XN000022-1974-05-24 — Page 6

FIVE-YEAR SECONDARY PLACES:

FRIDAY, MAY 24, 1974.

LONG-RANGE AIN

THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION CADMINISTRATION), MR. CHARLES LOWE, SAID TODAY THAT A COMPLETE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEMS AFFECTING THE EDUCATION SYSTEM IN HONG KONG WOULD BE IN SIGHT ONLY WHEN THE LONG-RANGE AIM OF PROVIDING A FIVE-YEAR SECONDARY PLACE FOR ANY PUPIL WHO WANTED IT WAS ACHIEVED.

+EVEN SO, IT MAY ONLY BE A PARTIAL SOLUTION BECAUSE THERE ARE SIGNS THAT THE SUBSIDIZED PRIMARY SCHOOLS ARE BECOMING MORE AND MORE SELECTIVE WITH THEIR OWN ENTRANCE EXAMINATIONS AND WITH THE RESULT THAT A PRE-PRIMARY EDUCATION IS NECESSARY TO ENTER A QUALITY PRIMARY SCHOOL AND WE HAVE KINDERGARTENS PLACING GREAT EMPHASIS ON THE ACADEMIC LEARNING THEY CAN INSTIL,+ MR. LOWE SAID.

HE POINTED OUT THAT THE SOLUTION TO THIS DIFFICULT PROBLEM WAS NOT EASY. BUT, HE SAID, UNTIL SCHOOLS, ESPECIALLY PRIMARY SCHOOLS, ARE WILLING TO ACCEPT A FAIR SAMPLE OF THE CHILD POPULAT- JON FOR ENTRY, POSSIBLY BY RANDOM SELECTION, ONE IN THREE OR ONE IN FOUR AS THE CASE MAY BE, WE SHALL MERELY BE EXCHANGING PUBLIC EXAMINATIONS FOR SCHOOL-BASED EXAMINATIONS AND THE SCHOOLS WILL CONTINUE TO REFLECT THE VERY COMPETITIVE NATURE OF HONG KONG SOCIETY.

+NEVERTHELESS, ONE WELCOMES EACH NEW FIVE-YEAR COURSE AIDED SECONDARY SCHOOL THAT IS BEING BUILT AS A SMALL STEP FORWARD TO PROVIDING THE FIVE-YEAR COURSES THAT WILL HELP TO REDUCE THE TREMENDOUS COMPETITION FOR FIVE-YEAR SECONDARY PLACES AMONG THE CHILDREN OF HONG KONG.+

THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR WAS SPEAKING AT OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY COLLEGE, WHICH HE OPENED AND WHICH WAS BLESSED BY BISHOP PETER LEI.

THE NEW SCHOOL, OPERATED BY THE SISTERS ANNOUNCERS OF THE LORD, WAS FINANCED BY THE GOVERNMENT WITH ASSISTANCE OF A GENEROUS DONATION OF $100,000 FROM THE JOCKEY CLUB AND A MOST ENERGETIC FUND-RAISING CAMPAIGN BY THE SISTERS WHO RAISED $120,000.

ON PUBLIC EXAMINATIONS, MR. LOVE SAID THAT THE S.S.E.E. COULD POSSIBLY BE REPLACED BY CUMULATIVE SCHOOL RECORDS AND ASSESSMENTS AND BY LINKING A NUMBER OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS WITH A SECONDARY SCHOOL WHICH WOULD DO ITS OWN SELECTION IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE STAFF OF THE PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

+THIS MAY BE POSSIBLE, HE SAID, +BUT UNLESS WE ARE CAREFUL, THE REPLACEMENT OF THE S.S.E.E. WITH A FAR MORE ELABORATE SELECTION AND ATTAINMENT EXAMINATION AFTER FORM 111 MAY BE

- ATTAINMENT AND RATHER RISKY AS WELL AS TECHNICALLY DIFFICULT SELECTION TESTS ARE QUITE DIFFERENT AND DO NOT COMBINE EASILY* ONE FEARS THE RESULT OF THIS EXAMINATION ON TEACHING IN FORMS 1-111.

/+AT PRESENT ..