Socialization In Hong Kong

Socialization in hong kong

Hong Kong was ruled by the British from 1842-1997. During that period, educational policy of Hong Kong differed from that in other colonial territories. The colonial government encouraged identification with the indigenous Chinese culture, particularly the values of Confucianism. One aim of this research is to explore the culture and values that were chosen by the colonial government as “legitimate knowledge”. A second aim is to investigate the relationships between the promotion of the Chinese local culture and British colonial rule in Hong Kong. The methodology used in this study consists of content analysis, interview and documentary analysis to collect both primary and secondary sources of data. Hong Kong under British rule, pursued a deliberate policy of the “depoliticization” of society, both to avoid offending the Chinese government and to preserve Hong Kong’s stability and prosperity “conditions favourable to the colonial government’s continued rule and the economic development of Hong Kong society. Hence, some scholars have argued that the colonial government’s strategy was to depoliticize the curriculum in its educational policies. However, the present study demonstrates that politics and the Chinese Language curriculum were closely related. The Chinese Language curriculum strongly advocated Confucian values and this was in fact a tactic to achieve political socialization as well as consolidate British colonial rule over Hong Kong.