The Roles of Multilingual Learning Facilitators in Assisting Non-Chinese-Speaking Students in Learning Chinese in Hong Kong: An Exploratory Study

Shek-Kam Tse,Heiken To,Victor Laing,Lu-Sai Lam,Kam-Fong Wu,Pik-Fong Tsui

doi:10.4236/jss.2021.91035

Abstract

This study aimed to define the roles played by Multilingual Learning Facilitators (MLFs), a novel post created to facilitate non-Chinese-speaking (NCS) pre-schoolers in learning Chinese in Hong Kong, based in community agencies. Qualitative analysis of field observations and interviews with MLFs and social workers found that roles fell under teaching-related and social work-related categories. For teaching-related roles, MLFs facilitated learning of Chinese in NCS pre-schoolers, assisted social workers in classroom management during activities, engaged NCS parents, and fostered communication between social workers and NCS parents. For social work-related duties, MLFs offered consulting for NCS parents dealing with issues, and also fostered communication between social workers and NCS parents. These roles are made possible due to MLFs’ language and cultural expertise of that of NCS families and the local Chinese community. This addresses current limitations faced by teachers and social workers in their roles in teaching NCS students, and expands resources available for NCS families, from schools to the community, in supporting their children in learning Chinese, potentially opening up opportunities for NCS children to integrate into the local community.

Highlights

IntroductionSider the interconnections of different systems and how they combine to influence children, instead of considering stakeholders and the environment around children as separating from one another
Semi-Structured Interview The semi-structured interview revealed four main roles of Multilingual Learning Facilitators (MLFs) in teaching-related duties: Facilitate learning of Chinese in NCS students The social worker noted that having an MLF that was familiar with the language of NCS students was important in her teaching, as students may not understand her instructions completely, and that the MLF was helpful in explaining the instructions to them in their own native language so that students would be able to follow the lesson progress: “Some children only understand 50%, so it would be helpful to have a Pakistani colleague to help, because some children really don’t understand instructions, if someone can remind them, it would be easier for the children to follow the lesson progress.”
The social worker mentioned that the expertise of the MLF in NCS cultures helped her in designing culturally-appropriate and relevant activities for NCS students, allowing them to learn Chinese in a way in which they could relate to their own background and experiences: “She can give some suggestions of activities

Summary

Introduction

Sider the interconnections of different systems and how they combine to influence children, instead of considering stakeholders and the environment around children as separating from one another. This has given rise to a Home-School-Community (HSC) collaborative approach in child education. The home domain concerns aspects such as parental involvement in children’s learning, along with parenting knowledge and skills. The school domain contains aspects such as school policies, educational materials, environment and teaching quality. The community domain considers resources from community agencies available to children, families and schools and how they can be connected to these resources (Smith et al, 1997; Suarez-Orozco, Onaga, & De Lardemelle, 2010)

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