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(h) All government English-speaking schools were
disestablished in September 1979 and are now
administered by the ESF. A comprehensive review
of the application of the principle of parity of
subsidy has been completed and the resulting report
accepted by the government.
(i) Comments on the 1980 Green Paper on Primary Education
and Pre-primary Services are being digested and a
White Paper will issue during the current session:
this will complete the series of reviews of the Hong
Kong education system which began with the 1974 White
Paper on secondary education and continued with the
1978 White Paper. The change already achieved or planned
is spectacular and is radically changing the level of
education in Hong Kong but there is still much room for
modification, adjustment and improvement in quality.
Nevertheless we now have a well-defined background
against which any further change can be considered:
this should make it timely to conduct in 1981 the
promised overall review of the entire system to examine
the coherence and effectiveness of the education service
and the balance and priorities between different disciplines.
(j) The government has asked the UPGC to consider the feasibility
of increasing the annual growth rate in student numbers at
the two universities to 4% as an interim measure. An
official review is being undertaken urgently in the light
both of changing circumstances and the Committee on
Diversification's concern that facilities for tertiary
and technical education may not prove adequate.
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1. The Committee to Review Post-Secondary and Technical Education.