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Language attitudes of the first postcolonial generation in Hong Kong secondary schools

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 June 2005

MEE-LING LAI
MEE-LING LAI
Affiliation:
English Department, Hong Kong Institute of Education, 10, Lo Ping Road, Tai Po, Hong Kong, mllai@ied.edu.hk
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Abstract

Following the return of sovereignty from Britain to China, Hong Kong has undergone significant sociopolitical and educational changes. This study is a quantitative investigation of the language attitudes of 1,048 secondary students from the first postcolonial generation brought up amid the significant changes after the political handover. The results show that the respondents feel the most integratively inclined to Cantonese (the vernacular variety), and they perceive English (the colonizers' language) as the language of the highest instrumental value and social status, while Putonghua (the language of the new ruler) is rated the lowest from both the integrative and the instrumental perspectives. Unlike what has been predicted by scholars, Putonghua has not yet taken the place of English as the language of power. Despite this, there are signs of a subtle transition toward an accommodating attitude to Putonghua, mainly induced by the growing instrumental value of the language for economic purposes.

Keywords

Language attitudespostcolonial Hong Kong
Type
Research Article
Information
Language in Society , Volume 34 , Issue 3 , July 2005 , pp. 363 - 388
Copyright
© 2005 Cambridge University Press

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