The attitudes of teachers and students towards using Cantonese in English classes in Hong Kong

This paper examined the attitudes of Hong Kong primary teachers and students towards using Cantonese as an auxiliary language in English classes. The study was conducted in a Hong Kong local school where the students and teachers were native Cantonese speakers. Three teachers and 28 students were involved in this study. Three research tools were employed for data collection: questionnaires, interviews and classroom observations. The results revealed that the teachers generally held a negative attitude towards using Cantonese in English classes, whereas the students preferred to use Cantonese as an auxiliary language. How to use Cantonese effectively was discussed.