Untangling the Factors Leading to Hong Kong Parents’ Inhibition towards Parent-child Joint Book Reading at Home

Michele Pui Ling Ho

(English Language Centre, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong)

Abstract: Parent-child joint book reading is assumed a productive literacy activity conducted within a rich home literacy environment for the purpose of facilitating children’s literacy and language development. In Hong Kong, where the education system is described as “highly competitive” and “examination-oriented”, together with the impact of traditional Chinese culture which emphasizes academic excellence as a sign of personal achievement and success, and even family glory, parents are eager to conduct parent-child joint book reading as a kind of parental support contributing to their children’s school success. However, unlike their western counterparts, a majority of Hong Kong parents are hesitant to perform joint book reading with their children at home due to a number of reasons. The current study attempts to identify the factors causing the inhibition among Hong Kong parents towards conducting parent-child joint book reading at home. Results from questionnaires and in-depth interviews proved that the parents’ lack of efficacy towards their English language proficiency, their lack of proper joint book reading skills, the absence of formal parental training for conducting joint book reading, and a lack of time due to their busy work schedule are the major factors behind their inhibition towards parent-child joint book reading. Overall, this study concretely identified the problems uniquely yet commonly deterring many Hong Kong parents’ from conducting parent-child joint reading at home, notwithstanding the numerous benefits it can bring to the children’s literacy and language development.

Key words: parent-child joint book reading, home literacy activity, academic excellence, parental support,