Profiling Chinese studentsโ bilingual learning motivation and engagement: Competition or coexistence?
By Dr Barry Bai
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Learning motivation and engagement are critical factors influencing language proficiency, but previous research has primarily focused on these aspects from a monolingual perspective. This study adopted a bilingual lens to simultaneously examine motivation and engagement in learning both Chinese and English among students in Chinese-English bilingual education programs at non-traditional international schools in Mainland China. Based on data from 328 fourth and fifth graders, the study found a positive correlation between Chinese and English learning motivation and engagement, with no significant differences between the two languages across most dimensions, except the higher utility in English learning. To further explore the individual differences, Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) identified four distinct profiles: low-bilingual-motivation-and-engagement, Chinese-focused learners, English-focused learners, and high-bilingual-motivation-and-engagement. Grade and gender significantly influenced bilingual learning dynamics, with students’ interest in both languages decreasing and Chinese time investment declining with grade level, while girls showed an advantage in perceiving the utility of both languages and Chinese learning time investment. However, grade and gender did not affect profile membership. This study contributes to both theory and practice by enhancing our understanding of bilingual learning processes and informing targeted educational strategies to support balanced bilingual development.
Biography
Barry Bai is an associate professor at the Department of Curriculum and the director of Centre for Language Education and Multiliteracies Research at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He is a recipient of 2013/2014 Faculty Exemplary Teaching Award and has secured highly competitive research funds, Hong Kong Research Grants Council (RGC) Competitive Research Funding Schemes (GRF/ECS) for 2018/2019 and 2022/2023. Currently, he serves as the president of Hong Kong Association for Applied Linguistics (HAAL) and is an associate editor of European Journal of Education and Asia Pacific Journal of Education. In 2023 and 2024, he was recognized as a top 2% most cited researcher in languages and linguistics worldwide by Stanford University. Additionally, he ranked the top 3 in the category of primary school in prior 5 years by ScholarGPS in 2024.
