XN000022-1982-06-07 — Page 6

MONDAY, JUNE 7, 1982

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BIG STEP TAKEN IN LANGUAGE IMPROVEMENT PLAN

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THE GOVERNMENT'S PLAN TO IMPROVE THE STANDARD OF ENGLISH AND CHINESE IN SCHOOLS AND THE COMMUNITY TOOK A MAJOR STEP FORWARD LAST WEEK WHEN THE LEASE FOR THE PREMISES ON THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT'S NEW INSTITUTE OF LANGUAGE IN EDUCATION (ILE) WAS SIGNED.

SITUATED IN THE PARK-IN COMMERCIAL BUILDING IN MONG KOK, THE INSTITUTE IS PART OF THE $320-MILLION LANGUAGE PACKAGE ANNOUNCED BY THE DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION, MR COLVYN HAYE, IN JUNE LAST YEAR.

IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, THE GOVERNMENT IS EXPECTED TO SPEND $120 MILLION ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE INSTITUTE AS A +CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE+ ON ALL MATTERS RELATING TO LANGUAGE TEACHING IN SCHOOLS.

SINCE THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE LANGUAGE IMPROVEMENT PACKAGE 12 MONTHS AGO, THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT HAS GENERATED A LOT OF EFFORTS IN IMPLEMENTING THE VARIOUS PROPOSALS CONTAINED IN THE PACKAGE, INCLUDING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE ILE.

THE MAN BEHIND THE SCENE CO-ORDINATING ALL THESE EFFORTS IS MR ANDREW FOK, THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION CHARGED WITH THE RESPONSIBILITY OF IMPLEMENTING THE LANGUAGE IMPROVEMENT PROPOSALS.

MR FOK DISCLOSED TODAY THAT THE ILE WILL PROVIDE ITS FIRST 16-WEEK INTENSIVE REFRESHER COURSE IN SEPTEMBER FOR A TOTAL OF 100 NON-GRADUATE TEACHERS OF ENGLISH OR CHINESE FROM PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR.

A SIMILAR COURSE FOR ANOTHER 100 LANGUAGE TEACHERS FROM PRIMARY SCHOOLS WILL BE STARTED IN FEBRUARY NEXT YEAR.

THE INSTITUTE, WHICH AIMS TO RAISE SUBSTANTIALLY THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS OF THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH AND CHINESE

MOST IN SCHOOLS, EXPECTS TO RETRAIN 3 000 LANGUAGE TEACHERS, OF THEM IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS, DURING ITS FIRST FIVE YEARS OF OPERATION.

EVENTUALLY. ALL LANGUAGE TEACHERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO IMPROVE THEIR LANGUAGE CAPABILITY AND DEVELOP THE IR TEACHING SKILLS IN THE INSTITUTE, WHICH WILL OPERATE AT FULL STRENGTH IN FIVE YEARS' TIME, MR FOK SAID.

THE ILE ALSO PLANS TO PROVIDE LANGUAGE COURSES FOR PRIMARY AND SECONDARY TEACHERS OF OTHER SUBJECTS BECAUSE OF THE KEY ROLE OF LANGUAGE AS A TOOL OF COMMUNICATION IN EDUCATION.

MR FOK SAID THAT RESPONSE TO THE SETTING UP OF THE ILE HAS BEEN MOST ENCOURAGING, AND MORE THAN 1 700 PRIMARY SCHOOL LANGUAGE TEACHERS HAD APPLIED TO TAKE PART IN THE INSTITUTE'S FIRST COURSE.

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