EFL Teaching at Hong Kong's Universities

Introduction by The Region Editor
David McMurray, Fukui Prefectural University

July 1, 1997 marked the reversion of Hong Kong from Britain to China. After more than 150 years under a colonial education system, changes are sure to occur, and occur rapidly. This month's The Region column serves as the point-of-handover reference for the teaching situation in Hong Kong's seven universities.

The major catalyst for change will come from China. Government policy and the Mandarin language have already made strong inroads into Hong Kong. Textbooks to be used during the post-handover are screened by the China-appointed Preparatory Committee overseeing the Education Department. Tough censorship is unlikely this year, but drastic revisions probably lie in the future. The current president of the Hong Kong Educational Publishers Association predicts the new government will completely overhaul the current syllabus within five years.

Despite the changes, English teaching will remain a priority. English in Hong Kong has been an institutionalized additional language mixing freely with Cantonese and Mandarin in schools and in the market place. In China, over 200 million students are enrolled in programs in English as a foreign language. Schools are operated by the government. The drive for English language education is part of the transition to an open door policy. China's unified national tests for English proficiency and entrance tests focus on reading ability. There remains a shortage of English instructors at colleges. Foreign companies hire the available teachers at much higher salaries than what colleges can offer.

Relations with China are considered to be the most important international challenge over the next century. The Region column intends to contribute to the vibrant debate. The following article is an excellent bench mark from which to start.

When I was teaching in Japan, I would often see advertisements from universities in Hong Kong which looked as attractive as they were generic. The impression I gained from reading the highly similar job descriptions was that one institution was very much like another. However, there is a fair amount of variety among the tertiary institutions of Hong Kong; the purpose of this article is to facilitate comparisons and contrasts among them. Information has been drawn from personal interviews with relevant department heads and staff. Supplementary data has been drawn from university calendars, bulletins, and student handbooks that describe courses and degree programmes.

There are seven tertiary institutions in Hong Kong--six universities and one college--which are generally known by the following names: Hong Kong University (officially, "The University of Hong Kong"), Chinese University, Baptist University, City University, Polytechnic University, the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (no relation to Hong Kong University) and Lingnan College. For most Bachelor of Arts degrees, all seven institutions follow the British model of a three-year study program. Most of the universities offer degree programs or language courses in languages other than English, including French, German, Japanese, Italian, and Spanish (see Appendix). English language programs predominate, therefore, they will be the focus of this article.

The system for English-language delivery differs slightly at each institution. The differences are frequently the result of each institution's history and politics.

Types of Language Courses

While most universities in Hong Kong have English departments with the customary degree programs in literature and linguistics, the overwhelming majority of English-language courses offered in Hong Kong are service courses. These are usually credit-bearing courses provided to students of departments other than English. Generally speaking, these courses are either for remedial English (frequently known in Hong Kong as "language enhancement") or for English for Specific Purposes. At five of the seven institutions, students with deficient English-language skills are required to participate in a "language enhancement" program (Hong Kong University and Chinese University do not require this). Usually, the basis for determining which students must take language enhancement is their score on the "Advanced Supplementary Use of English" examination, which nearly all prospective university students take during their last year of secondary school. A student who is admitted to university with a grade of "D" or below usually is automatically enrolled in a program for language enhancement. At some universities, this amounts to nearly eighty percent of the incoming students. Consequently, many of the posts available for EFL teachers are for this kind of teaching.

The other large sector for English-language teaching posts are the service courses for ESP. Most of these courses are English for Academic Purposes (EAP). This means the course is designed to improve students' academic performance within their degree program. The minority of ESP courses, usually offered in the second and third years of matriculation, are known as English for Professional Purposes (EPP). This means the course is designed to improve students' professional performance in the kinds of tasks they will have to do in their field of specialization after they graduate. To illustrate the difference, then, an EAP course would teach students how to write research papers required for their course work, while an EPP course would teach them how to fill out the kinds of documents required on the job.

