Page:HKFactSheet Education 042012.pdf/1



In 2011/12 the approved public spending on education amounted to $68.7 billion, representing 17.1 per cent of the total public expenditure.

The Government has extended free education in public sector schools from nine years to 12 years as from the 2008/09 school year. In addition, full subvention has been provided for full-time courses run by the Vocational Training Council (VTC) for Secondary 3 school leavers, giving senior secondary students an alternative free avenue to mainstream education.

There are three main types of local schools – government schools which are operated by the Government; aided schools which are fully subvented by the Government but run by voluntary bodies; and private schools, some of which receive financial assistance from the Government. Government and aided schools deliver a curriculum recommended by the Government. They offer free primary and secondary education.

Besides, there are 15 schools operated by the English Schools Foundation offering education to English-speaking children. There are also some international schools which offer non-local curricula and serve primarily non-Chinese speaking students and foreign nationals.

Kindergartens: Kindergarten education is offered to children in the 3-5 age group in private kindergartens which are run by voluntary organisations or private bodies. These kindergartens are registered with, and supervised by the Education Bureau (EDB). In September 2011, 157 400 pupils were enrolled in 946 kindergartens.

Existing government assistance to kindergartens includes rent, rates and government rent reimbursement to non-profit-making kindergartens, allocating purpose-built kindergarten premises in public housing estates, the remission of fees to needy parents through the Kindergarten and Child Care Centre Fee Remission Scheme and provision of training programmes for teachers and principals. The Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme, introduced in the 2007/08 school year, provides direct fee subsidy for parents to meet school fees for pre-primary education of their children and financial support for kindergarten teachers' professional upgrading.

In view of the curriculum reform and changes in learning and teaching culture, the EDB has implemented the revised 'Guide to the Pre-primary Curriculum' since September 2007, providing the basic principles and direction for pre-school educators to develop their school-based programmes.

Primary Education: Primary schooling starts at the age of around six and there are 6 years of schooling at the primary level. There are three modes of operation in the primary schools, namely AM, PM and whole-day. Encouraged by the Government, most primary schools are adopting whole-day operation. All eligible children are, on application, allocated Primary 1 places in government and aided primary schools through the Primary One Admission System. The system consists of the Discretionary Places (DP) stage and the Central Allocation (CA) stage. At the DP stage, parents can apply for admission to only one government or aided primary school of their preference, and admission is based on EDB's prescribed criteria. At the CA stage, P1 places are centrally allocated by EDB according to school net, parents' choice of schools, and random number. Chinese is the language of instruction in most schools with English taught as a second language.

In September 2011, 265 620 children were enrolled in 457 public sector primary schools.

Since the curriculum reform at the basic education level in the 2001/02 school year, there has been enhanced learning and teaching in classrooms. Students are now enjoying a wide range of learning activities and there are improvements in students' generic capabilities, values and attitudes. They are becoming independent learners. Schools continue to adapt the central curriculum to meet students' needs. By building on their strengths and experiences, schools can strengthen their curricula to help students better develop their lifelong learning capabilities and themselves as whole-persons.

Secondary Education: On completion of primary education, pupils are allocated subsidised Secondary 1 places through participation in the Secondary School Places Allocation System. The system consists of the Discretionary Places (DP) stage and the Central Allocation (CA) stage. At the DP stage, secondary schools may admit students in accordance with their admission criteria. At the CA stage, S1 places are allocated according to individual student's allocation band, parental choice of schools and random number.

In September 2011, 400 public sector secondary schools had a total student enrolment of 392 400.

The new academic structure has been implemented since September 2009 in Secondary 4. The new senior secondary curriculum provides a three-year course of study for students leading to one public examination at the end of Secondary 6 - the new Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) Examination, which replaces the former Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE) and Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination (HKALE). Under the new system, all students can benefit from 6 years of secondary education (i.e. 3 years of junior secondary and 3 years of senior secondary education). This flexible, coherent and diversified senior secondary curriculum aims at catering for students' varied interests, needs and abilities, as well as nurturing students' whole-person development and lifelong learning capabilities. The first cohort of students under the new academic structure will graduate in 2012.

Special Education: Under the prevailing policy, subject to the assessment and recommendation of the