1887
  1. Home
  2. e-Journals
  3. Journal of Asian Pacific Communication
  4. Online First Articles
  5. Online First Article
image of (Mis)representation of Hong Kong as an English-speaking city
USD
Buy:$35.00 + Taxes

Abstract

Abstract

This study analyzed the website contents of 10 Japan-based study abroad agencies to examine how Japanese students are encouraged to study English in Hong Kong. The deductive content analysis revealed that the agencies (mis)represent Hong Kong as (1) a former British colony with English being used “throughout the city”, (2) a global education hub that thrives on and produces elite English-speaking youth, and (3) a Mandarin-speaking city economically flourishing with the rise of China. The study also found the city was marketed with nearly no reference to Asian and pro-Japan hospitality. This study discusses the significance of examining the present and future of Hong Kong’s English study abroad market which is situated in the increased competitiveness of the Philippines and Singapore, the continued western English/education supremacy, the shifting linguistic and national identity development in the city, and its new relation with the rest of the world.

© John Benjamins Publishing Company
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1075/japc.25064.kob
2026-01-15
2026-02-14

  • From This Site

    /content/journals/10.1075/japc.25064.kob
    dcterms_title,dcterms_subject,pub_keyword
    -contentType:Journal -contentType:Contributor -contentType:Concept -contentType:Institution
    10
    5
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Bae, S., & Park, J. S.-Y.
    (2020) Investing in the future: Korean early English education as neoliberal management of youth. Multilingua, (), –. 10.1515/multi‑2019‑0009
     https://doi.org/10.1515/multi-2019-0009 [Google Scholar]
  2. Barkin, G.
    (2018) Either here or there: Short-term study abroad and the discourse of going. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, (), –. 10.1111/aeq.12248
     https://doi.org/10.1111/aeq.12248 [Google Scholar]
  3. Burcu, O.
    (2021) The Chinese government’s management of anti-Japan nationalism during Hu-Wen era. International Relations of the Asia-Pacific, (), –. 10.1093/irap/lcab002
     https://doi.org/10.1093/irap/lcab002 [Google Scholar]
  4. Census and Statistics Department
    Census and Statistics Department. (February 2022) 2021 Population Census: Summary Results: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
     [Google Scholar]
  5. Cheung, K.
    (August25 2015; updatedMarch31 2020) Only around 6% of Hongkongers speak English well, HUK study shows. Hong Kong Free Press. Retrieved fromhttps://hongkongfp.com/2015/08/25/only-around-6-of-hongkongers-speak-english-well-hku-study-shows/
     [Google Scholar]
  6. Choe, H.
    (2016) Identity formation of Filipino ESL teachers teaching Korean students in the Philippines. English Today, (), –. 10.1017/S0266078415000553
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078415000553 [Google Scholar]
  7. Choe, H., & Son, E.
    (2018) Southeast Asian ESL countries as study abroad destinations: A Korean perspective. English Today, (), –. 10.1017/S0266078417000451
     https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078417000451 [Google Scholar]
  8. Department of Statistics Singapore
    Department of Statistics Singapore. (June16 2021) Singapore Census of Population 2020, Statistical Release 1: Demographic Characteristics, Education, Language and Religion. Retrieved fromhttps://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/reference/cop2020/cop2020-sr1/census20_stat_release1
     [Google Scholar]
  9. Fairclough, N.
    (1992) Discourse and social change. Cambridge: Polity.
     [Google Scholar]
  10. (2013) Critical discourse analysis: The critical study of language (2nd ed.). London: Routledge. 10.4324/9781315834368
     https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315834368 [Google Scholar]
  11. Fairclough, N., & Wodak, R.
    (1997) Critical discourse analysis. InT. A. van Dijk (Ed.), Discourse Studies: A Multidisciplinary Introduction (2nd ed., pp.–). London: Sage.
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Flowerdew, J.
    (2018) Critical discourse studies and context. InJ. Flowerdew, & J. E. Richardson (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Critical Discourse Studies (pp.–). London and New York: Routlege.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. Foley, M., & Lennon, J. J.
    (1996) JFK and dark tourism: A fascination with assassination. International Journal of Heritage Studies, (), –. 10.1080/13527259608722175
     https://doi.org/10.1080/13527259608722175 [Google Scholar]
  14. Hio Mei, C.
    (2022) Hong Kong English and linguistic identity of Hong Kongers. Asian Englishes, (), –. 10.1080/13488678.2021.1879535
     https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2021.1879535 [Google Scholar]
  15. Jang, I. C.
    (2018) Legitimating the Philippines as a language learning space: Transnational Korean youth’s experiences and evaluations. Journal of Sociolinguistics, (), –. 10.1111/josl.12275
     https://doi.org/10.1111/josl.12275 [Google Scholar]
  16. Kachru, B.
    (1992) The other tongue: English across cultures. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Kang, Y.