Of the seven tertiary institutions in Hong Kong, all but Chinese University require nearly all of their students to take at least one ESP course--some, as many as six--and nearly all require students with deficient English-language skills to participate in a remedial program. While Chinese University has a few ESP courses, its primary system for delivery of English-language courses has been through a wide variety of elective credit-bearing courses. These courses include subjects such as English Improvement Strategies, Introduction to Academic Writing, English Through Visual Media, Business Communications, and Effective Oral Communication. While these courses are not, strictly speaking, ESP, they present a wide array of topics in which students may develop their proficiency. At all of the tertiary institutions, the average class size for a regular credit-bearing course in English is around 19.

Institutional Frameworks

Of the seven universities, three--Hong Kong University, Chinese University, and Baptist University--have similar administrative structures. Each has an English Department and an English-language service unit. The English Department is primarily responsible for its own degree program in English Literature, Linguistics, or a combination of the two. The service unit is responsible for English-language courses provided to students within the other degree programs at that university.

The British educational system makes a distinction between universities and "polytechnics" (which are at a somewhat lower academic level than a university). The two polytechnics in Hong Kong were recently chartered as universities; they are now known as Hong Kong Polytechnic University and City University of Hong Kong. Polytechnic University provides all its English-language courses and services--remedial English, service courses for other departments, and degree courses--through its English Department. With about 100 full-time academic staff, this makes for a rather large department, with a commensurate degree of clout.

City University's delivery system is slightly different. All remedial courses in English are provided by The Language Centre. The English Department is responsible both for courses within its own degree programs as well as for the service courses. However, service courses for "Higher Diploma" students--secondary school graduates who seek a higher diploma but not a bachelor's degree--are provided by the Division of Language Studies. As a practical matter, some of the courses offered by the Division of Language Studies are quite similar to those offered by the English Department.

At both of these two recently chartered universities, the English degrees offered do not follow the traditional models of literature or linguistics. Instead, Polytechnic University's two English degree programs are "Contemporary English Language" and "Language and Business." Both degrees place emphasis on English as a professional language for trade; the Languages and Business course also includes language study in either French, German, or Japanese. City University's two English degree programs are "English as a Foreign Language" and "English for Professional Communication." Again, the focus seems to be on the professional uses of English language rather than the more esoteric aspects of linguistics and literature.

The two remaining tertiary institutions, Lingnan College and the University of Science & Technology, offer service courses only. At Lingnan College, the English Department provides a remedial English program for incoming students with low scores in English. It also provides service courses for the college's four degree programs--Chinese, Translation, Business Administration, and Social Sciences. Curiously, the English Department has no degree program of its own. Lingnan College is now establishing an English-language service unit, to which responsibility for the service courses is being transferred.

The University of Science & Technology has no English Department at all; instead, it has a Language Centre which provides service courses for other academic departments. It also provides a course in business communication, which is required for all students in the Department of Business and Management, and a course in technical communication, which is required for all students in the Department of Engineering. Finally, it is responsible for staffing the remedial courses required for incoming students with deficient scores in English.

Compensation

Below is a sample range of salaries. At any particular university, of course, there may be some variation.

The following posts generally require a Doctorate:
 

The following posts generally require a Master's degree:
 

Hong Kong Polytechnic has introduced a new type of post, known as a "temporary" language instructor. The compensation for this post is significantly less attractive than for the posts described above; for example, instead of receiving salary year-round, the temporary instructors are paid for just ten months.

For over ten years, the Hong Kong dollar has been pegged to the U.S. dollar, with an exchange rate of US $1.00 = HK $ 7.73 (roughly, HK $10,000 is about US $1,300; and, as of this writing, about ¥144,000) . Hong Kong's inflation rate has been averaging about 10% for the past ten years. This is both a plus and a minus for university teachers. The minus is that Hong Kong is no longer the bargain paradise it once was. In fact, many appliances and electronics cost the same as they would in Japan, and more than they would in the U.S. The plus is that, up until now, teachers have received a cost-of-living adjustment of about 10% for each of those years. For no other reason than this, university teachers' salaries have virtually doubled over the past ten years. However, over the past year or so the inflation rate has shown some signs of abating to around 7%.

