Wol A Kang is a Senior Lecturer in Chinese in the Department of Modern Languages and
Literatures at Swarthmore College, where she has been a member since 2001. Originally from
Taiwan, she earned her bachelor's degree in Taiwan and a Master of Arts in Teaching Chinese as
a Foreign Language from Peking University in China.
With over three decades of experience in Chinese language instruction, Wol A has taught at all
collegiate levels across the United States, China, and South Korea. Her teaching spans both
independent and collaborative settings, and she is known for her inclusive and innovative
pedagogical approach. Wol A’s academic interests include Mandarin phonology, grammar, and
pedagogy. Her research emphasizes interdisciplinary curriculum development and cross-
departmental collaboration, with her work published in both South Korea and Hong Kong. In
recent years, she has turned her focus to computer-assisted language learning. Her current
research explores the impact of artificial intelligence on foreign language acquisition. In 2024,
she presented her findings at the 7th Conference on Chinese Teaching (CTS) in Edinburgh, the
12th International Conference and Workshops on Technology and Chinese Language Teaching
(TCLT12) hosted online by UCLA, and the ACTFL Annual Meeting in Philadelphia.
In addition to her academic and research pursuits, Wol A co-authored the book Elegant and
Refined Chinese (고품격 중국어) with Sanghoon Lee, published by Olim Publishing House in
Seoul on November 1, 2022.
Wol A currently serves as Vice President of the Chinese Language Teachers Association-Taoli
Mid-Atlantic Regional Association (CLTA-Taoli). Her contributions to the academic community
include organizing a number of scholarly events, most notably the Eighth International
Conference on Teaching Chinese as a Second Language, hosted at Swarthmore in June 2023.
The conference brought together more than 130 experts and scholars from 21 countries to share
research and best practices in Chinese language education.
The Swarthmore College Undergraduate Chinese Journal https://sccj.domains.swarthmore.edu/