HONG KONG 2005

After years of discussion, there is a general consensus that a three-year curriculum at senior secondary level and a four-year university course will best serve the interests of students in Hong Kong. In October 2004, the Education and Manpower Bureau (EMB) launched a three-month consultation on the design, timing and financial arrangements for the new senior secondary (NSS) and higher education academic structure.

During the consultation period, there was overwhelming support for the general direction and the goal of the proposed academic system. In the wake of all the feedback, the report, 'The New Academic Structure for Senior Secondary Education and Higher Education — Action Plan for Investing in the Future of Hong Kong' was published in May 2005 to chart the way forward. The report not only summarises the results of the consultation, but also consolidates the consensus reached on the broad direction and the roadmap for proceeding with the curriculum reform.

In view of the magnitude and the far-reaching impact of the reform, the Government will complete the relevant Curriculum and Assessment Guides for the NSS subjects, and expand professional development programmes and school-based support to enhance the capacity of teachers and principals to implement the reform. The first four-year undergraduate programme at universities will start in September 2012.

The working group set up under the Education Commission to review the secondary school places allocation system and medium of instruction (MOI) for secondary schools conducted a five-month public consultation between February 3 and July 2 to gauge public opinion on long-term plans. In December 2005, the Government accepted the commission's 'Report on Review of Medium of Instruction for Secondary Schools and Secondary School Places Allocation'.

It decided that the revised MOI arrangements for secondary schools would start in September 2010 and that the mother tongue would be upheld as the principal MOI for secondary schools while students' English proficiency would also be enhanced. As before, should individual schools wish to adopt English as the MOI, they are required to fulfil the three prescribed criteria of student ability, teacher capability and support measures, and are subject to a review every six years for quality assurance. All schools, irrespective of their MOI, should strive to enhance students' English proficiency, as an integral part of the endeavour to train the younger generation to become biliterate and trilingual.

The revised allocation mechanism will apply to students proceeding to Secondary One in September 2007 and thereafter. Under the revised arrangements, the discretionary places quota of schools will be increased and parents will have more choice at both the discretionary places and central allocation stages.

Starting from the 2005-06 school year, additional resources will be provided for public sector primary schools to support the introduction of specialised teaching. Teachers of English, mathematics and Chinese will focus on teaching their own subject which will give them more scope to deepen their pedagogical knowledge and develop professional expertise and enhance the effectiveness of learning and teaching.

The Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2004 came into force on January 1, 2005. It requires school sponsoring bodies of all aided schools to submit a draft constitution of its incorporated management committee (IMC) for each of their schools by July 1, 2009, in order to set up an IMC to manage the school. The IMC will consist of all key stakeholders: representatives of the school sponsoring body, the principal, members of the community, and elected representatives of parents, teachers and past students, and independent manager(s). IMCs will lead the development of schools and participate in decisions, making schools more transparent and accountable.

Since the 2004 ordinance came into effect, the EMB has initiated various support measures to assist schools in setting up IMCs, including the preparation of a sample constitution and guidelines; web-based legal advice; training for school managers; the provision of liability insurance for IMCs and their managers and a manual for financial management and one-off cash grant. IMC schools are also given greater flexibility in the use of funds. By the end of 2005, there were 37 aided schools with an IMC and 166 schools which had pledged to set up an IMC in the 2005-06 school year.

The Executive Council approved the establishment of a cross-sectoral Qualifications Framework and its associated quality-assurance mechanism in February 2004 to improve the quality of manpower through lifelong learning. The framework, which has seven levels of qualification, organises and supports academic, vocational and continuing education qualifications. Each level is identified by a set of standards and all qualifications linked to the framework will have to be quality assured.

To ensure the relevance of qualifications and related training in the vocational sector, the EMB is setting up Industry Training Advisory Committees (ITACs) to develop the specifications for competency standards for various industries, which will form the basis for training providers to design training programmes. So far, ITACs have been formed in nine industries: printing and publishing, watches and clocks, Chinese catering, hairdressing, property management, electrical and mechanical services, jewellery, information and communications technology and automotive.

The EMB has tasked the Hong Kong Council for Academic Accreditation (HKCAA) with the responsibility of ensuring the quality and credibility of qualifications awarded by a wide range of education and training providers under the framework other than those awarded by the self-accrediting institutions and their schools of continuing education arms.