Education | 155
eight UGC-funded institutions have conducted reviews of their governance structures to ensure that they stay effective.
Curriculum Development
Curriculum Development Council
The Curriculum Development Council (CDC) is an advisory body that makes recommendations to the Government on all matters relating to school curriculum development from kindergarten to senior secondary levels. Its members include heads of schools, practising teachers, parents, employers, academics from tertiary institutions, professionals from related fields or related bodies, representatives from the HKEAA and the VTC, as well as EDB officers.
The Curriculum
The school curriculum provides five essential learning experiences: moral and civic education, intellectual development, community service, physical and aesthetic development, and career-related experiences for lifelong learning and the whole- person development of students.
Curriculum reform progresses with schools adapting to the central curriculum to raise the quality of learning and teaching. Improvements in students' generic capabilities, values and attitudes are noted and students are becoming independent learners.
Applied Learning
Applied Learning (ApL) is an integral part of the new senior secondary curriculum. It aims at enabling students to understand fundamental concepts and theories through application and practice, and to develop their generic skills in authentic contexts. ApL courses can be developed in one of the six areas of studies 'Applied Science', 'Business, Management and Law', 'Creative Studies', 'Engineering and Production', 'Media and Communication' and 'Services'. Through the development of foundation skills, thinking skills, people skills, values and attitudes, and career-related competencies, ApL prepares students for further study, work, and lifelong learning. The performance of students in ApL courses under the '3-3-4' academic structure will be credited to the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education.
Promotion of National Education
The promotion of national education is an established education policy and one of the priority areas in the curriculum reform. Apart from enriching school curricula with national education elements, the Government has made extra efforts to enhance students' understanding of the motherland through the national education courses in Beijing. There were 510 secondary 6 student leaders from 450 schools participated in this flagship national education activity. To provide students with authentic learning experience on the Mainland, the Government also subsidised schools to organise exchange activities with their counterparts on the Mainland.