HONG KONG 2004 - Education

In the 2004-05 financial year, education remains the largest spending area of the Government. The approved recurrent government expenditure and total government expenditure on education amounted to $49.2 billion and $59.5 billion respectively. They correspondingly represent 24.2 per cent and 23 per cent of the recurrent government expenditure and the total government expenditure.

The Education Commission (EC) is responsible for advising the Government on the overall educational objectives and policies, and the priorities for implementation as well as coordinating the work of all other major education-related advisory bodies on the planning and development of education at all levels. The EC also advises the Government on implementation issues with important policy implications to ensure better synergy between policy formulation and implementation.

Kindergarten classes are for children aged three to six. By 2004-05, all kindergartens are required to employ 100 per cent qualified kindergarten teachers of the required teaching staff establishment calculated on the teacher to pupil ratio of 1:15. They are encouraged to conduct school self-evaluation for continuous advancement, and are selected randomly to undergo quality assurance inspection.

Free and universal basic education is provided for children aged six to 15 to enjoy six years of primary education plus three years of basic secondary education. Admission to Primary 1 in aided and government schools is through a centralised system, and at the end of Primary 6 all students are provided with secondary school places. Most secondary schools offer three-year basic and two-year senior secondary courses leading to the HKCEE as well as two-year sixth-form matriculation courses leading to the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination. All Secondary 3 students who are willing and able to continue with their study are given the opportunity to receive subsidised Secondary 4 education or vocational training. About one-third of Secondary 5 leavers may further their studies in subsidised Secondary 6 and 7 school places.

In September 2004, 397 500 children were enrolled in government and aided primary schools and 414 300 children in government and aided secondary schools. Government and aided school places made up about 90 per cent of the school places. To inject more diversity into the school system and give parents wider choices, the Government in 1999 introduced various measures to facilitate the development of Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS) schools and non-profit-making private independent schools. These measures include allocating government-built school premises for operation of DSS schools, and allocating land at a nominal premium with a capital grant for construction of DSS/non-profit-making private independent schools. In September, there were 55 DSS schools, offering about five per cent of the school places. The first non-profit-making private independent school has started operation and eight more are scheduled to start in phases by 2008. There are 11 Senior Secondary School (SSS) out of the 55 DSS schools; three, of which start operation in the 2004-05 school year. SSSs are operated under the DSS funding mode to facilitate the schools in designing market-led, diversified and practical courses to provide an additional education option for Secondary 3 leavers who are interested in alternative curricula.

Fifty-six international schools including 15 schools operated by the English Schools Foundation were operating in Hong Kong in September. These schools form an important social infrastructure to maintain Hong Kong's status as an international business centre and a vibrant cosmopolitan city. They offer different non-local curricula, namely, American, Australian, British, Canadian, French, German-Swiss, Singaporean, Japanese, Korean and International Baccalaureate, and provide a total of 32 600 places.

One of the Government's main policy objectives is to integrate children with special educational needs into the community through coordinated efforts by non-governmental organisations with government support. In the 2004-05 school year, 117 mainstream schools adopted a whole-school approach to supporting about 800 students with special educational needs or with a mild disability. In addition, 62 special schools were operated for those with severe or multiple disabilities, of which 20 also provided boarding facilities. Together, they provide around 8 500 school places and 1 000 boarding places. Nineteen special schools were also serving as resource centres providing professional and resource support for ordinary schools which have admitted students with special education needs.

The Government also provides support services for gifted students to develop their potential; for instance through school-based support, development of resource packages, research and development projects, training courses for teachers and parents, and off-site enrichment programmes.

The Government launched Project Yi Jin in October 2000 to provide an alternative route to continuing education for secondary school leavers and adult learners. Successful completion of the programme will lead to a qualification comparable to five passes in the HKCEE for continuing education and employment purposes. In the 2004-05 school year, there were over 5 380 full-time and part-time students in the programme.

