WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1980
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TO MEET THESE REQUIREMENTS, THERE WAS THE BUILDING PROGRAMME OF 130 SCHOOLS, OF WHICH 59 HAD BEEN COMPLETED BY JULY- AND, TO ALLEVIATE THE EFFECTS OF DELAYS, ADDITIONAL FORM IV CLASSES WOULD EE OPERATED IN NEW AND DEVELOPING SCHOOLS AND OPENING OF SOME SCHOOLS WOULD BE ADVANCED BY THE TEMPORARY USE OF BORROWED PREMISES, IN MOST CASES FOR ONLY ONE SCHOOL YEAR.
ON THE TECHNICAL SIDE, SIR MURRAY SAID THE ORIGINAL TARGET FOR THE FIVE TECHNICAL INSTITUTES FOR SLIGHTLY OVER 40 000 FULL-TIME, PART-TIME DAY AND PART-TIME EVENING PLACES HAD BEEN REVISED TO 43 000 BY 1983/84, A SIXTH INSTITUTE AT TUEN MUN WOULD BE OPENED IN 1985.
HE ADDED THAT ABOUT 5 000 TECHNICIAN COURSE PLACES AT THE POLYTECHNIC WOULD BE TRANSFERRED IN PHASES TO THE TECHNICAL INSTITUTES OVER A FOUR-YEAR PERIOD BEGINNING NEXT SEPTEMBER TO MAKE ROOM AT THE POLYTECHNIC FOR HIGHER LEVEL WORK.
AS FOR POST-SECONDARY COLLEGES, SIR MURRAY SAID BAPTIST AND LING NAM, WHICH ACCEPTED THE GOVERNMENT'S OFFER OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE, HAD BEGUN THEIR NEW TWO-YEAR POST-FORM VI COURSES IN SEPTEMBER.
AT THE SAME TIME, THE UK COUNCIL FOR NATIONAL ACADEMIC AWARDS HAD AGREED TO ASSESS THE APPROPRIATE AWARDS FOR THE STUDENTS.
IN ADDITION, IN IMPLEMENTING THE 1978 WHITE PAPER, A SCHEME TO SUBVENT PROJECTS IN ADULT EDUCATION OF A RETRIEVAL NATURE RUN BY VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONS WAS INTRODUCED IN SEPTEMBER ON TRIAL FOR ONE YEAR AND WOULD BE EXTENDED NEXT YEAR SHOULD IT PROVE SUCCESSFUL.
REFERRING TO THE PUBLIC CONCERN ABOUT THE SYSTEMS OF SELECTION AND ALLOCATION FOR SECONDARY SCHOOL PLACES, SIR MURRAY SAID A WORKING PARTY WOULD REPORT ON THE ALLOCATION PROCEDURE BY THE END OF THIS YEAR AND AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE WOULD SHORTLY BE SET UP TO MONITOR THE PROPOSED NEW FORM It! ASSESSMENT AND ALLOCATION PROCEDURES.
ON THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING SCHOOLS WHICH WERE DIS-ESTABLISHED LAST SEPTEMBER AND NOW ADMINISTERED BY THE ENGLISH SCHOOLS FOUNDATION, SIR MURRAY SAID THE REPORT BY THE COMMITTEE CHAIRED BY MR Q.W. LEE ON THE APPLICATION OF THE PRINCIPLE OF PARITY OF SUBSIDY HAD BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE GOVERNMENT.
SPEAKING ON HIGHER EDUCATION PROVIDED BY THE TWO UNIVERSITIES, SIR MURRAY SAID THEIR ENROLMENT FOR THE ACADEMIC YEAR NOW STARTING WAS EXPECTED TO BE MARGINALLY HIGHER THAN THE TARGET OF 10 330 SET IN THE 1978 WHITE PAPER, AT A THREE PER CENT ANNUAL GROWTH RATE.
+FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS, NOT LEAST OF WHICH IS THE INCREASED COST OF UNIVERSITY EDUCATION FOR OUR STUDENTS OVERSEAS, THE GOVERNMENT HAS ASKED THE UPGC (UNIVERSITY AND POLYTECHNIC GRANTS COMMITTEE) TO CONSIDER THE FEASIBILITY OF INCREASING THE ANNUAL GROWTH RATE IMMEDIATELY TO FOUR PER CENT, HE SAID.
/HE RECOGNISED