XN000022-1975-10-07 — Page 3

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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1975

NEED TO IMPROVE QUALITY OF PRIMARY EDUCATION STRESSED

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THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION (PROFESSIONAL), MR. HO NGA-MING THIS EVENING STRESSED THE NEED TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF PRIMARY EDUCATION.

ADDRESSING THE DINNER MEETING OF THE LIONS CLUB OF HAPPY VALLEY MR. HO SAID: +ONCE IT IS CONCEDED THAT THE AIM OF EDUCATION SHOULD BE THE FULL DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHILD'S CAPACITIES AND THE ENLARGEMENT AND ORDERING OF HIS EXPERIENCE, IT IS IMPORTANT FOR THE SCHOOLS TO TONE DOWN THE PRESENT EMPHASIS ON THE INSTRUCTIONAL ASPECT OF SCHOOLING.+

MR. HO MENTIONED ABOUT THE MODERN CONCEPT OF A +CHILD-CENTRED EDUCATION+ WHICH DRAMS ATTENTION TO THE NEED TO RECOGNISE INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES, ALLOWS GREATER FREEDOM IN THE CLASSROOM AND ENCOURAGES MORE ACTIVE PARTICIPATION BY PUPILS. +THE ADOPTION OF THIS CONCEPT WOULD GO A LONG WAY TOWARDS RE-VITALIZING PRIMARY EDUCATION,+ HE SAID,

+HERE THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT HAS AN IMPORTANT PART TO PLAY.

+WE HAVE MADE A GOOD START IN INITIATING CURRICULUM AND SUBJECT DEVELOPMENT, EXPERIMENTING WITH THE ACTIVITY APPROACH' ORGANISING COURSES FOR THE FURTHER TRAINING OF SERVING TEACHERS TRANSMITTING AND REFINING ETV LESSONS, ISSUING GUIDES AND BULLETINS TO SCHOOLS, AND PERIODICALLY MOUNTING CONFERENCES, SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS.

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+NATURALLY, MORE WORK WILL BE DONE TO ENSURE THAT CHANGE CONFORMS TO SOUND WELL-ESTABLISHED PRINCIPLES APPLIED TO THE NEEDS OF LOCAL CONDITIONS, THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR SAID.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF PRIMARY EDUCATION, HE SAID, HAD REACHED A STAGE WHERE SUFFICIENT PLACES WERE AVAILABLE IN GOVERNMENT AND AIDED SCHOOLS, TUITION WAS FREE IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR EXCEPT FOR A FEW SCHOOLS. AND A TEXTBOOK AND STATIONERY GRANT WAS ALLOWED FOR NEEDY CHILDREN.

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