Curriculum issues in the relationship between language, culture and learning: the case of food and beverage management teaching

This article examines curriculum issues in the relationship between language, culture and learning. It focuses on approaches used in teaching food and beverage management subjects to students taking a Higher Diploma in Hotel Management at Hong Kong Polytechnic University; and whether language and culture cause learning difficulties for Chinese students studying Western management techniques in a quasi-Western learning environment. In Hong Kong a majority of Cantonese speaking Chinese students have to learn in English, their second language, from a team of multicultural academics, for whom English may also be a second language. Findings confirmed that language was one cause affecting students' learning, and a strong link was established to support the assumption that culture also influenced learning.