While some Hong Kong tertiary institutions use the American system of titles for academic staff (i.e., Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Professor), other institutions use the terms found in the British system. These are, from lowest to highest, Assistant Instructor, Instructor, Senior Instructor, Principal Instructor, Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Reader, and Professor (of which there is only one per department). Generally, a Master's degree is required for anything from Assistant Instructor to Principal Instructor, and a Doctorate is required for Lecturers and up. There is some flexibility in this, however; it's still not unheard of for someone with a Master's and significant teaching experience to attain the rank of lecturer.

Possible Changes

On July 1, 1997, Britain transfered sovereignty over Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China. While no one can say with certainty how that will affect conditions in the territory, here are some possibilities that are generally predicted.

After many years of a colonial hegemony that favored expatriates, most universities in Hong now follow a policy of "localisation." Accordingly, assuming equivalent credentials and experience, preference is given to Hong Kong residents in hiring. Because of the natural desirability for native-speakers, this probably has less effect on the hiring of teachers in English and other foreign language departments. However, given that compensation and benefits were originally established primarily with expatriates in mind, it would not be surprising if some vestiges of the package, such as financial assistance in sending one's children abroad to boarding school, are eventually eliminated. One current effect of the localisation policy is that teachers should not assume that a university will provide them with housing, or even a housing allowance.

Another significant change is the likely de-linking of the Hong Kong dollar from the U.S. dollar. For the past 15 years, even with past weakening of the U.S. dollar via other currencies (notably the yen), that linking has been a source of currency stability. Should the Hong Kong dollar radically destabilize, expatriate teachers may find the situation unattractive. However, the general belief seems to be that no "Mexican-peso" crash is likely, and it may even be that after some initial fluctuation, the Hong Kong dollar could be stronger than its current level.

Most of the degree programs offered at all of the tertiary institutions in Hong Kong are three-year programs. Even Chinese University, originally chartered as a four-year institution, acquiesced to government wishes a few years ago to change to three years. The concept underlying the seven-year secondary school/three-year university scheme is that another year of secondary school is, overall, less expensive than another year of university. Also, those students who do not go on to university will be educated to a higher level, making them more valuable in the marketplace. Unfortunately, because each degree program requires so many units of courses within its major per year, there is little room left in the program for nonmajor courses--including language courses. In China, however, virtually all universities have four-year programs, and it may well be that Hong Kong will soon follow suit. If so, this could present more opportunities for language teachers.

I would like to thank the following people for their help and advice during the writing of this report.

University of Hong Kong

David Nunan, Director, The English Centre

Hong Kong Baptist University

John Ng, Head, The Language Centre
Rose Ng, Principal Language Instructor, The Language Centre
Terry Yip, Head, English Department
Bjorn Jernudd, Professor, English Department

City University

Andrew Taylor, Associate Head, English Department
Timothy Boswood, Associate Professor, English Department
Matthew Leung, Head, The Language Institute
C.S. Chan, Head, Division of Language Studies
Wanda Poon, Principal Lecurer, Division of Language Studies

Polytechnic University

Peter Barnes, Head, English Department
Richard Farmer, Principal Lecturer in Charge, English Study Centre
Christine Heuring, Language Instructor, English Study Centre
Bruce Morrison, Director, Centre for English Language Learning

University of Science and Technology

Gregory James, Head, The Language Centre

Lingnan College

Barry Asker, Head, English Department

Chinese University

Andrew Parkin, Professor, English Department
Gwendolyn Gong, Chair (Acting), English Language Teaching Unit
Eva Lai, Lecturer, Director of Independent Learning Centre

1. Department of English for its own majors.
2. Predominately elective courses; though some departments (such as Engineering) require one course in Technical Communications