| Abstract | In response to recommendations of Education Commission Report 4, the Hong Kong Government Education Department sponsored a Bridge Program targeted on the 30 percent (estimated) of the secondary school population deemed able to profit from having English medium instruction (EMI) for the whole curriculum. A concerted effort was mounted by some publishers and educational organizations to design the three-month curriculum, and to produce texts and training programs for teachers. As with so many previous educational initiatives in Hong Kong, it is the implementation that has proved hazardous. On the basis of interviews with teachers, and with others involved in the implementation of this program, the article suggests reasons why an innovatory initiative has met with resistance. Why is it difficult to get good educational ideas off the ground in Hong Kong? Are there some inherent defects in the system? These questions are particularly relevant today as the Government's policy on Chinese medium instruction (CMI) -- the other side of a clear-cut language policy -- has once again met with resistance from some schools, teachers and students. |
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