Knowledge Exchange Project for Promoting German in Hong Kong - Integration of Research and Teaching

Abstract

This paper examines a university-pioneered project for promoting German language and culture which integrates research, teaching and knowledge exchange. The project aims to enhance the interest within the general Hong Kong community in learning the German language and understanding the country’s culture. Staff and students of the German Programme at the University of Hong Kong initiated outreach programmes benefitting local secondary school students in Hong Kong by organizing various German language and cultural workshops. It also generated a teaching and experiential learning opportunity for German Programme university students. Drawing on the results of surveys, the study shows that secondary students demonstrated a high appreciation of learning a foreign language and a keenness to study further. Tangible impacts of the project, including increased offerings of German as a foreign language in secondary schools, indicate the value of this knowledge exchange initiative and it provides an example of best practice for future projects relating to German and other foreign languages in Hong Kong and other cultural contexts. The article also undertakes a detailed analysis of the workshop’s materials and process, as well as a study of useful parameters for a successful knowledge exchange day for learners of German.