Confucianism is at the core of Chineseness

Introduction

A refute of the statement will be made in this assignment that states Confucianism is at the core of Chineseness. The substantive issue of shaping local Chinese identity for social cohesion in the face of internal social disruption, external communist threats and international cold-war politics was one of the key policy challenges of the British colonial government. This is the reason why the British Government used education to support the formation and establishment of pro-British-government Chinese identities in colonial Hong Kong. Some researchers have noted that the curriculum for colonial Hong Kong does not support theories of colonial cultural imperialism in which colonial governments diminish the indigenous culture of the local population, and, indoctrinate the local people with the host country's culture. On the contrary, traditional Chinese culture and values got promoted in the colonial education system of Hong Kong. To uncover the major dynamics that determine the politics of education and lead to social and cultural transformation, the function of education, and, the adoption of Chineseness traditional Chinese cultural traits in China will be discussed in detail, in the topic.

Discussion

Historical sociologists and neo-Marxist educators like Michael Apple, Ivor F Goodson (1997; 1988) and Basil Bernstein (1971; 1996) suggested how pro-government ideology is translated into schooling practices, for instance, how it can be effectively inculcated; and, how its content has been manipulated to serve the dominant group. They suggest that the dominant group plays a pivotal role for maintaining social stability and economic prosperity through regulating education policies. Amongst all interest groups and dominant powers, nothing can be compared to the degree of the state, the political entity, especially as the one in power. The relationship between education and power has been concerned in particular to the area of the state function. Close nation-state relationship can only be built by accommodating the culture of subordinated groups. Education, therefore, is in the process of contextualizing itself for being convergent with the nation's identities. Modification and adjustments made in education is hegemonic strategies for reaching the political goals. Therefore, the colonial government incorporated Chineseness in education was an attempt to consolidate the legitimacy of its rule (Bary, 92).

During the colonial era, the British colonial government and the PRC (People's Republic of China) government were two opposing states confronting each other in the struggle for the allegiance of loyalty in Hong Kong. The notion of Hong Kong's ...