Mandarin M-Comic Application Design in Supporting Mandarin Vocabulary Learning

Abstract

Smartphones are a companion for every young generation in everyday life. Nowadays, conventional learning that tends to be monotonous would be able to utilize mobile applications as an alternative learning media. During this time students have difficulty in memorizing and applying vocabulary into everyday conversation. Therefore, the problem in this research is the design of learning applications that make it easier for students to learn vocabulary. Besides that, students also have difficulty in understanding how to use vocabulary, as well as the context of use in daily conversation. This study uses a survey method of 34 students selected with a purposive sampling technique that was conducted for two months. Survey data were analyzed to find out the needs of students in the application of learning Mandarin vocabulary which is fun and informative so that it becomes the basis in determining the design of Mandarin comic strip applications. The survey results show that there is a need for new digital learning media to be entertaining, which can support learning Chinese vocabulary. Through this research, the author offers a Mandarin comic strip (M-Comic) application design, as well as a design feature that will be developed by the author in the future.