|
Research
on ethnic communities often underestimates the variety which exists
within these groups. The community can be divided into three groups.
Older
generation
The
older age group includes people aged 60 and above. Most of these
now elderly Chinese people arrived here some 30 or 40 years ago.
They
were generally poorly-educated men, usually farmers and factory
workers. They speak or write little or no English. They established
themselves in the catering trade.
|
The
youngsters who are born here have more problems than we have.
They do not have access to the culture like we did. They have
to be brought up by a family with expectations which they
have no understanding of. They
find it very difficult to speak Cantonese or whatever dialect
they speak at home. They speak English, but they look totally
different from their white counterparts. They are British
but they still suffer form discrimination. And yet they cannot
fall back on another culture and be proud of that because
they do not know what it is.
|
| Male
community member, 50 |
The
older age group also includes the parents of subsequent Chinese
immigrants who called upon their elders to join them in Britain.
The
elders are brought here to look after their grandchildren.
The
elderly Chinese people are the most traditional. They have been
socialised in Chinese cultures. They find it very difficult to integrate
into the western lifestyle, mainly due to language problems.
Middle
generation
The
middle generation includes people aged between 30 and 60. Some of
them are still involved in the catering business but many have pursued
higher education and are now working in a wide range of professions.
I was born here and grew up in this community. I have seen this
pattern everywhere. The father works long hours and the children
are left with the grandparents who have come from Hong Kong
or China. After
a few years the grandchildren grow up and they do not need caring
for anymore, so the grandparents just sit there. |
| Community
member, female, 31
|
This
group also includes professionals and wealthy immigrants from Hong
Kong; scholars and intellectuals from mainland China after the 1989
Tiananmen Square massacre. Many
of these recent migrants are highly educated.
The
expansion of this group will impact on the socio-economic make-up
of the Chinese community in Britain in due course.
Younger
generation
Finally,
the younger generation is aged below 30. It can be divided into
three groups. First, the foreign students especially from Hong Kong,
Malaysia and Singapore.
 |
|
Chinese
children making lanterns
|
They
come here to further their studies but generally intend to return
to their respective countries.
Then
there are the children and young adults who were born abroad and
recently emigrated to England to join their families. They are struggling
with the language and the culture.
And
last, there are the British-born Chinese. They are brought up in
British society whilst holding onto a Chinese culture which they
only know through their family.
This
group is referred to as "bananas" - yellow on the outside and white
on the inside. They are torn between the expectations and aspirations
of two cultures.
|
I was born here. After I had finished my degree, I went to
work in Hong Kong. It was more my parents' idea because they
said there were more opportunities in Hong Kong. I felt free
there because I was part of a society who looked like me.
However,
when I encountered conversation and reading because I cannot
speak and write Chinese, they saw me as an English. When I
did not have to communicate with anyone, I felt I was part
of the community. I am called a banana. And that is a perfect
description of me and that is what they saw.
|
| Community
member, 25 |
The
most determining feature of the Chinese people's attitude to the
world around them is their total commitment to life as it is, if
necessary, with an extra commitment to make it better than it is.
They
will hope to create conditions in which their children or descendants
can have the good things they did not have.
Chinese
life
Starting
with birth, a Chinese life is aimed at several indispensable purposes.
The aim of having children was traditionally seen as ensuring the
continuation of one's own identity.
Children
are trained from infancy to restrain their tantrums. They are acting
the role which parents and society prescribe for them - to be obedient
and cute.
 |
|
Chinese
schoolchildren - more docile than their Western counterparts
|
From
kindergarten onwards, schoolbooks and blackboards take the place
of games. Every effort is made to fill a child's day with work and
educational activities.
Every
child in China is supposed to receive five years or more of primary
schooling. The great majority of teachers have an excellent reputation
for dedication.
Disciplinary
problems are far less than in schools in the West. Rules of classroom
discipline are simple -
- Respect teachers
- Be polite
- Do not spit
Chinese
schoolchildren appear, on the whole, to be more docile than their
counterparts in Western countries.
Curriculum
The
primary school curriculum varies from place to place, but it is
recommended that Chinese language, arithmetic, natural science,
one foreign language (in urban schools), politics, physical culture,
music and drawing are taught in schools.
The
recommended curriculum for the secondary schools is a five year
course enrolling pupils at the age of 12 and giving three years
of junior secondary schooling and, for those who elect to stay on,
two years of senior secondary education.
The
subjects taught are politics, Chinese language, mathematics, physics,
chemistry, biology, a foreign language (usually English), history,
geography, basic agricultural knowledge, physical education, hygiene,
music and drawing.
Emerging
into adulthood, the Chinese are expected to study hard and get a
good qualification, respect one's superiors, marry at the right
age, have a suitable number of children.
»See
Chinese Culture
|