    (2012) Singlish or globish: multiple language ideologies and global identities among Korean educational migrants in Singapore. Journal of Sociolinguistics, (), –. 10.1111/j.1467‑9841.2011.00522.x
     https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9841.2011.00522.x [Google Scholar]
  18. Kawakami, A.
    (2009) From an “international woman” to “just another Asian immigrant”: Transformation of Japanese women’s self-image before and after permanent settlement in a Western country. Journal of Identity and Migration Studies, (), –.
     [Google Scholar]
  19. Kelsky, K.
    (2001) Women on the verge: Japanese women, Western dreams. Durham: Duke University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  20. Kobayashi, Y.
    (2006) Inter-ethnic relations between ESL students. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, (), –. 10.1080/01434630608668774
     https://doi.org/10.1080/01434630608668774 [Google Scholar]
  21. (2011) Expanding-circle students learning ‘standard English’ in the outer-circle Asia. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, (), –. 10.1080/01434632.2010.536239
     https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2010.536239 [Google Scholar]
  22. (2017) ASEAN English teachers as a model for international English learners: Modified teaching principles. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, (), –. 10.1111/ijal.12173
     https://doi.org/10.1111/ijal.12173 [Google Scholar]
  23. (2022) Japanese university students’ longing for an idealized France and encounters with global English in Europe. Higher Education, (), –. 10.1007/s10734‑021‑00783‑8
     https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-021-00783-8 [Google Scholar]
  24. (2023) Studying English both in the ASEAN region and the West: Japanese multiple sojourners’ self-identity, privilege, and global isolation. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, (), –. 10.1080/01434632.2020.1835928
     https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2020.1835928 [Google Scholar]
  25. (2025) Inclusion/Exclusion of TESOL in the ‘true’ internationalization of Japan’s higher education. InV. Tavares (Ed.), Internationalization of TESOL Teacher Education: Global and Critical Perspectives (pp.–): Multilingual Matters.
     [Google Scholar]
  26. Krippendorff, K.
    (2019) Content analysis: An introduction to its methodology (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, Inc.
     [Google Scholar]
  27. Lam, P. W. Y.
    (2024) A multi-sited analysis of the linguistic landscape of Hong Kong through a center-periphery approach. World Englishes, (), –. 10.1111/weng.12625
     https://doi.org/10.1111/weng.12625 [Google Scholar]
  28. Lee, C. L.
    (2024) Singapore hawker centres: A linguistic landscape of identity, diversity, and continuity. Journal of Asian Pacific Communication, (), –. 10.1075/japc.00078.lee
     https://doi.org/10.1075/japc.00078.lee [Google Scholar]
  29. Lee, J. E.
    (2022) English ability, transnational business, and the global labor market: The case of instructors in English language schools in the Philippines promoted by Korean-Filipino enterprises. Asia-Japan Research Institute of Ritsumeikan University, , –. Retrieved from10.34389/asiajapan.4.0_18
     https://doi.org/10.34389/asiajapan.4.0_18 [Google Scholar]
  30. Lesjak, M., Juvan, E., Ineson, E. M., Yap, M. H. T., & Axelsson, E. P.
    (2015) Erasmus student motivation: Why and where to go?Higher Education, (), –. 10.1007/s10734‑015‑9871‑0
     https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-015-9871-0 [Google Scholar]
  31. Lewin-Jones, J.
    (2019) Discourses of ‘internationalisation’: A multimodal critical discourse analysis of university marketing webpages. Research in Post-Compulsory Education, (), –. 10.1080/13596748.2019.1596418
     https://doi.org/10.1080/13596748.2019.1596418 [Google Scholar]
  32. Li, D. C. S.
    (2022) Trilingual and biliterate language education policy in Hong Kong: Past, present and future. Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education, (), –. 10.1186/s40862‑022‑00168‑z
     https://doi.org/10.1186/s40862-022-00168-z [Google Scholar]
  33. Lin, C., & Jackson, L.
    (2021) Make China great again: The blood-based view of Chineseness in Hong Kong. Educational Philosophy and Theory, (), –. 10.1080/00131857.2020.1807938
     https://doi.org/10.1080/00131857.2020.1807938 [Google Scholar]
  34. Michelson, K., & Álvarez Valencia, J. A.
    (2016) Study abroad: Tourism or education? A multimodal social semiotic analysis of institutional discourses of a promotional website. Discourse & Communication, (), –. 10.1177/1750481315623893
     https://doi.org/10.1177/1750481315623893 [Google Scholar]
  35. Miller-Idriss, C., Friedman, J. Z., & Auerbach, J.
    (2019) Jumping, horizon gazing, and arms wide: Marketing imagery and the meaning of study abroad in the USA. Higher Education, (), –. 10.1007/s10734‑019‑00390‑8
     https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-019-00390-8 [Google Scholar]
  36. Moreno, R.
    (2021) Disrupting neoliberal and neocolonial ideologies in U.S. study abroad: From discourse to intervention. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, (), –. 10.36366/frontiers.v33i2.529
     https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v33i2.529 [Google Scholar]
