Good Hope School Principal Apologizes After Cantonese Ban Uproar in Graduation Video Guidelines
SingTao · 1 SOURCESabout 2 hours ago6 MIN
Summary
Good Hope School (德望學校), a Direct Subsidy Scheme secondary school in Hong Kong, has been engulfed in controversy after an internal presentation allegedly instructed S6 (upper secondary) students to completely ban Cantonese from their graduation video project. The document reportedly demanded that all voiceovers be recorded in English or Mandarin with English subtitles, with any Cantonese segments to be muted. Principal Gary Harfitt issued a midnight apology email to students and parents, acknowledging that an unrevised presentation containing inappropriate wording was mistakenly sent to graduating students. The school clarified that the directive did not reflect official policy and that Cantonese has never been prohibited, with both Cantonese and Mandarin considered equally important alongside English in the school's trilingual framework.
Key Points
- The controversy began when an online post exposed Good Hope School's graduation video guidelines requiring English or Mandarin voiceovers, with any Cantonese audio to be muted
- Principal Gary Harfitt sent a midnight apology email to S6 students and parents, acknowledging responsibility for distributing the unrevised presentation with inappropriate wording
- The presentation reportedly demanded that even tributes to Chinese language teachers must be delivered in Mandarin with English subtitles
- Harfitt emphasized that the school takes pride in being an EMI (English as Medium of Instruction) institution, but stressed that Cantonese and Mandarin are equally valued
- The school confirmed that students have traditionally used Cantonese to bid farewell to teachers and classmates during graduation activities
Why It Matters
The incident highlights the ongoing tension between Hong Kong's bilingual education policy and the preservation of Cantonese as a cultural identity marker. As an EMI school, Good Hope School's perceived attempt to eliminate Cantonese from school activities touches on broader debates about linguistic heritage in a city where Cantonese is the dominant spoken language. The principal's swift apology and clarification suggest the school recognized the sensitivity of the issue, but the controversy may prompt parents and educators to scrutinize how trilingual policies are implemented across Hong Kong's schools .
The incident highlights the ongoing tension between Hong Kong's bilingual education policy and the preservation of Cantonese as a cultural identity marker. As an EMI school, Good Hope School's perceived attempt to eliminate Cantonese from school activities touches on broader debates about linguistic heritage in a city where Cantonese is the dominant spoken language. The principal's swift apology and clarification suggest the school recognized the sensitivity of the issue, but the controversy may prompt parents and educators to scrutinize how trilingual policies are implemented across Hong Kong's schools .