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Simplified Chinese in Hong Kong schools? Pragmatic perhaps but surely a pity
A ruckus caused by a move made by two primary schools has stirred a larger debate on language and identity.
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Primary school students run past a board at the national security exhibition gallery in Hong Kong.
ST PHOTO: MAGDALENE FUNG
Hong Kongers have long resisted the adoption of simplified Chinese – and that still hasn’t changed after Hong Kong welcomed more Chinese talent and their families in recent years.
In November, two primary schools inadvertently rekindled an age-old debate over the use of simplified Chinese in Hong Kong, when they allowed their pupils to use simplified Chinese characters in their tests and examinations.
