Academic Staff
- HHB707, Hung Hom Bay Campus
- +852 2766 7563
- sun-a.kim@polyu.edu.hk
ORCID ID
SCOPUS IDBiography
Sun-A Kim's research spans two lines. The first concerns second language (L2) acquisition and processing, examining how learners acquire new scripts and sentence structures, and how outcomes are shaped by individual learner differences and by properties of the learning target. The second develops research-informed teaching principles, materials, and classroom-based interventions. Her current projects extend this agenda to educational technology, investigating how tools such as generative AI can support L2 learning.
Education and Academic Qualifications
- Ph.D. in Second Language Acquisition, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
- M.A. in East Asian Linguistics, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
- M.A. in Chinese Linguistics, Ewha Womans University
- B.A. in Chinese Language and Literature, Ewha Womans University
Academic and Professional Experience
- Associate Professor, Department of Language Science and Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
- Assistant Professor, Department of Language Science and Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Teaching Areas
- Applied Linguistics
- Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language
- Korean Society and Culture
Research Interests
Selected Publications
- Kim, S.-A. (in press). Learning to read Chinese characters: From research to practice. In S. Ke, S.-A. Kim, & Y. Hsu (Eds.), Handbook of research on reading Chinese as a global language. Springer.
- Lau, D. K. Y, Kim, S.-A., & Shin, S.-H. (2026). The role of orthographic units and positional consistency in L2 Chinese character writing: Insights from online handwriting tasks. Reading and Writing. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-026-10866-6
- Kong, D., Kim, S.-A., & Shin, J. A. (2026). Mandarin relative clause production by second language learners: Subject–object asymmetry and individual differences. Language Learning. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.70035
- Kim, S.-A., & Sim, S. (2024). The motivation of Hong Kong university students to learn Korean. Teaching Korean as a Foreign Language, 73, 1–28. (in Korean) https://www.kci.go.kr/kciportal/landing/article.kci?arti_id=ART003084724
- Wei, R., Kim, S.-A., & Shin, J.-A. (2022). Structural priming and inverse preference effects in L2 grammaticality judgment and production of English relative clauses. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 845691. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.845691
- Kim, S.-A., & Shin, J.-A. (2018). Character knowledge and reading stages of Chinese as a foreign language. In I. Walker, D. Chan, M. Nagami, & C. Bourguignon (Eds.), New perspectives on the development of communicative and related competence in foreign language education (pp. 181–203). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781501505034-009
- Kim, S.-A., & Shin, S.-H. (2017). Pronunciation rules of HSK characters: Learning and teaching principles. Hawoo. (in Korean) http://www.hawoo.co.kr/bbs/board.php?bo_table=book&wr_id=511&cateNavCode=1016
- Kim, S.-A. (2017). Korean language and culture education at universities in Hong Kong: Curricula with an example. Journal of Ewha Korean Language and Literature, 42, 5–32. (in Korean) https://www.kci.go.kr/kciportal/landing/article.kci?arti_id=ART002263314
- Kim, S.-A., Packard, J., Christianson, K., Anderson, R. C., & Shin, J.-A. (2016). Orthographic consistency and individual learner differences in second language literacy acquisition. Reading and Writing, 29(7), 1409–1434. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-016-9643-y
- Kim, S.-A., & Shin, S.-H. (2015). Consistency of phonetic families and principles of teaching Chinese as a foreign language. Chinese Linguistics, 51, 19–30. (in Chinese) https://ira.lib.polyu.edu.hk/handle/10397/53691
- Kim, S.-A., Christianson, K., & Packard, J. (2015). Working memory in L2 character processing: The case of learning to read Chinese. In Z. Wen, M. B. Mota, & A. McNeill (Eds.), Working memory in second language acquisition and processing (pp. 85–104). Multilingual Matters. https://doi.org/10.21832/9781783093595-009
- 2025 - 2026
Generative artificial intelligence in enhancing Korean speaking and writing skills: For learners of Korean as a foreign language. Korean Studies Grant 2025, Academy of Korean Studies. - 2022 - 2024
Relationships among CFL learners’ character reading and writing skills and morphological knowledge: Comparisons of L1 Vietnamese, Korean, and English learners. Departmental General Research Fund. Department of Language Science and Technology. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. - 2013 - 2014 & 2015 - 2017
When learning Chinese as a foreign language: Interactions between a native language and the target language (G-YN31 & G-YBLC). Central Research Grant. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
- 2024 - 2026
Ewha Global Fellow, Ewha Womans University
