Becoming multi-lingual in Hong Kong
The dilemmas of South Asian Students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/lhs.16728Keywords:
Chinese language learning, ethnic minority, bilingual education, second language acquisitionAbstract
This study examined Chinese language learning among South Asian students in Hong Kong. The mixed methods research design included two separate studies. Study 1 was a quantitative study in which a survey was administered to 387 South Asian students to examine their self-perceived language proficiency in Chinese, their mother tongue, and English. Study 2 was a qualitative study in which individual interviews were conducted with 25 South Asian students to identify the factors that influenced their Chinese language learning. The results showed that South Asian students have low self-perceived Chinese proficiency. In particular, students reported difficulty in mastering reading and writing skills in Chinese. Findings also indicated that teachers' skills, family support, and both instrumental and integrative motivational orientations influenced South Asian students' Chinese language learning. The implications of the present study for promoting ethnic minority students' language learning in both local and other multicultural contexts are discussed, as are the limitations of the study and directions for future research.
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Tsung, L. and Gao, F. (2012). What accounts for the underachievement of South Asians in Hong Kong? The voices of Pakistani and Nepalese parents. Educational Research, 54 (1), 51–63. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131881.2012.658199
Tsung, L. T. H., Shum, M. S. K., and Ki. W. W. (2008). Teaching Chinese to South Asian Students in Hong Kong: Policies and Issues. Paper presented at the Conference on Minority Language Education in China: Issues and Perspectives, 19 April, 2008. The University of Hong Kong.
Wong, R. M. H. (2007). Motivation and English attainment: A comparative study of Hong Kong students with different cultural background. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 16 (1), 45–60. https://doi.org/10.3860/taper.v16i1.91
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Cochran-Smith, M., and Lytle, S. (1993). Inside/Outside: Teacher Research and Knowledge. New York: Teachers College Press.
Coleman, J. S., Campbell, E. Q., Hobson, C. J., McPartland, J., Mood, A. M. Weinfeld, F. D., and York., R. L. (1966). Equality of Educational Opportunity. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office. https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312005002260
Engin, A. O. (2009). Second language learning success and motivation. Social Behavior and Personality, 37 (7), 1035–1042. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.2009.37.8.1035
Gardner, R. C. (1985). Social Psychology and Second Language Learning: The Role of Attitudes and Motivation. London: Edward Arnold.
Gardner, R. C. (2001). Language learning motivation: The student, the teacher, and the researcher. Texas Papers in Foreign Language Education, 6 (1), 1–18.
Gardner, R. C. (2010). Motivation and Second Language Acquisition: The Socioeducational Model. New York: Peter Lang.
Gardner, R. C. and Lambert, W. E. (1972). Attitudes and Motivation in Second Languag Learning. Rowley, MA: Newbury.
Gardner, R. C. and MacIntyre, P. D. (1991). An instrumental motivation in language study: Who says it isn’t effective? Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 13 (1), 57–72. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263100009724
Fewell, N. (2010). Language learning strategies and English language proficiency: An investigation of Japanese EFL university students. TESOL Journal, 27, 159–174.
Haque, Z. and Bell, J. (2001). Evaluating the performance of minority ethnic pupils in secondary schools. Oxford Review of Education, 27 (3), 357–367. https://doi.org/10.1080/03054980120067401
Huan, V. S., Quek, G. C. L., Yeo, L. S., Ang, R. P., and Chong, W. H. (2012). How teacher-student relationship influenced student attitude towards teachers and school. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 21 (1), 151–159.
Kalia, V. (2007). Assessing the role of book reading practices in Indian bilingual children’s English language and literacy development. Early Childhood Education Journal, 35 (2), 149–153. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-007-0179-2
Khoo, S., McDonald, P., Giorgas, D., and Birrell, B. (2002). Second Generation Australians. Report of the Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs. Canberra: DIMIA.
Kim, T. Y. and Seo, H. S. (2012). Elementary school students’ foreign language learning demotivation: A mixed methods study of Korean EFL context. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 21 (1), 160–171.
