Child commuters to Hong Kong given help with acclimatising
Two non-profit groups are helping mainland pupils get used to life and school on this side of the border
Cross-border pupils are finding that going back and forth between Hong Kong and the mainland every day is an experience that can also be stressful. That's why a partnership of two non-profit organisations, one in Shenzhen and one in Hong Kong, has been helping them adjust to school life here.
In 2011, the International Social Service (ISS) Hong Kong Branch partnered with the Shenzhen Luohu (Lo Wu) Women's Federation to launch the support services programme for cross-border families. The programme provides classes for the families to brush up their English and Cantonese - one key to assimilating to Hong Kong - and exposes them to Hong Kong culture through field trips or celebrating events such as Easter. There are also classes and workshops introducing the Hong Kong school system to parents.
Cheung Yuk-ching, cross-border programme director of ISS Hong Kong, says the pupils will help improve Hong Kong-mainland relations, being familiar with both cultures. Many parents also hope their children will work in Hong Kong. "We are short-sighted if we just dismiss cross-border families as competing with locals for beds in the maternity ward, formula milk and school places," says Cheung.
Adjustments are inevitable for any newcomer to a city, not to mention small children from the mainland. The programme helps increase their awareness of hygiene and provides tutorial support for those who miss out on school-based homework because of their long commutes.
Tutorial support in subjects such as English is available at its centres in Shenzhen. That also has the benefit of easing the workload of teachers in Hong Kong, says Cheung. A total of 13,494 children have been helped thus far.
The most popular classes are those targeting parents, mostly mothers, in areas such as exploring their personalities and controlling their emotions. "We saw that some mainland parents will yell at or hit their children over minor issues, so we explain to them what is legal and culturally acceptable in Hong Kong," says Cheung.
