Engaging with language: teaching Chinese as a second language to South Asian students in Hong Kong

The importance of learning Chinese for SA (South Asian) students in their integration into Hong Kong society has widely been recognized in government documents and academic research, and the great difficulties they encounter when learning Chinese has also drawn increasing attention in recent years. Nevertheless, how to overcome these difficulties and best help them with Chinese language study still remains a problem. This paper draws on a study in a project that comprises a questionnaire survey among 387 SA students in a Hong Kong secondary school and some in-depth interviews with two principals, eight teachers and a few students. Findings indicate the following underlying reasons for South Asian students’ low achievements in learning Chinese: lack of motivation in learning Chinese; absence of achievement targets like CSL curriculum and public examination; lack of appropriate teaching resources; lack of effective government support; and shortage of well-trained CSL teachers. As a response to the participants’ appeal for provision of appropriate learning targets and CSL textbooks, we create a framework of study and a systematic series of theme-based learning units and these materials are put into trial use for several months. A common emphasis in their views is that the CSL learning materials for SA students should aim to develop their Chinese language proficiency according to their actual needs, and hence be able to engage the learner in an active role in using and learning of the language. It is hoped that through this research and development we can better motivate the SA students to learn Chinese, fully engage them in learning activities and ultimately enhance their Chinese learning outcomes