Ku, H. B., Chan, K. M., Chan, W. L., and Lee, W. Y. (2003). A Research Report of the Life Experiences of Pakistanis in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Centre for Social Policy Studies, Department of Applied Social Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and S. K. H. Lady MacLehose Centre. https://doi.org/10.5176/2251-2349_hrmpd17.2
Ku, H. B., Chan, K. W., and Sandhu. K. K. (2005a). A Research Report on the Education of South Asian Ethnic Minority Groups in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Center for Social Policy Studies, Department of Applied Social Sciences, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and Unison Hong Kong. https://doi.org/10.5176/2251-2349_hrmpd17.2
Ku, H. B., Chan, K. W., and Sandhu, K. S. (2005b). Education of South Asian Ethnic Minority Groups in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Centre for Social Policy Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. https://doi.org/10.5176/2251-3426_thor17.2
Lai, M. (2009). ‘I love Cantonese but I want English’ – A qualitative account of Hong Kong students’ language attitudes. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 18 (1), 79–92. https://doi.org/10.3860/taper.v18i1.1037
Lee, M. S. (2006). Becoming multilingual: A study of South Asian students in a Hong Kong secondary school. Unpublished M.A dissertation, University of Hong Kong. https://doi.org/10.5353/th_b3675326
Lee, J. C., Yin, H., and Zhang, Z. (2009). Exploring the influence of the classroom environment on students’ motivation and self-regulated learning in Hong Kong. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 18 (2), 219–232. https://doi.org/10.3860/taper.v18i2.1324
Li, B. (2008). Preparing students for late immersion in L2 – An experience from a language enrichment programme in post-colonial Hong Kong. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 17 (2), 121–141. https://doi.org/10.3860/taper.v17i2.727
Li, G. (2007). Home environment and second-language acquisition: The importance of family capital. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 28 (3), 285–299. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425690701252028
Loper, K. (2004). Race and Ethnicity: A Study of Ethnic Minorities in Hong Kong Education System. Hong Kong: Centre for Comparative and Public Law, The University of Hong Kong. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315660530-16
MacIntyre, P. D. (2002). Motivation, anxiety and emotion in second language acquisition. In P. Robinson (Ed.) Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition, 5–68. Amsterdam: Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/lllt.2.05mac
Noels, K. A., Pelletier, L. G., and Vallerand, R. J. (2000). Why are you learning a second language? Motivational orientations and self-determination theory. Language Learning, 50 (1), 57–85. https://doi.org/10.1111/0023-8333.00111
Pae, T.-I (2008). Second language orientation and self-determination theory: A structural analysis of the factors affecting second language achievement. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 27 (1), 5–27. https://doi.org/10.1177/0261927x07309509
Portes, A. (1994). Introduction: Immigration and its aftermath. International Migration Review, 28 (4), 632–639. https://doi.org/10.1177/019791839402800401
Portes, P. R. (1999). Social and psychological factors in the academic achievement of the children of immigrants: A cultural puzzle. American Educational Research Journal, 36 (3), 489–507. https://doi.org/10.2307/2673171
Portes, A., and Hao, L. (1998). E Pluribus Unum: Bilingualism and loss of language in the second generation. Sociology of Education, 71 (4), 269–294. https://doi.org/10.2307/2673171
Portes, A. and Macleod, D. (1996). Educational progress of children of immigrants: The role of class, ethnicity and school context. Sociology of Education, 69 (4), 255–275. https://doi.org/10.2307/2112714
Shum, M. S. K., Gao, F., Tsung, L., and Ki, W. W. (2011). South Asian students’ Chinese language learning in Hong Kong: Motivations and strategies. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 32 (3), 285–297. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2010.539693
Suarez-Orosco, M. and Qin-Hilliard, D. (2004). Globalization: Culture and education in the new millennium. In M. Suárez-Orozco and D. Qin-Hilliard (Eds) Globalization, Culture and Education in the New Millennium. Berkeley, CA and London: University of California Press. https://doi.org/10.1086/432773
Thomas, W. P. and Collier, V. (1997). School Effectiveness for Language Minority Students. Washington, DC: National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education.
Tsung, L. (2014). Language Power and Hierarchy: Multilingual Education in China, London: Bloomsbury.
Tsung, L. T. H. and Cruickshank, K. (2009). Mother tongue and bilingual minority education in China. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 12 (5), 549–563. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050802209871
Tsung, L. and Gao, F. (2012). What accounts for the underachievement of South Asians in Hong Kong? The voices of Pakistani and Nepalese parents. Educational Research, 54 (1), 51–63. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131881.2012.658199
Tsung, L. T. H., Shum, M. S. K., and Ki. W. W. (2008). Teaching Chinese to South Asian Students in Hong Kong: Policies and Issues. Paper presented at the Conference on Minority Language Education in China: Issues and Perspectives, 19 April, 2008. The University of Hong Kong.
Wong, R. M. H. (2007). Motivation and English attainment: A comparative study of Hong Kong students with different cultural background. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 16 (1), 45–60. https://doi.org/10.3860/taper.v16i1.91
Yang Memorial Methodist Social Service (2002). A Study on Outlets of the South Asian Ethnic Minority Youth in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Yang Memorial Methodist Social Service.
Published
2019-05-28
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Section
Articles
How to Cite
Tsung, L., & Lau, E. (2019). Becoming multi-lingual in Hong Kong: The dilemmas of South Asian Students. Linguistics and the Human Sciences, 13(1-2), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1558/lhs.16728
