has two main functions, search for poems and write

poems.

Users can search for relevant poems by taking

photos and locating them when they see a certain type

of scenery. Especially when visiting some famous

places, they can learn the poems which describe the

monuments at the same time. They only have to click

on the button to search for the poem, then take a photo

of the view in front of them and upload it, and use the

software's own positioning system to make a second-

ary confirmation of the landscape. The app then auto-

matically gives the relevant ancient poem. If they

want to study in-depth, they can click on the ancient

poem they want to study, which will be explained ac-

cordingly

Furthermore, users can create their own poems

based on the scenery in front of them. If they are not

very good at writing, the app will provide words, sen-

tences, relevant knowledge, and related works that are

suitable for the scenery. Users can follow the hints to

create their own poems. And, as they create, there will

be a rhyme check function. If the rhyme is wrong, the

words will have a red marker to indicate

In addition, the model has a communication func-

tion. Users can post their own poems to a public fo-

rum to discuss and exchange with each other.

2.2.3 The Theory of Change

The table 1 describes the specific application of each

affordance in this module and the possible results for

the users.

Improving the Single Mode of Teaching Chinese Ancient Poetry Through the Introduction of Mobile and VR Technology

587

Table 1. mobile module’s theory of change

Affordance Effect Outcome

Portability

Can be carried around anytime and

anywhere

Users can take photos, be located and

search for the corresponding poems any-

time, anywhere

Locationality

Identify the user's environment and

the surrounding topography through

the location function.

Users can get more specific poems.

Interactivity

Give some hints and correct the

rhyme when users creating poems.

Encourage users to create more suitable po-

ems and develop a personal context for an-

cient

oems.

Communicative There is a special poetry forum

Users can share their own poems, their ex-

perience of writing poetry and their per-

sonal understandin

s with other

le.

The last affordance, for example, is communica-

tive, which in this model is mainly implemented in

the form of a forum. The outcome is that users can

interact with each other through this forum, evaluate

their poems, learn from each other and progress to-

gether.

2.3 Learning Affordances of VR

As well as mobile devices, VR devices have a lot of

affordances and can also be used well for learning.

These affordances such as immersive, spatial-fidelity,

interactive, social, and incentive mechanism are all

very closely linked to learning and education.

The first is Immersive. VR allows the users to be

fully immersed in a virtual world and experience life

or an environment that is not possible in the real

world. This affordance is often used in classes that are

more dangerous or require the teaching of knowledge

across time and space, such as chemistry or history

and literature classes. Teachers can simulate danger-

ous experiments that they would not dare to do in real

life, or allow students to experience the circumstances

and atmosphere of ancient societies.

The second affordance is spatial-fidelity, which is

mainly used for the adaptation and experience of 3D

environments. This is also used extensively in teach-

ing and learning and is particularly suitable for struc-

turing spaces that are difficult to understand, thus en-

hancing students' spatial imagination and perceptual

skills. For example, when learners want to understand

the internal structure of an atom, they may choose to

use VR to construct a model of the inside of an atom

to better understand its structure. Or, when learners

want to see the interior space of a building, they can

simply tour the building through VR without having

to personally arrive at the place.

The third affordance is interactive. Like mobile, it

allows VR to interact with people. The interaction is

through the VR headset and the joystick. When im-

mersed in the virtual world, people can touch objects

in virtual world through the joystick, just as they

would touch objects in reality. This interactivity is

unique to VR and is also very conducive to teaching

and learning. For example, students can explore the

virtual world through VR and complete some diffi-

cult, high-risk tasks in it.

The next one is social. This affordance means that

VR can also be connected remotely. In teaching, stu-

dents can learn from each other and compete via re-

mote connection. The teacher can also interact with

the students remotely and participate in their explora-

tion. There is a hypothesis proposed that the improve-

ment of representational fidelity of the environment

increases the ability to migrate, thus deepening the

sense of co-presence and increasing the ability to col-

laborate (Dalgarno, Lee, 2010).

The last affordance is the Incentive mechanism,

which is usually combined with a game mechanic. By

setting rewards and tasks to increase the motivation

of the user. When the user is immersed in the tasks

and rewards prescribed by the virtual world, a psy-

chological effect of flow is created, which increases

their interest and motivation to participate. This use

in teaching will increase student engagement and will

promote the ability of students to take the initiative in

learning.

These are some of the affordances of VR that can

be used in teaching and learning, and I will then also

present a module that explains how these affordances

can be used in teaching ancient poetry to improve

learners' learning efficiency, deepen their comprehen-

sion of ancient poetry and increase their interests and

engagements.

