Language, Culture and Society in Hong Kong

Course Coordinator: Dr Patrick Lee, MA (HKBU); MA (City University of HK); MBA (University of Leicester, UK); PhD (Newcastle University, UK); Chartered Linguist (CIOL)

This course introduces students to the relationship between language, culture and society in the speech communities of Hong Kong.

Aims
This course aims to introduce students to the study of the social functions of language in the society of Hong Kong. In particular, it provides students with an opportunity to consider how language varies according to different social factors and how different social groups represent and construct their identities through the use of language. The course further provides students with a chance to understand and evaluate the language policy and language education in Hong Kong.

Contents
The course covers the following topics:

• Functions of language

• Language variation and users

• Language variation and uses

• Methodology in studying language variation

• Speech communities in Hong Kong

• Code-switching and code-mixing in Hong Kong

• Language and gender in Hong Kong

• Language and identity in Hong Kong

• Language and culture in Hong Kong

• Language policy and language education in Hong Kong

Contact hours
Normally three hours per week.

Assessment
The continuous assessment portion of the course will account for 60% of the total course score, while the final examination will account for the remaining 40% of the total course score. Students are required to submit assignments via the Online Learning Environment (OLE).