HKU Bulletin October 2012 (Vol. 14 No.1)

Teaching and Learning Riz Ullah is a perfect example of someone who practises what he preaches. The 31-year-old son of Pakistani immigrants, his upbringing and education are a case history in how to address the problems of being an ethnic minority student in Hong Kong. It is a story of much achievement – in August, Ullah was honoured by the Pakistan Association of Hong Kong for becoming the first among its ranks to get a PhD. The thesis – which he completed in just 31 months – has attracted attention from the government. It is a critical review on the provision of Chinese Language education for non-Chinese speaking students in secondary schools in the city and has led to him being invited to sit on government bodies. He has had meetings with Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and Education Minister Eddie Ng Hak-kim, as well as discussions with Unison (an advocate for ethnic minorities in Hong Kong) about the Chinese language problems such people face. Ullah wants to see ethnic minorities in Hong Kong being given the chance to increase their currency through better education opportunities. It is all about making the most out of your opportunities, something he has certainly done. Born a British subject of Pakistani parents – his father came here in the 1960s “for bread and butter”. Pakistan was a new country with a poor education system and few jobs, while Hong Kong’s economy was just taking off and needed all the foreign labour it could get. His father worked all hours. His mother came to Hong Kong in 1980, they married and had five children of whom Ullah is the eldest and only boy. Educated at Delia Memorial School (Hip Wo) in Kwun Tong, he was taught English and French, but not Cantonese, at least not properly. He learnt to speak Cantonese through living in Hong Kong, but not to read or write the language. Lack of role models He worked hard, but often felt isolated: “When we were growing up there were no A Learning Curve Hong Kong Pakistani Riz Ullah champions the cause of the ethnic minority, and in his thesis questions the education non-Chinese speaking students receive. D E 1 ! % + ! % ( ( + % " % 1 ! role models – no ethnic minority students went beyond form five and definitely not to university,” says Ullah. He broke the mould with his first degree, a BSc from Upper Iowa University with second class honours, by correspondence course, then leveraged that to get on the Postgraduate Diploma in Education course at HKU in 2006, followed by an MEd (HKBU) and then his PhD. This academic prowess seems to run in the family: one of his sisters Arfeen BiBi graduated in the HKU’s first batch of BA&BEd students on the Dean’s honours list, first in the faculty, while his youngest sister Nasirah BiBi is an A-plus student in her third year of BEd. Riz has nothing but praise for the support he has been given by HKU and in particular by Dr Winnie Lai…“as well as a top supervisor she also became something of a mother figure to me”, and Dr Stephen Andrews, now Professor Andrews, Dean of Education. “The day I turned up at the Graduate School to apply to do my PhD, they asked me who my supervisor would be. I had no idea so they gave me a list and I chose ‘Dr Stephen Andrews’ at random. It was a Saturday morning and I just knocked on his door. But he welcomed me in, spared time to talk to me and patiently listened to my ideas. Through him I met Dr Lai.” In his turn, Ullah believes in giving back. He is now a teacher and also responsible for multicultural affairs at his former school Delia (Hip Wo) which has a student population made up 55 per cent ethnic minorities and 45 per cent Cantonese. He comes to the interview straight from the airport, having just dropped off five students heading to Taiwan to pursue degrees at I-Shou University, a private university specialising in international students. He discovered I-Shou while searching for opportunities for his students – a subject that occupies much of his thoughts. “At first I was sceptical, but after I visited I was really impressed. They’re going to do Bachelor of International Business Administration. I have high expectations of these kids – our first cohort there.” It’s another example of Ullah’s credo of ‘finding a way’. The problem in Hong Kong is a shortage of university places. “But I tell my students if you go overseas to do your initial degree, then you can use that to do your masters and PhD in Hong Kong. Once you have a recognised degree under your belt you can progress,” says Ullah. “My main objective directive is articulation; find multiple pathways; make sure they have multiple options and plans. Taiwan is good for ethnic minorities from Hong Kong as they can learn Mandarin – that means they have their own language, Mandarin, and Cantonese, which offers more opportunities for work.” He is also a founder member of the Pakistani Students Association HK, a voluntary organisation that advises on the education plight of ethnic minorities. It is mainly made up of Pakistanis but also has Indian and Nepalese members. Activities include speech festivals, where members give speeches in English, Chinese or Urdu. “It gives them a taste of success and enhances their self- esteem,” says Ullah. “It also gets their parents involved – come and see what your kids are capable of.” Ullah hopes the government will consider the reforms presented in his thesis as a way to ensure ethnic minorities get a fair chance to fulfil all they are capable of too. “Immediate need – survival” “Educationalists talk about life-long learning but for ethnic minorities there is a more immediate need – survival. Being able to get a job – a good job. When the British retreated in 1997 there were no voices talking about this. I was not the first but I was in the first tier. I’ve been looking into this issue since 2005 – that’s seven years – that’s why I was able to finish my thesis so quickly!” “The government needs to make an alternative Chinese assessment of ethnic minority students studying in what is their second language, so that they can get a qualification that will allow them to apply for better work such as government jobs. If this doesn’t happen there will be a social cost as they become more disaffected.” “Let me be clear here,” he adds, “I’m not a radical – if you like, I’m a rational! I want change but we can reach that change by working towards it. I hope, with the support of HKU and the government, to continue to write journals and papers on the subject.” M I’m not a radical – if you like, I’m a rational! I want change but we can achieve that change by working towards it. F G H I J J @ K 29 The University of Hong Kong Bulletin October 2012