Beyond language barriers: ethnic minority students shine in Hong Kong DSE tests
Advertisement
'It was just like a big sigh of relief,' said Kedia, who received four 5** grades and two 5* grades, the top two levels of a seven-level scale of the exams.
She was among 55,000 students who received their Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) results on Wednesday. Kedia, 18, who moved to Hong Kong from India at the age of one, is also part of the 8 per cent of non-Chinese Hongkongers, according to the Hong Kong Census.
Despite her impressive results, Kedia's journey to success was not smooth sailing.
'In kindergarten and primary school, we definitely learned [Cantonese], but it was very basic and so ...I still found it really difficult to have daily conversations with my classmates or my neighbours,' she said. 'So I never really was able to connect with them.'
Advertisement
Everything changed for Kedia once she realised in secondary school that she wanted to become a doctor in Hong Kong.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
3 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Why are urban Chinese like my friend falling for guoxue scams?
It all began with a WeChat message from my friend. We hadn't seen each other in a while. She had left Beijing for a quieter, more remote town and her social media updates suggested she was diving deeper into guoxue – 'national studies', or the study of traditional Chinese culture – Buddhist philosophy and other spiritual pursuits. Her text read: 'You should join our reading group. We're studying classical Chinese texts. You will definitely love it.' She had been going through a rough patch: burnout at work, a deep sense of disorientation. I admired her for trying to connect with something deeper. Out of curiosity and genuine concern, I agreed to join. But a sense of unease gnawed at me. The trend of guoxue, framed as a path to enlightenment, had always unsettled me. Something about it seemed too commercialised and packaged. In my first video session with the reading group, we were told to introduce ourselves. An older woman who seemed to hold a position of authority spoke last. 'It's so good to see young people here,' she said. 'These days, no one reads any more. But you all – you have the time. Life is more than just drinking and eating.' Her words carried a quiet disdain, as if fundamental human joys were distractions from something greater. As if nourishing the body, sharing meals, enjoying small pleasures – things that ground us in the world – were lesser pursuits. After two more sessions, I couldn't continue. What pushed me over the edge was a new requirement: we were to record ourselves reading the founder's book out loud and submit these recordings for review. No discussion. No questions. Just repetition. Supposedly, this would deepen our understanding – though how exactly, no one explained. As a philosophy major trained in the Western tradition, I found this deeply frustrating. The purpose of engaging with a text should be to analyse, question and discuss its ideas. But here, those very acts were forbidden. I told my friend I wanted to leave. She said she needed to check with her superior first. That response alone spoke volumes.
RTHK
a day ago
- RTHK
Wartime sites revived as China commemorates victory
Wartime sites revived as China commemorates victory Deep bullet holes still scar the walls of the historic buildings. Photo: RTHK Wartime sites in Shanxi province have been transformed into places of learning and remembrance, as China marks the 80th anniversary of victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and in the World Anti-Fascist War. One such site is in Yangquan City, where deep bullet holes still scar the walls of buildings. The Liu Family Mansion, once the scene of fierce combat between the Eighth Route Army and Japanese troops, has been restored and converted into an exhibition hall. The display tells the story of a battle where Chinese troops, though outnumbered, won a significant victory. These events were part of the Hundred-Regiment Campaign launched in August 1940, when the Eighth Route Army attacked Japanese-controlled railways and mines in northern China. One of the commanders, Fan Zixia, led sabotage missions along the Zheng-Tai Railway, destroying bridges and capturing train stations to cut off Japanese supply lines. Fan was later killed in 1942. His granddaughter, Fan Wei, has spent years retracing his footsteps – visiting old trenches, water towers, and rail stations where he once fought. 'I'm proud of my grandfather,' Fan Wei said. 'His bravery still inspires our family and younger generations.' China is organising a series of commemorative activities to mark the 80th war victory anniversary, including a major military parade on September 3.
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- South China Morning Post
6 Chinese university students drown on mine field trip in Inner Mongolia
Six university students drowned in an industrial tank during a field trip to a mining operation owned by China's most prestigious gold producing company, according to state news agency Xinhua. One teacher was also injured in the incident, which occurred on Wednesday morning at China National Gold Group's Wunugetushan copper-molybdenum mine in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, it said. The students, from Northeastern University in Liaoning province, drowned after a grating panel gave way and they fell into a flotation tank. They were pulled from the tank in the mine's processing plant, but could not be revived, according to Xinhua. The report did not give further details about the victims or the incident. State broadcaster CCTV said the regional government would launch an investigation into the incident. The tank is used to process ore. Photo: Handout According to the official Jimu News in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, the victims were in their third year and majoring in mineral processing engineering.
