130
EDUCATION
Thousands of members gained awards under the Merit Award Scheme which requires them to set examples of good citizenship by offering services to the community.
To mark the 10th Aniversary of the scheme, 25 outstanding members, including nine secondary school members from 19 districts and five primary school members from the five CYC regions, were selected for a seven-day educational visit to Singapore in July. Other celebration activities included a summer camp for 700 members in August, a parade for 12 000 members in November, a fun day for 900 old people in December.
Educational Television
Programmes produced by the Educational Television Service (ETV) are considered the most useful audio-visual supplement to classroom teaching and regular viewing of the educational television programmes has become a normal part of school life in Hong Kong. In the academic year 1986–7, the total audience of ETV programmes was estimated to be 351 000 primary and 265 000 secondary school pupils.
ETV programmes are produced jointly by the Education Department and Radio Television Hong Kong, and are transmitted to schools by the two commercial television stations. They are based on syllabuses used in primary and secondary schools. Programmes for secondary schools cover Chinese Language, English Language, Mathematics, Social Studies and Science at the Secondary 1 to 3 level, while those for primary schools are produced for Primary 3 to 6 in the same five subjects and in Health Education. In conjunction with these programmes, notes for teachers including suggested preparation and follow-up activities, and notes for pupils with consolidation exercises are provided.
Apart from syllabus-based programmes, supplementary programmes on special curriculum-related topics for knowledge enrichment purposes are produced from time to time. In June, a programme on 'Nuclear Energy' was produced and transmitted to secondary schools.
To facilitate reception and utilisation of ETV programmes in schools, TV equipment including colour television receivers and video-cassette recorders is provided and installed in all government and aided schools and private secondary schools with 'bought places'. In the financial year ending in March 1987, some $3.2 million was spent on the provision of equipment for these schools.
School Library Services
School library services expanded with the training of half a librarian for government and aided secondary schools with fewer than 18 classes and with the training of more school li- brarians in secondary schools. In primary schools, the Class Library Scheme was fully im- plemented in Primary 1 to 6 classes in all government and aided primary schools. Each class was provided with an initial grant of $500 for bookcases and $10 per pupil per year for library books. In addition to training courses, workshops and seminars were organised for second- ary and primary school teachers to promote the understanding of school library services.
Hong Kong Examinations Authority
The Hong Kong Examinations Authority, an independent statutory body, has adminis- tered the HKCEE since 1978, the Hong Kong Higher Level Examination since 1979, and the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination since 1980. In 1987, a total of 153 185 candidates entered for the HKCEE, 6 956 for the Hong Kong Higher Level Examination and 21 432 for the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination. For the Higher Level Examination, the drop in candidature was very significant, from 9 219 in 1986 to 6 956 in