It is often claimed that since the 1997 handover of Hong Kong the average English level of Hong Kong people has declined. That claim could be taken to assert that individual Hong Kong citizens are losing their own previously-higher levels of ability in that second language. It can also be taken to mean those leaving full-time local education these days are less well-equipped with English language skills to be able to operate effectively in that foreign tongue at work, or when travelling.

In my view, neither assertion is verifiably completely accurate, though there is certainly some truth in both claims.

With 98 percent of Hong Kong's population comprising speakers of Chinese as their first language, we can take pride in the fact that it is still easy for non-Chinese language-speakers to navigate this international city. Many aspects of life here (from the media, street signs, to public transport and government forms) are all accessible in both Chinese and English. This is to be applauded, for it adds to the internationalism of the city, making it easier for Hong Kong to retain its place as a world metropolis: well-connected (through English) on a global scale.

In many places in the New Territories, if you visit a market stall you are far less likely to be understood in English than you would be if you only shopped in upmarket shops in downtown Central or Causeway Bay. Many large employers tend to place local staff members with good command of English in areas where they are most likely to use the language - places where many non-Chinese speakers live, work or visit.

English language ability, as any acquired skill such as rowing a boat or riding a bycycle, remains an easily-used skill providing it is often used: "Use it or lose it" goes the old saying. Most Hong Kong people had hundreds, perhaps thousands, of hours of English in their schooldays. But if they seldom need to use English after leaving full-time education, their ability to do so will eventually be degraded, or lost altogether. Many Europeans were taught Latin at school. As a dead language, there are few opportunities to use it in adult life. Consequently, most of us have forgotten it. In any case, if someone doesn't need to speak English (or use Latin) at work or for travel, then what's the problem if he can't?

The key question then is the level of English communication required of local Chinese residents for work purposes. Are Hong Kong's school and university-leavers any less (or more) competent than those who completed full-time education in the past?

These days, all graduating university students sit English tests; these were not widely conducted, many years ago. So there can be no reliable comparison between the English language competency of past graduates and present entrants to the workforce.

What is surprising is to occasionally encounter a recent local graduate with a very low level of English, though that had apparently not prevented him or her from obtaining a degree, when the subject was supposedly delivered entirely in English! This raises wider questions about the comparative standards of university output now and in the past.

But what of the result of school inputs in regard to English language ability? Some aim for extraordinarily high standards of English language education, and achieve them. But regrettably, not all come anywhere close to that. That is, for the pupils themselves - who might dream of one day landing a well-paid job in an international firm with offices in Hong Kong, but whose weak English language levels impede their chances for such coveted employment.

If too few local citizens can communicate across international borders using English, Hong Kong's previous status as an international hub will surely decline.

Outside school the use of the English conversational skills imparted at school are seldom enhanced or even exercised. The better schools do offer after-school debate, Scouts, theatrical and other English-language enhancement activities. Parents can seek English-speaking opportunities after school for their own children. And here I do not mean more hours of cramming at a tutorial college. They could rather, for example, arrange joint outings with their English-speaking neighbors or co-workers' children in the same age group.

So, better school education in English will be the way to take Hong Kong forward as an international hub where English continues to be widely understood.

The author is a Hong Kong-based commentator, who has for over thirty years been professionally involved in the field of English as a foreign language, around the world. He was, for many years, an international IELTS examiner.

(HK Edition 11/28/2014 page1)