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Progress Report on the Education Reform (2) Chapter 8 : Review Progress (1) Review on the Harmonisation of the Systems of Kindergartens and Child Care Centres Following a public consultation in mid-2002, the Working Party formed between the EMB and the SWD to advise the Government on harmonisation of pre-primary services has finalized its recommendations in early 2003. Preparatory arrangements, including making legislative amendments, are in progress with a view to implementing the harmonisation measures from the 2004/05 school year onwards.
(2) Review of Language Education Please refer to Section 2 (Language Education) for details of the Review. (3) Review of Teacher Education and Development In support of the Education Reform, the ACTEQ has embarked on a comprehensive review of teacher education to :
The review cuts across the whole spectrum of teacher preparation
and development, i.e. from initial, induction to in-service continuing
professional development (CPD). The review places great emphasis
on the personal development of teachers and their quest for excellence
in caring for and bringing out the best potential in students. Task
Forces comprising ACTEQ members and frontline practitioners are
set up to study in depth specific issues and to formulate proposals
on :
To achieve a shared vision, synergy and ownership among education practitioners, ACTEQ attaches great importance to engaging in dialogues with frontline teachers, principals, school councils, teacher education institutions and teacher/education bodies in the course of formulating its views and recommendations. It has also looked into current practices in other countries/ regions. ACTEQ plans to complete the review together with a coherent set of recommendations by mid 2003 for wider consultation within the education sector. (4) Review of the Senior Secondary Academic Structure, Post-secondary Education and Continuing Education In its Reform Proposals for the Education System in Hong Kong published in 2000, the Education Commission (EC) put forward the idea of a 3-year senior secondary academic structure. It then set up a Working Group to examine the feasibility, specific measures, transitional arrangements and timetable of implementing the new structure. The review on the senior secondary academic structure has been completed. The EC considers that a 3-year senior secondary academic structure will provide more room for a more coherent and diversified senior secondary education. It also allows the objectives of the overall Education Reform to be fully realised. Nonetheless, the successful implementation of the new structure hinges on securing all the necessary pre-conditions, including the new curriculum design, development of a new public examination, articulation with the university curriculum and admission system, sufficient preparation allowed for schools and teachers, etc. Since the development of these pre-conditions take time and the
implementation of the new structure needs to take account of the
progress made in other Education Reform measures, the EC estimated
that the earliest commencement date of the 3-year senior secondary
academic structure should be around the 2010/11 school year. In
addition, the implementation of the new structure would require
significant additional resources. Part of the expenditure, such
as that for constructing new schools and developing the new curriculum,
would need to be incurred at the initial preparatory stage. In addition,
the new senior secondary academic structure is a major structural
change. As such, before firming up the implementation timetable,
apart from taking into account the change in learning, teaching,
and assessment culture, the Government should consider the capacity
of schools and implementation agencies to cope with changes over
and above the reforms underway. The EC suggests that the period
between the years 2003/04 and 2006/07 can be taken as the early
preparatory phase. During this time, the Government should continue
to take forward and consolidate the ongoing Education Reform such
as the curriculum reform, public examination reform and enhancement
of principals' and teachers' professional training. They are the
essential elements of, and give substance to, the proposed structural
changes to senior secondary education. The Government is urged to
announce by 2006/07 at the latest, when the first cohort of the
3-year senior secondary programme will be in place. In any circumstances,
parents will be informed at least three years prior to the year
the first Senior Secondary One is in place. The EC encourages the
education sector and other interested parties in the community to
make proposals on how to raise funds or reduce the additional resources
required for implementing the proposed new academic structure. The Higher Education Review, under the guidance of a Steering Committee comprising mainly local UGC members, was launched in May 2001 and was completed in March 2002. A report entitled 'Higher Education in Hong Kong' was issued by the UGC for public consultation. In the Report, the UGC, in line with the direction of the Education
Reform which aims to encourage a diversified and interlinked system
of higher education, advocated role differentiation among institutions,
as well as the concentration of resources to reward performance
and to encourage the growth of centres of excellence. To achieve
these objectives, various improvements to the funding mechanism
and the strengthening of university governance are proposed. These
recommendations, accepted by the Government in November 2002, will
serve as a blueprint for the further development of higher education
in Hong Kong.
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