Language, Culture and Identity in Two Chinese Community Schools

An insightful study showing the complex role of Mandarin Chinese as a factor of unity and of tension for diverse British residents of Chinese heritage. It illuminates the power of regional Chinese languages and cultures that demand ongoing negotiation of an intercultural identity within the frame of being Chinese. This is a valuable resource for researchers, course planners and teachers in Chinese and other world languages.

* Jane Orton, The University of Melbourne, Australia *

Sara Ganassin has produced an original and highly sensitive account of the lives and experiences of children attending Chinese community schools in England. She examines how the multiplicity of meanings, identities and positionings associated with being Chinese are managed and negotiated by children, parents and teachers, and how community schools provide rich sites for intercultural encounters. Ganassin is to be congratulated on producing such a valuable and insightful study.

* Martyn Barrett, University of Surrey, UK *

This important book offers a fresh perspective on (Chinese) community schools as sites of intercultural engagement; and language, culture, and identity construction – of children, their parents, and teachers. Grounded in ethnographic research, the study has rich examples that will benefit educators, researchers, and others in understanding how community schools can promote intercultural education, inclusion and social justice in multi-ethnic communities.

* Prue Holmes, Durham University, UK *

Ganassin explores how Chinese language, culture, and identity are constructed through negotiation and intercultural encounters in the context of the recent Chinese diaspora. In doing so, she positions herself to offer fresh insights into the experiences of pupils, parents, and educators in Chinese community schools.

-- Shuyun Zheng, Quanzhou Medical College, China and Xuesong (Andy) Gao, University of New South Wales, Australia * Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 2021 *

The in-depth reflections and elaborations on the methodology make the book a valuable reference for researchers who want to embark on conducting a similar kind of interpretivist ethnographic research in a
school or community setting [...] The information on the various dimensions of ‘Chineses’ makes the book a valuable reference also for researchers and trainers of intercultural communication. Overall, the book lucidly dissolves many complex topics into a pleasant read for a wide audience of educators and scholars.

-- Yvonne Tse Crepaldi, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore * Language and Education, 2020 *

[This book] is an engaging exploration of the experiences of young ethnic Chinese children of diverse backgrounds who attend community schools in the UK. Through the skillful use of interview transcripts Ganassin takes an intercultural approach to her exploration of students’ understandings of who they are as young Chinese living in an English-dominant society, and how they understand the value and role of the study of Modern Standard Chinese (‘Mandarin’ hereafter) in their current and future lives, and the importance of Chinese culture as a critical aspect of their identity [...] She provides a rich and insightful exploration of the complex array of representations of what it means to be Chinese in contemporary British society.

-- Andrew Scrimgeour, University of South Australia * Babel, Vol 55, Issue 1 *

The book achieved its aim and brought further insightful understanding to the interrelationship between culture, language, and identity in the Chinese community in the UK [...] It will bring awareness to those reading, especially to the minority/migrant communities who face increasing challenges to integrate and assimilate in their host countries.

-- Teresa Wai See Ong, Griffith University, Australia * LINGUIST List 32.223 *

This is an informative and thought-provoking publication worth adding to the library of anyone who is interested in understanding how young migrants, as well as their parents, maintain their identity linguistically and culturally in community language schools.

-- Shiping Deng, Shanghai International Studies University, China and Di Wang, Shanghai International Studies University, China * RELC Journal 1–