WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 21, 1987
HE ADDED THAT THE COMMISSION HAD FAILED TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE OF PRESSURE SO WRONGLY APPLIED ON KINDERGARTENS, AND HOW THIS SITUATION SHOULD BE RECTIFIED. HE SAID THAT IF PRE-PRIMARY AND PRIMARY TEACHING WAS IMPROVED, THEN ALL EDUCATION THAT FOLLOWED COULD BE CORRECTED ACCORDINGLY.
TURNING TO THE TRAINING OF TEACHERS, MR LI SAID THE COLLEGES OF EDUCATION MUST GIVE TEACHERS MORE TRAINING IN THE FIELD OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT. HE ADDED THAT TRAINING FOR TEACHERS WAS TOO GENERAL AND THE TIME ALLOTTED FOR TEACHING PRACTICE IN SCHOOLS WAS TOO SHORT.
HE SAID THE COMMISSION'S PROPOSAL FOR SPECIAL DEGREES FOR HEADS OF PRIMARY AND SPECIAL SCHOOLS COULD BE COUNTER-PRODUCTIVE BECAUSE THE PROPOSED BACHELOR OF ARTS DEGREE WOULD BE VIEWED AS A +SECOND CLASS+ DEGREE BY THE ACADEMIC COMMUNITY AT LARGE AND BY THE TEACHERS CONCERNED.
+AGAIN, THIS PROPOSAL FAILS TO ADDRESS THE AREA OF REAL WEAKNESS, WHICH IS NOT THE ACADEMIC PROWESS OR PROMISE OF HEADS OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS, HE SAID.
MR LI SUGGESTED THAT IN THE SHORT RUN, IT WOULD BE MORE APPROPRIATE IF THE UNIVERSITIES ACCEPTED A TEACHING QUALIFICATION PLUS SOME YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AS EQUAL TO A FIRST DEGREE FOR THE PURPOSE OF ENTERING FURTHER DEGREE COURSES.
HE ADDED THAT THE REPORT DID CONTAIN SOME CONSTRUCTIVE RECOMMENDATIONS.
+FOR EXAMPLE, THE CALL FOR OPEN EDUCATION HAS BEEN WELCOME BY ALL WHO ARE EAGER TO LEARN BUT WHO CANNOT ATTEND CLASSES. THIS PROPOSAL DESERVES SERIOUS CONSIDERATION AS IT COULD PROVIDE LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FOR MANY SECTORS OF OUR COMMUNITY, INCLUDING THE HANDICAPPED, HE SAID.
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