Linguistic capital
Language medium of instruction policy in Hong Kong
Chris Harwood
| University of Toronto
Conttia Lai
| University of Toronto
This article discusses the effects of Hong Kong’s language policy changes in education since China reclaimed the territory in 1997. It describes Hong Kongers’ perceptions of English and their mother tongue Cantonese, and considers the effects of the Cantonese medium of instruction (CMI) policy, which was introduced to promote biliteracy and trilingualism1 among Hong Kongers. The analysis shows that even though CMI results in deeper learning in Hong Kong students, the strength and status of English as the lingua franca in the territory remains strong, and access to the linguistic capital English brings remains restricted to those with financial capital to afford it.
Keywords: English, language policy, Hong Kong, lingua franca, Cantonese
Published online: 27 October 2017
https://doi.org/10.1075/lplp.41.2.05har
https://doi.org/10.1075/lplp.41.2.05har
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