  37. Morikawa, T., & Parba, J.
    (2023) (Il)Legitimating Filipino teachers’ English on webpages for Japanese learners of English. TESOL Quarterly, (), –. 10.1002/tesq.3182
     https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3182 [Google Scholar]
  38. Nakazawa, T., Yui, Y., Kamiya, H., Kinoshita, R., & Takeda, Y.
    (2008) Experience of international migration and Japanese identity: A study of locally hired Japanese women in Singapore [text in Japanese]. Geographical Review of Japan, (), –. 10.4157/grj.81.95
     https://doi.org/10.4157/grj.81.95 [Google Scholar]
  39. Ng, A.
    (October22 2022) How Hong Kong can boost its English-speaking talent. South China Morning Post. Retrieved fromhttps://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3196533/how-hong-kong-can-boost-its-english-speaking-talent
     [Google Scholar]
  40. Ong, J.
    (June16 2021) English most spoken at home for nearly half of S’pore residents: Population census. The Straits Times. Retrieved fromhttps://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/english-most-spoken-at-home-for-nearly-half-of-spore-residents-population-census
     [Google Scholar]
  41. Paige, R. M., Cohen, A. D., Mikk, B. K., Chi, J. C., & Lassegard, J. P.
    (2002) Maximizing study abroad: A students’ guide to strategies for language and culture learning and use. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition.
     [Google Scholar]
  42. Parba, J., & Morikawa, T.
    (2022) “Fun place and hospitable people”: (Post)colonial gaze towards the Philippines on webpages for Japanese learners of English. InB. K. Sharma, & S. Gao (Eds.), Language and Intercultural Communication in Tourism: Critical Perspectives (pp.–). New York: Routledge.
     [Google Scholar]
  43. Park, J. S.-Y., & Bae, S.
    (2009) Language ideologies in educational migration: Korean jogi yuhak families in Singapore. Linguistics and Education, (), –. 10.1016/j.linged.2009.09.001
     https://doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2009.09.001 [Google Scholar]
  44. Phan, L. H.
    (2017) Transnational education crossing ‘the West’ and ‘Asia’: Adjusted desire, transformative mediocrity, and neo-colonial disguise. London and New York: Routledge.
     [Google Scholar]
  45. Sakai, C.
    (1998) Liberation from gender role: Locally hired Japanese women in Hong Kong [title and text in Japanese]. Sociologos, , –.
     [Google Scholar]
  46. (2004) The Japanese migrant women in Hong Kong and the possibility of the reconfiguration of gender and ethnicity: Can migrant women share their experiences?Ochanomizu University the 21st Century COE Program: Frontiers of Gender Studies Proceedings International Workshop for Junior Scholars: Migrant Domestic/ Care Workers and the Reconfiguration of Gender in Asia, –.
     [Google Scholar]
  47. Schreier, M.
    (2019) Content analysis, qualitative. InP. Atkinson, S. Delamont, A. Cernat, J. W. Sakshaug, & R. A. Williams (Eds.), Social Media Analysis. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.
     [Google Scholar]
  48. Seargeant, P.
    (2009) The idea of English in Japan: Ideology and the evolution of a global language. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
     [Google Scholar]
  49. Sung, C. C. M.
    (2021) International students’ negotiation of identities during transnational studies in Hong Kong: The role of language. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, (), –. 10.1080/03057925.2019.1674635
     https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2019.1674635 [Google Scholar]
  50. Suzuki, N.
    (2019) The transnational growth of Philippine ethnic businesses in the age of global mobility: A case of Korean-run English language schools in Baguio, a regional capital, the Philippines. People and Culture in Oceania (published by the Japanese Society for Oceanic Studies), , –.
     [Google Scholar]
  51. Thang, L. L., MacLachlan, E., & Goda, M.
    (2002) Expatriates on the margins: A study of Japanese women working in Singapore. Geoforum, , –. 10.1016/S0016‑7185(02)00042‑8
     https://doi.org/10.1016/S0016-7185(02)00042-8 [Google Scholar]
  52. The Economist
    The Economist. (May11 2023) A winner has emerged in the old rivalry between Singapore and Hong Kong: From business to city life, Singapore comes out on top. The Economist. Retrieved fromhttps://www.economist.com/asia/2023/05/11/a-winner-has-emerged-in-the-old-rivalry-between-singapore-and-hong-kong
     [Google Scholar]
  53. Tupas, R.
    (2019) Entanglements of colonialism, social class, and Unequal Englishes. Journal of Sociolinguistics, (), –. 10.1111/josl.12384
     https://doi.org/10.1111/josl.12384 [Google Scholar]
  54. Watanabe, Y.
    (2024) Revisiting English attitudes of Japanese students in residential English schools in the Philippines after COVID-19. Asian Englishes, (), –. 10.1080/13488678.2024.2319842
     https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2024.2319842 [Google Scholar]
/content/journals/10.1075/japc.25064.kob
Loading
  • Article Type: Research Article
Keywords: discourse ; study abroad agencies ; Hong Kong ; English ; Mandarin ; outer circle

Most Cited

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was successful
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error