Britain's forgotten colony? Why Hong Kong deserves a place in the story of empire

History Education Subject Interest Group (SIG)

As part of our commitment to our partnership schools, we are inviting secondary mentors and other history colleagues to attend our Subject Interest Group (SIG) seminar. The idea behind the SIG is to provide opportunities for professional dialogue and development.

Britain’s forgotten colony? Why Hong Kong deserves a place in the story of empire

This SIG will begin with a brief presentation from Dr Carol Zhang of the University of Nottingham's AHRC and IAA funded Hong Kong Experience Project exploring the experiences of Hong Kong immigrant families who have recently moved to Nottingham. The project aims to create an inclusive and child-friendly Nottingham.

Ollie Barnes, Lead Teacher of History and Politics at Toot Hill School, will then lead us in a workshop based around his recent Teaching History article exploring why Hong Kong history should have a place in the story of the British Empire and suggesting how school history might respond to changing pupil demographics and our pupils' current experiences of the world.

When the National Security Law came into effect in Hong Kong, it had a profound and unexpected impact 6000 miles away, in Nottinghamshire’s schools. Important historical changes were in process and pupils needed to understand them. As a history department in a school with a growing cohort of Hong Kongers, it became essential to us that students came to appreciate the intimate historical links between Hong Kong and Britain. This SIG will explore how incorporating this hidden, or almost entirely absent, aspect of history into the curriculum impacted students' perceptions.