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2.4 The Module of VR Learning

What follows is still an introduction about how VR

can be used in teaching ancient poetry through three

dimensions. This will lead to a further understanding

of its affordance effect, as well as the possible out-

comes and impacts.

2.4.1 The Need Assessment

Most of the teaching of ancient poetry in China now-

adays is limited to the recitation of ancient poems

merely. People's practical application skills are very

inadequate. Because of the single approach to teach-

ing and the difference in context and background be-

tween ancient and modern times, many people find it

difficult to understand the deeper meaning of ancient

poetry and naturally cannot relate it to the real world.

Therefore, there is a need for a product that can take

people deeper into the situations portrayed in ancient

poems and help them understand their meanings. So,

VR is a great learning tool as a form of media that

promotes immersion and exploration of the world of

poetry by the users.

2.4.2 The Learning Design

When users put on the VR headset, a picture will ap-

pear in front of their eyes. It will let you choose the

type of poetry, there are three types of poetry: land-

scape make, narrative poetry and lyric poetry, and us-

ers can also search for the poetry they want to study.

After interacting with the VR grip and selecting a cer-

tain type of poem, a number of poems will then ap-

pear with the corresponding genre. After tapping into

it, a virtual scene will be created based on the content

of the poem.

As the user moves, verses and corresponding ex-

planations float in the air. At the same time, the user

can interact with the objects in the virtual space, users

can climb the trees, jump into the water to catch fish,

or do many other things. And the explanation or back-

ground information or something related to this object

will appear.

This game has an incentive mechanism. By com-

pleting the corresponding learning tasks, users can

pick a favorite relevant historical figure to travel with

and explore the poem world together. By completing

more tasks, users can discover more characters or

more of their voices and actions. For example, if a

learner loves Su Shi, then he/she can choose to travel

with Su in the world of poetry after he/she has com-

pleted a certain amount of poetry study. Su will be-

come your virtual companion, offering his reflections

and appreciation of the poem.

In addition, this VR model supports remote inter-

action. Two or more users can enter the same poetry

world together to learn.

2.4.3 The Theory of Change

The table 2 also reflects how the above affordance is

applied to the module and presents the corresponding

outcome predictions. For example, the Incentive

mechanism, which rewards users for completing a

certain number of tasks with a favorite historical fig-

ure as a companion, is predicted to encourage users to

learn more ancient poems.

Table 2. VR module’s theory of change.

affordance effect outcome

Immersive

Immersing the

user in the world

of ancient poetry

The ability to fully

immerse learners

in the world of an-

cient poetry with-

out distractions.

Spatial-fide-

lity

Converting text

to 3d environ-

ments

Enables users to

experience the

world of ancient

poetry in a realis-

tic way.

Interactive

Users can ex-

plore the scen-

ery and com-

municate with

the characters in

the scenes

Learners can pro-

mote autonomy

and freedom of

learning and get a

deeper under-

standing of the po-

etry scenario

Social

Multiple users

can learn to-

gether and enter

the same sce-

nario to

ethe

Users can learn

from each other

and experience the

world of ancient

oetr

ethe

Incentive me-

chanism

Historical fig-

ures travelling

together in the

world of ancient

poetry as a re-

war

Encourage users

to learn more an-

cient poetries.

3 CONCLUSIONS

This article first introduces the affordances of Mobile,

relates its relationship to teaching and learning, and

then uses these affordances to design a Mobile mod-

ule. The model is primarily applicable to those who

want to understand how the immediate situation can

be expressed in ancient poetry anytime, anywhere. It

is also applicable to those who want to learn to com-

Improving the Single Mode of Teaching Chinese Ancient Poetry Through the Introduction of Mobile and VR Technology

589

pose ancient poetry and have a context for ancient po-

etry. Next the affordances of VR are introduced and

the module is presented. This is the module for those

who want to gain a deeper understanding of the con-

notations of ancient poetry and want to immerse

themselves in the world of ancient poetry. The two

media and the models analyze the possibilities of

modern media to facilitate the teaching of ancient po-

etry from different perspectives. In designing the

module, this article also applies a scientific and ana-

lytical approach. From the analysis of requirements,

to the design of the model, and finally the interpreta-

tion of the effects and results.

However, the article has some limitations as well.

The two modules are still in their prototype stage and

have not been actually designed. Therefore, the re-

sults need further examination to verify. It is hoped

that this article can provide new ideas to solve the di-

lemma of teaching Chinese ancient poetry. More peo-

ple will be able to use ancient poetry in real life. It is

also expected that the article will provide a reference

for the integration of science and technology into

teaching. More teaching dilemmas can be alleviated

or even solved with the involvement of technology.

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