Power, Identity and Second Language Learning: Teaching and Learning Chinese as a Second Language in China

By Fang Gao

Students from language minority backgrounds in China face the challenge of predominant Chinese medium of instruction in order to reach a level of Chinese language proficiency. This can be illustrated by two particular cases: ethnic Koreans in North-eastern China and South Asians (e.g. Indian, Pakistani, and Nepalese) in Southern China - Hong Kong.

This book takes a comparative perspective to examine identity, power and L2 Chinese teaching and learning for the two ethnic groups in order to (1) examine various political, socioeconomic, cultural, and ideological factors socially/institutionally constructing Chinese language teaching and learning; (2) examine the initiation and implementation of contextually-dependent language-in-education policies; (3) explore language subject teachers' self-identification and teaching beliefs; and (4) explore minority students' imagined identities and individual investment in L2 Chinese learning.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415709768
• ISBN13: 9780415709767
• Release Date: January 2026
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 232 Pages