Multilingual proficiencies and L1 attitudes of ethnic minority students in Hong Kong

Congchao Hua, Yee Na Li*, Bin Li*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This study examined proficiency levels and attitudes of main languages in use among ethnic minority students in Hong Kong. We surveyed 260 students from primary and secondary schools with English as the medium of instruction. They were multilingual speakers who were proficient in spoken English and Cantonese. Our results revealed asymmetric and correlated proficiency levels including in the students’ native languages (L1s). Their multilingual proficiencies were also affected by factors such as age variables and associated with aspects of L1 attitudes. Our key finding corroborated previous research claims that mastery of multiple languages could allow ethnic minority students to construct a more powerful multilingual and multicultural identity. © 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)589-607
JournalJournal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development
Volume44
Issue number7
Online published2 Dec 2020
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2023

Research Keywords

  • Ethnic minority students in Hong Kong
  • L1 attitude
  • multilingual proficiencies
  • multilingualism
  • native language

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Multilingual proficiencies and L1 attitudes of ethnic minority students in Hong Kong'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this