MONDAY, JUNE 25, 1979
+ IN HONG KONG, KINDERGARTENS ARE SEEN BY MANY PARENTS AS AN ESSENTIAL STEPPING STONE TO ENTRY INTO A GOOD PRIMARY SCHOOL AND IN SUBSEQUENT STAGES OF THE EDUCATION SYSTEM,+ SHE SAID.
SHE SAID THAT BECAUSE COMPETITION FOR ENTRY TO GOOD PRIMARY SCHOOLS WAS KEEN AND MANY IMPOSED STIFF ENTRANCE TESTS, UNDUE PRESSURE WAS PUT ON KINDERGARTEN EDUCATION.
MANY KINDERGARTENS ARE JUDGED BY THE IR SUCCESS IN GETTING CHILDREN INTO GOOD PRIMARY SCHOOLS, AND CONSEQUENTLY ROTE LEARNING OF THE 3 RS WAS EMPHASISED BASED ON OPERATORS' KNOWLEDGE OF PRIMARY SCHOOL ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS, SHE ADDED,
MRS. CHAN SAID THAT IF HONG KONG'S KINDERGARTEN EDUCATION WAS TO DEVELOP ALONG MORE ENLIGHTENED LINES, AND THERE APPEARED TO BE SOME PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR THIS, IT WAS NECESSARY TO CHANGE THE PREVAILING CONCEPTS HELD BY BOTH OPERATORS AND CLIENTS.
+ THE BEST WAY TO DO THIS WOULD SEEM TO BE SOME FORM OF CENTRALISED CONTROL OVER ENTRY INTO PRIMARY SCHOOLS WHICH WOULD RELIEVE PRESSURE ON KINDERGARTEN EDUCATION, SHE SAID.
ON THE LENGTH OF KINDERGARTEN EDUCATION, SHE SAID IT WAS WORTH CONSIDERING WHETHER THE PRESENT THREE-YEAR KINDERGARTEN COURSE STARTING AT THE AGE OF THREE SHOULD NOT BE SHORTENED TO TWO.
SHE POINTED OUT THAT STRICTLY SPEAKING, UNDER THE EDUCATION ORDINANCE, KINDERGARTEN EDUCATION WAS INTENDED TO BE ONE YEAR ONLY.
SHE EXPLAINED THAT IT WAS QUESTIONABLE WHETHER THE NEEDS OF A THREE-YEAR OLD WERE BEST CATERED FOR IN A KINDERGARTEN, AND NOT IN A CHILD CARE CENTRE, AS A CHILD OF THAT AGE WAS STILL VERY DEPENDANT AND VULNERABLE AND REQUIRED MUCH INDIVIDUAL ATTENTION.
IN THE AREA OF CHILD CARE CENTRES, MRS. CHAN SAID THAT THE PRESENT PROVISION WAS LARGELY SUBSIDISED BY THE GOVERNMENT AND IT HAD BEEN THE GOVERNMENT'S POLICY TO PROVIDE FOR AN EXTRA 1,000 SUBVENTED PLACES EVERY YEAR, SUBJECT TO SUITABLE PREMISES AND SPONSORS BEING AVAILABLE.
*THERE ARE NOW A TOTAL OF ABOUT 15,000 CHILD CARE CENTRE PLACES OF ALL TYPES, OF WHICH NEARLY 11,000 ARE SUBVENTED PLACES, AND THIS YEAR'S SUBVENTION TO CHILD CARE CENTRES IS EXPECTED TO REACH NEARLY $20 MILLION,+ SHE SAID.
LAST YEAR, SHE SAID, THE GOVERNMENT TOOK THE FIRST STEP TOWARDS ENCOURAGING THE INTEGRATION OF MILDLY DISABLED CHILDREN WITH NORMAL CHILDREN BY PROVIDING 60 PLACES IN ORDINARY SUBVENTED CHILD CARE CENTRES FOR THESE CHILDREN, WITH AN ADDITIONAL 60 PLACES CREATED THIS YEAR.
IN ADDITION, THERE ARE NOW SIX SPECIAL CHILD CARE CENTRES CATERING FOR 187 MODERATELY HANDICAPPED CHILDREN, SHE ADDED.
15. CHAN....*
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