ERIC Number: ED308701
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1989
Pages: 17
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
The Dragon Cometh: 1997 and the ELT Scene in Hong Kong.
Boyle, Joseph P.
The results of a survey of 180 part-time students' opinions on the standard of English in Hong Kong, on governmental efforts to improve the level of English in Hong Kong, and on how returning Hong Kong to China in 1997 will effect the standard of English are reported. The students were enrolled in a 6-year course in Chinese/English/Translation at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. The questionnaire used in the survey included opportunities for both open and closed responses so that both broad and specific opinions would be reported. A clear majority, 55%, felt that the standard of English in Hong Kong is poor, while only 4% considered the level of English in Hong Kong to be good. Fifty-six percent of the respondents felt that the standard of English has declined. The most frequently offered evidence for this answer was the poorer command of English among younger colleagues of the respondents in work situations. The vast majority of the respondents, especially teachers, were unhappy about the English teaching situation (unpopular job, unmotivated students) in the schools. Over 50% of the respondents felt that each of the governmental proposals for improving the status of English in Hong Kong (the Expatriate Teachers Scheme, sending local teachers abroad, or a policy of "positive discrimination" favoring schools which move from English to Chinese as the medium of instruction) should be tried. Finally, a fairly general consensus was reached on the point that, although English will be needed for such activities as international business and tourism after 1997, the use and status of English in Hong Kong will decline. (DJD)
Descriptors: Adult Students, Business Communication, Educational Policy, Elementary Secondary Education, English, Foreign Countries, Futures (of Society), Language Attitudes, Language Planning, Language Proficiency, Language Role, Part Time Students, Questionnaires, Second Language Instruction, Second Language Learning, Social Influences, Student Attitudes, Surveys
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: China; Hong Kong
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A