Hong Kong

History of Hong Kong

• Hong Kong is one of the two special administrative regions (SARs) of the People's Republic of China, along with Macau

• Hong Kong was a Crown colony of the United Kingdom from 1842 until the transfer of sovereignty to the People's Republic of China in 1997. Under the policy of “one country, two systems”, the People's Republic of China is responsible for the territory's defense and foreign diplomacy, while Hong Kong maintains its own legal system, monetary system, customs policy, cultural delegation, international sports teams and immigration policy.

• The official languages are Cantonese and English

Learn more about Hong Kong

Chinese Immigration

• Information specific to Chinese immigrants who originated from Hong Kong and now live in Oregon has been somewhat challenging to find…more information in this area is welcomed

• Information on the history of Chinese culture within Oregon, although the information is more historical and less contemporary.

Culture

• Hong Kong culture is often referred to as a marriage between East and West, a tight cultural and bilingual arrangement evident throughout the territory

• Hong Kong is frequently described as a city where East meets West, a meeting reflected in its economic infrastructure, education, legal system and street culture

• About 96% of Hong Kong's population is of Chinese descent

• Hong Kong's population increased sharply throughout the 1990's, reaching 6.99 million in mid-2006

• Much of Hong Kong's government, police, educational settings and most workplaces operate bilingually in Cantonese and English

• Hong Kong enjoys a high degree of religious freedom, a right enshrined and protected through its constitutional document, the Basic Law. The majority of Hong Kong's population, as in Mainland China, practice a folk version of Buddhism. There are also around 200,000 followers each of authentic Buddhism and Taoism. A sizable Christian community of around 500,000 also exists, forming about 10% of the total population.

Education

• Most schools in Hong Kong fall under one of three categories: Public schools, subsidized schools and private schools

• Public schools system features a non-compulsory three-year kindergarten, followed by a compulsory six-year primary education, three-year junior secondary education; a non-compulsory two-year senior secondary education leading to the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examinations and a two-year matriculation course leading to the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examinations. A new “3+3+4” senior secondary curriculum, consisting of a three-year junior secondary, three-year senior secondary and four-year undergraduate academic system, will be implemented from 2009 onwards

• Subsidized schools are by far the most common type, which included government aids and grant schools, run by charitable organizations often with religious affiliations

• Private schools, often run by Christian organizations, have admissions based on academic merit rather than on financial resources

• Education in China, in its various forms and levels, is widely conceptualized as integrating the cultivation of ‘human souls’ with the provision of students with knowledge. The English word ‘education’ is jiao yu in Chinese, which means ‘teaching [and] cultivating’. The analogy shi nian shu mu, bai nian shu ren, (“it takes ten years to grow trees, but a hundred years to cultivate a person”) may illustrate the cultivating responsibilities laid on Chinese schools or other institutions engaged in educating people. A Chinese metaphor equating teachers with ren lei ling hun gong cheng shi (“the engineers of human souls”) also reveals the cultural knowledge that teachers play a crucial role in cultivating the soul of Chinese people

• The cultural knowledge embodied in the Chinese cultural schema of Education exerts profound influence on teachers, students (regardless of their ages) and their parents

• The essence of Chinese teaching hinges on the notion that moral cultivation is the paramount means to shape students to become appropriate members of the established society. The Chinese Education schema functions like a blueprint, governing nationwide educational activities and organizing individual teacher’s teaching agendas. It is likely that in most Chinese schools, the goal of ‘cultivating’ takes precedence over the goal of imparting knowledge

• Chinese students are not supposed to interact freely with teachers on the basis of equal status. This explains the genesis of the renowned Chinese teacher-centered approach and accounts for Chinese students frequently being seen as followers and not asking many questions in class

• In the context of believing in determination, diligence and perseverance, most Chinese students tend to be self-critical if failure occurs in their learning. They are not ready to attribute their learning failure to teachers, but see failure as their own responsibility. Moreover, any open discussion with a teacher for a solution may suggest that the teacher has failed to teach effectively and the student would want to ‘save’ the teacher’s ‘face’

Implications for Speech and Language Professionals

• The previous topic areas regarding Cantonese and Hong Kong English provide a synopsis of linguistic properties and processes, as well as “standout” social and cultural trends seen in Hong Kong

• Clinicians should bear in mind that when conducting Independent and Relational speech analysis, students from Hong Kong could potentially present with speech sound properties that may be indicative of Cantonese, the influences of British English, or both

• Clinicians should also refer to the previous section on Education, which provides some examples of dynamics and attitudes that may be seen in Chinese educational culture, and that could explain for some differences in educational perspectives for students originating from Chinese culture

Original Contributor: David Newton-Tapia, Winter term