The Education University of Hong Kong | Forum on Inclusive and Equitable Education for All

• Many minority language students attend schools (formerly known as “designated” schools) where they are streamed into English-speaking classes with other minority language students.

• Provisions for learning Cantonese as a second language at such schools are often limited, with lack of curriculum support and educational resources. Many students sit alternative assessments such as GCSE and GCE Chinese, which do not equate to local Chinese proficiency requirements.

• Minority language students at a disadvantage when applying for jobs and higher education which frequently require a high level of proficiency in spoken Cantonese and written Chinese.

• Sin Lam Li from UNISON: a lack of standardized assessment and benchmarking for the level of Chinese (and other subjects) at various ages of minority students which led to mixed abilities in the classroom.

• Khristayle Tan: some schools lacked provision of the extra support needed for teaching Chinese needed by minority students

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