HK LegCo members propose to strengthen nurturing of foreign language talents

At a Legislative Council meeting today (Nov. 27), Legislative Council (LegCo) Member Benson Luk proposed to strengthen the nurturing of foreign language talents. He suggested expanding foreign language education in Hong Kong by allocating more government resources to tertiary institutions or establishing foreign language universities drawing on the models of the Mainland. He also proposed enhancing HK's "biliterate and trilingual" policy by turning it into a "triliterate and quadrilingual" policy.

LegCo Member Mrs. Regina IP LAU Suk-yee also advocated for stronger government measures to cultivate foreign language talent. She proposed offering scholarships for students interested in Islamic finance to study Arabic language and culture in the Middle East. 

Reflecting on her own experience, Ip shared that she studied French for her GCE O-levels and took three years of Japanese during university, including a six-week immersive learning program. However, she admitted that she is no longer able to read menus in either language, emphasizing that language proficiency requires more than academic courses. Ip believes that a scholarship program could help students not only learn Arabic but also immerse themselves in Middle Eastern culture.

Dr. Sze Chun-fai, Acting Secretary for Education, responded by pointing out that while large-scale overseas exchanges at the secondary school level are challenging, university students already have access to various internship opportunities aligned with their studies. 

Sze emphasized that HK's eight University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universities already offer 12 foreign languages, including elective courses for students in engineering and technology. He noted that these programs align with current needs and provide students with ample opportunities to engage in language learning.

He also highlighted existing pilot programs that allocate additional resources for junior secondary students to learn new languages, such as Arabic and Russian, as a bridge to relevant senior secondary courses.

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