The Vocational Training Council (VTC) provides and promotes a cost-effective and comprehensive system of vocational education and training for school leavers and adult learners to acquire skills and knowledge for lifelong learning and enhanced employability.

The VTC provides full-time pre-employment education and training courses, industry-wide training schemes and a voluntary trade testing and certification scheme. It has also set up a self-funded Continuing Professional Development Centre to provide short courses and organise professional examinations.

Altogether, some 138 000 full-time and part-time places were available during 2004 for both school leavers and people in employment.

The Construction Industry Training Authority provides training for the construction industry. It operates three construction training centres as well as a management training centre, a trade testing centre and a safety training centre. The Authority is funded by a levy of 0.4 per cent on the value of all construction works exceeding $1 million. It offered 3 669 full-time and 64 097 part-time training places in the 2004-05 training year. The Authority also conducts trade tests for construction workers to assess the standards of skills achieved, and certification tests for operators of construction plants.

The Clothing Industry Training Authority provides training courses for the clothing and footwear industries. It is financed by a levy of 0.03 per cent on the Free-on-Board value of clothing and footwear items produced in and exported from Hong Kong. It operates two training centres to deliver both full-time and part-time courses at technician and craftsman levels. In 2004-05, the Authority provided training to 458 full-time and 4 338 part-time students.

Five skills centres, three run by the VTC and two by non-governmental organisations, prepare people with a disability for open employment or mainstream vocational education and technical training. Collectively, they provide 1 222 full-time places, 360 of them residential, for the 2004-05 training year.

The Chief Executive announced in his 2000 Policy Address that 60 per cent of the 17-20 age group should have access to post-secondary education by the 2010-11 school year. To provide the impetus, the Government offers interest-free start-up loans, accreditation grants and land to providers of post-secondary education and financial assistance for students.

In 2004-05, around 190 full-time accredited self-financing programmes are offered by 20 post-secondary institutions, providing some 18 300 full-time places at sub-degree level or above. These are in addition to some 9 400 publicly funded places at sub-degree level offered by the City University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Hong Kong Institute of Education, the VTC and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.

Hong Kong has 12 degree-awarding higher education institutions, eight of which are publicly funded through the University Grants Committee (UGC). The other four not funded by the UGC are the publicly funded Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, and the self-financing Open University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Shue Yan College and the Chu Hai College of Higher Education.

The UGC is appointed by the Chief Executive to advise on the development and funding of higher education and administer public grants to eight publicly funded higher education institutions. It also plays a major role in quality assurance and promotion of international competitiveness.

Each of the eight higher education institutions funded through the UGC is an autonomous statutory body with its own ordinance and governing body. Following a comprehensive review of the higher education sector, the UGC is taking a more strategic approach to the higher education system, by developing an interlocking yet differentiated system whereby the whole higher education sector is viewed as one force in the regional and international arenas of higher education, with each institution fulfilling a unique role based on its strengths.

At present, 14 500 first-year first-degree places are available in institutions funded by the UGC, covering about 18 per cent of the 17-20 age group. On top of this, a further 39 per cent of people in the same age group have access to other local higher education opportunities (for example, sub-degree programmes and vocational training) or go to universities overseas. The overall post-secondary participation rate for the 17-20 age group has increased from about 30 per cent in 2000-01 to 57 per cent in 2004-05.

The Government commissioned school operators to run evening courses at primary to senior secondary levels for 3 066 adult learners in the 2004-05 school year. It also subvented a variety of other adult education programmes operated by non-governmental organisations, offering some 17 486 places.

In February 2004, the Executive Council approved the establishment of QF and its associated quality assurance mechanism. The introduction of the QF will help provide more diversified progression pathways, enhance the relevance and quality of education and training programmes, bring wider recognition to the skills, knowledge and experience of workers, and promote lifelong learning. All these will contribute to the upgrading of the quality of our manpower and help maintain Hong Kong's overall competitiveness in the global economy.