English teachers’ attitude and perception on teaching Shakespeare in HK’s senior secondary ESL classrooms

Shakespeare’s works play a significant role in English literature. In EFL classrooms, teachers share mixed views regarding whether Shakespeare should be taught; while in Hong Kong, researches and articles regarding teachers’ perceptions and attitudes towards teaching Shakespeare in English classrooms are limited. This study collected voices and from different English teachers in Hong Kong through investigating in teachers’ exposure to Shakespeare’s works, teachers’ personal experience and their attitudes and perceptions towards teaching Shakespeare to senior secondary school students.
Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected from pre-service, in-service and post-service English teachers in Hong Kong. Questionnaires were completed by 94 teacher-respondents in this study. Semi-structured interviews with 9 respondents were also conducted to explore teachers’ views and perceptions.
Although teachers recognized the benefits of teaching Shakespeare to students, they remain doubtful towards the feasibility of introducing Shakespeare in the compulsory NSS English Language curriculum. The research concludes and illustrates a number of reasons, such as time constraints or teacher unreadiness, create a huge barrier restricting teachers to teach Shakespeare in NSS English Classrooms. Suggestions and implications are justified and presented to alleviate the aforementioned restrictions and hence, enhance the feasibility of introducing Shakespeare’s works in NSS English classrooms.