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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1986
AN EDUCATION DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN SAID THE NUMBER WOULD ENSURE THAT EACH PARTICIPATING SCHOOL HAD AT LEAST TWO EXPATRIATE TEACHERS INCLUSIVE OF ANY ALREADY ON THE STAFF.
THE PROJECT WOULD BE FUNDED BY THE GOVERNMENT AND OPERATED BY AN EXTERNAL AGENCY APPOINTED TO EMPLOY AND MANAGE THE TEACHERS TO BE RECRUITED ON TWO-YEAR CONTRACTS FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM.
THE TEACHERS WOULD UNDERGO AN ORIENTATION COURSE AND WOULD BE DEPLOYED IN CONSULTATION WITH PARTICIPATING SCHOOLS.
THE PILOT PROJECT HAD BEEN SO DESIGNED THAT IT WOULD NOT ADVERSELY AFFECT THE CAREER PROSPECTS OF SERVING TEACHERS IN PARTICIPATING SCHOOLS.
THE DEPARTMENT WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OVERALL SUPERVISION OF THE PROJECT AND ITS EVALUATION, THE SPOKESMAN SAID.
COMPLEMENTARY TO THE PILOT PROJECT, AN INTENSIVE TRAINING PROGRAMME WOULD BE MADE AVAILABLE TO SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS OF ENGLISH FROM JUNE 1987.
SUCH TRAINING WOULD BE AVAILABLE TO THOSE WHO HAD SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THE SECONDARY ENGLISH LANGUAGE REFRESHER COURSES CURRENTLY PROVIDED AT THE DEPARTMENT'S INSTITUTE OF LANGUAGE
IN EDUCATION.
THE PROGRAMME WOULD CONSIST OF AN INTENSIVE THREE-WEEK RESIDENTIAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY TRAINING COURSE IN HONG KONG TO BE FOLLOWED BY FOUR WEEKS OF TOTAL IMMERSION+ LANGUAGE TRAINING IN THE UK.
BESIDE FORMAL INSTRUCTION AT APPROPRIATE INSTITUTIONS, THE OVERSEAS TRAINING WOULD REQUIRE TEACHERS TO LIVE WITH BRITISH FAMILIES.
THE PROGRAMME WOULD START WITH ABOUT 100 TEACHERS IN 1987 INCREASING OVER FIVE YEARS TO 300 A YEAR INCLUDING, DURING LATTER YEARS, GRADUATE AS WELL AS NON-GRADUATE TEACHERS.
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