(The Standard P.10
11 Mar 2013) Plans are in the pipeline (渠道)
to
transform (改造) an industrial
building into a complex (綜合設施) where English is
the only language.
The chairman of the Standing Committee on Language
Education and Research, Cheng Kai-ming, said everyone would have to communicate
in English in a facility given a new meaning in life.
The
financial secretary announced with last month's budget that HK$5 billion was to
be injected (注入) into the Language Fund to help with
long-term aims of a broad (廣泛的) and
linguistically (語言學方面) smart community (智慧社區).
The committee was established (成立) to provide advice to the government on
language education and on how best to use the Language Fund.
Cheng told Sing Tao Daily, The Standard's
sister publication, that one of his plans for the new funding is to revitalize (活化) a vacant (空置) industrial building in Northern District or
Tuen Mun, where the all-English environment could be created.
People would have to speak in English when
they use facilities such as restaurants and hair salons in the mall- like complex (綜合設施). And offices there could be rented to English
organizations.
Preliminarily talks are being held with
business chambers, Cheng added.
"As schools in Hong Kong are lacking an
environment for English language, we hope that there will be more chances for
students to speak and use English," he said.
A government source revealed earlier that the
HK$5 billion was meant to be seed money with an annual return of HK$250 million
from projects.
There would also be support for teachers of
Chinese to take courses on how best to help non-Chinese students learn the
language.
Set up (成立) in 1994, the Language Fund provides
financial support for projects and activities aimed at promoting bi-literacy
and tri- lingualism (兩文三語) among Hongkongers, including programs to
support non-Chinese- speaking students learning Chinese.
The
fund has since its inception (起初) had six
injections of finance (引入資金) totaling HK$3.5
billion.
Staff reporter
Hong Kong is an international famous city. There are many businessmen as well as visitors come from different countries, so English language is not only a major medium of communication for Hongkongers and westerners but also a state document of contract for business. Thus the employees should have better skills of both speaking and writing in English if they want to get satisfied jobs and to climb up the social ladder.
回覆刪除However, some said students got the subject results of English, which were lower and lower, some employers said they were hard to find smart employees who spoke English fluently and send well-written e-mail to their foreign customers.
I fully agree with Mr. Cheng Kai-ming’s views that schools in Hong Kong do not provide an environment of English language for students. Some of them are weak in English subject to shortage of the chance for practising.
I strongly believe that if there is a mall where people have to speak in English when they use facilities such as restaurants, hair salons and shops, they may improve their English speaking. As the same time, it will create an opportunity for teachers to have activities for their students learning in English there. The latter may raise the focus and interest of English through learning English in living.
The government, schools and employers should work together to create more all-English environment for students and employees. Make them be competitive to their peers.
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