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Monday, October 22, 2018, 12:17
CE offers hopes for grassroots students
By Kathy Zhang
Monday, October 22, 2018, 12:17 By Kathy Zhang

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor presents her second Policy Address blueprint to the media at Central Government Office in Tamar on Oct 10, 2018. (ROY LIU / CHINA DAILY)

HONG KONG - The Hong Kong government’s student-centered approach in devising new education policies is on the right track in helping students to learn, excel and grow, education experts told a symposium on Saturday.

Lam said the government and the community should carry out sensible education policies conscientiously, bearing in mind: “Who will benefit most from these policies?”

Speakers at the symposium, entitled “Education: The Hong Kong Story — Next Chapter”, agreed that students should be the focus of the discussions about reforming the local education system.

Antony Leung Kam-chung, chairman of Education 2.1 and Big Education Platform, which co-organized the event, joined prominent experts, including Cheng Kai-ming and Tai Hei-lap, in sharing their thoughts about what should be done next in education.

Cheng, who’s the chief researcher of Education 2.1, said the current HKSAR Government is in the right direction in setting the public discourse on education for students. He said such a “bottom-up model” works well for the administration in hearing the views and suggestions of students, parents and schools.

Although the speakers found it debatable as to which broad measures should be carried out, they agreed that fairness is important in terms of education resources allocation and the opportunities available to underprivileged children.

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Hong Kong has a reputation of elitism, with families in the lower stratum of society having limited scope and chances to break free from poverty and move up the social ladder.

But, education offers hope for them. Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor had these grassroots students in mind in a keynote address at the symposium.

She said the government and the community should carry out sensible education policies conscientiously, bearing in mind: “Who will benefit most from these policies?”

In her view, if a proposed education policy, intended to fix some shortcomings in the current system, is very likely to bring more skewed disparities in education resources and career opportunities between grassroots students and those from wealthy families, society should ask whether such a policy is justified and fair.

Lam was responding to proposals to reform the student admission system of local universities — one of two key policy suggestions Leung made in his speech.

The former financial secretary called for the city’s university admission system to take into account students’ various abilities and learning experience, and adopt a more flexible, diversified and innovative approach in formulating the system. His plan is based on the view that examination results should not be the major criterion for university admissions.

Lam said she appreciated the proposal’s good intention, and agreed in principle with the idea that the once-a-year DSE grades should not be the sole criteria in making university admission decisions.

But, she warned that an unintended outcome of such a proposal may put grassroots students at a serious disadvantage, rendering them even less competitive against their peers from wealthy and well-educated families.

Lam said it would be unfair for students from impoverished families to have an impressive learning portfolio, including various extracurricular activities, award-winning hobbies and international exposure.

That’s why policy formulation should both absorb proposals that promote desirable principles, require strong leadership and should see to the nitty-gritty of the actual implementation, she said.

Gabriel Leung, dean of the Medical Faculty of the University of Hong Kong, cited a popular saying “nothing is more toxic than the toxicity of poverty” to stress the importance of ensuring fairness in the education system. To achieve this, Antony Leung called for cooperation among different sectors of society, such as the government, industry and business fields and institutions, in creating more experiential learning opportunities to help grassroots kids.

Hong Kong’s overall education system is effective and has its merits and strengths, thanks to the collective efforts of all stakeholders. There is always the need and room to improve the system so that students can receive all-round education to contribute to Hong Kong’s future development, Lam said.

At the symposium, education heavyweights also called for more space and leeway for schools and teachers to explore diverse approaches to teaching and learning, and cultivate students’ critical thinking and innovative spirit.

Tan Kang, head of Pun U Association Wah Yan Primary School, citing his school’s experience, said many teachers who have tried to enhance STEM education (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) classes, have found it difficult without the necessary training.

He said it will be of great help to teachers if they can have increased collaboration with professionals who have the expertise and experience in emerging technologies.

The collaboration among Antony Leung, Cheng and Tai has been instrumental in pushing forward vital education reform proposals since the “Education Blueprint for the 21st Century Review of Education System: Reform Proposals” was published in 1998.

Two decades on, their proposals have paved the way for reviews of the education system and various reforms carried out. Antony Leung said the symposium served the purpose of letting stakeholders share the insight of the reforms in the past 20 years and discuss the way forward.

READ MORE: Examining worrying aspects of Hong Kong’s education system

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