This article examines the evolution of language-in-education policy in Hong Kong during the first six decades of British rule (1842-1902). In particular, it analyses the changing roles and status of the English and Chinese languages during this formative period in the development of the colony's education system. The textual and statistical data presented in the article provide a corrective to the claim that the British imposed English on their colonial subjects and in the process rode roughshod over the indigenous languages. The evidence suggests that Hong Kong's education system provided opportunities for native students to attend purely Chinese schools, purely English schools or mixed-medium schools. Although the British apparently attached more importance to English teaching, they were generally at pains to emphasise that English should not be studied at the expense of Chinese. The findings indicate that language policy (be it Chinese or English in orientation) was always tied in some way to Britain's political and economic interests in the region.
[Copyright of Journal of Educational Administration and History is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00220620600984214]

This paper directly tests for differences in returns to education between the employed and self-employed in Hong Kong. Using a step-function, we find significantly smaller returns for the self-employed, suggesting that in the highly competitive labor market of Hong Kong education plays a signaling role. This pattern persists for both genders, when accounting for self-selection into employment status and when accounting for self-employed professionals who signal.
[Copyright of Education Economics is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0964529042000193925]

Education in colonial Hong Kong was basically apolitical in nature. Civic education was introduced as a social control mechanism to reflect colonial heritage, and emphasizes the passive, obedient and law-abiding role of citizens, and prevents the development of nationalism and indigenous cultural identity. However, in response to the Joint Declaration, there was a pressure for the Government to prepare pupils to become competent citizens of the Special Administrative Region (SAR). However, various research findings reflect that young people are apathetic in political and community affairs, weak in basic civic knowledge and social awareness. In response to the re-definition of the national identity status of Hong Kong citizens, there is an urgent need to cultivate the sense of belonging of the younger generation toward the SAR as well as the PRC as a whole. The author believes that even after reunification, civic education should not be overlooked as an important educational element in tertiary education. This element should compliment the academic subjects offered by various departments and be integrated in the themes of personal development programs offered by the student affairs office in tertiary education settings. Civic education programs, either co-curricular or extra-curricular in nature, should focus on both nationalistic and democratic themes through the adoption of a participatory-oriented approach, so that students could be provided with ample opportunities to participate in the decision-making process on issues directly affecting their well-being. Arguments for and against this standpoint are presented in the context of the Hong Kong educational system.
[Copyright of Educational Studies is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03055699997918]

It has been suggested that although the most theorisation about globalisation has emerged from western contexts, the material implications of globalisation have been felt most strongly in non- Western regions. With this in mind, the authors undertake a situated analysis of how two states, Singapore and Hong Kong, are interacting with the broader processes of globalisation through their educational policies. Foucault's conceptual tool of governmentality is used to understand (i) the conduct of governing in the contemporary nation- state, and (ii) how the right rationalities are being inculcated by government to create desiring subjects who will play their part in ensuring national prosperity. The Asian economic crisis is used as a point of departure to show how global local tensions are being managed by Singapore and Hong Kong. The article concludes that both these global cities have adroitly managed the Asian economic crisis to steer their citizens away from pursuits of greater political freedom and towards concerns of material well being. They have done so through a selective interpretation of globalisation, by simultaneously resisting and embracing the contradictory strands of globalisation. Education has emerged as a critical space for this selective absorption of globalising trends.
[Copyright of Asia Pacific Journal of Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0218879030230104 ]