ERIC Number: EJ1065457
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008-Nov
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1913-9020
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Challenges of Chinese Language Education in Multi-Lingual Societies: Hong Kong and Singapore
Tong, Ho-kin; Goh, Yeng-seng
International Education Studies, v1 n4 p44-52 Nov 2008
This paper aims to study the current challenges of Chinese language education in the multilingual societies of Hong Kong and Singapore through policy documents. After the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997, the role of "Putonghua" is far more important than before due to political and economic reasons. However, the medium of instruction for the Chinese Language subject in Hong Kong has long been Cantonese since the British colony days. A change in the medium of instruction from mother-tongue Cantonese to "Putonghua" is a shift from L1 to L2. This paper will discuss the feasibility of this long term policy of Hong Kong Education Bureau with reference to Singapore's experience. Currently, Singapore faces the problem of declining standard of reading and writing in "Huayu" ("Putonghua" in China) and this paper will investigate the reason for that and suggest possible remedies.
Descriptors: Multilingualism, Foreign Countries, Educational Policy, Social Change, Mandarin Chinese, Language Role, Political Influences, Sino Tibetan Languages, Language of Instruction, Economic Factors, Foreign Policy, Native Language, Literacy, Second Language Learning, Cultural Context, Language Skill Attrition
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Hong Kong; Singapore
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A