XN000022-1985-10-30 — Page 21

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1985

19

GOVERNMENT TO PLAN FOR THIRD UNIVERSITY

******

THE GOVERNMENT INTENDS TO PROCEED WITH THE PLANNING OF A

FIRST THIRD UNIVERSITY, TO INCREASE THE PROVISION OF FIRST-YEAR

SIR EDWARD DEGREE PLACES TO OVER 7 500 BY THE 1990'S, THE GOVERNOR YOUDE, SAID IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL TODAY (WEDNESDAY).

UNTIL NOW, THE TARGET FIGURE FOR FIRST-YEAR PLACES IN FIRST DEGREE COURSES BY 1994-95 HAD BEEN JUST OVER 6 300, INSUFFICIENT TO MEET +EITHER THE REQUIREMENTS OF OUR ECONOMY OR THE ASPIRATIONS OF OUR STUDENTS.+

+MUCH WORK NEEDS TO BE DONE ON THIS PROJECT THE COST WILL BE CONSIDERABLE- BUT THE OBJECTIVE IS CLEAR, AND I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT THE INVESTMENT WILL SHOW AN AMPLE RETURN, THE GOVERNOR SAID.

THERE ARE NOW 28 000 FULL-TIME AND EQUIVALENT PART-TIME STUDENTS IN THE INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING, 13 000 OF THEM ON DEGREE COURSES.

SIR EDWARD SAID THAT THE COMMUNITY HAD ALWAYS PLACED GREAT VALUE ON EDUCATION, AND THE GOVERNMENT REMAINED COMMITTED TO +CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT IN EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES AND IN THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION.+

THIS YEAR, 17 PER CENT OF TOTAL PUBLIC EXPENDITURE WAS DEVOTED TO EDUCATION - MORE THAN THE AMOUNT SPENT ON ANY SINGLE AREA OF GOVERNMENT ACTIVITY.

THE GOVERNMENT WAS ALREADY COMMITTED TO IMPROVING ON THE NINE YEARS OF UNIVERSAL, FREE AND COMPULSORY EDUCATION AS INTRODUCED IN 1978.

ON THE EDUCATION COMMISSION'S ADVICE, IT HAD SET THE TARGET OF PROVIDING BY 1991 ENOUGH SUBSIDISED PLACES, IN FORMS 4 AND 5 IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS, AND IN ONE-YEAR FULL-TIME CRAFT COURSES IN TECHNICAL INSTITUTES AND TRAINING CENTRES, TO SATISFY THE DEMAND FOR POST-FORM 3 EDUCATION, SIR EDWARD SAID.

THIS SHOULD PERMIT THE PHASING-OUT OF THE JUNIOR SECONDARY EDUCATION ASSESSMENT SYSTEM, HE SAID.

TO DO THIS, HE SAID

24 SECONDARY SCHOOLS WOULD HAVE TO BE BUILT AND PLACES IN FORMS 4 AND 5 WOULD HAVE TO BE PURCHASED FROM GOOD PRIVATE SCHOOLS.

WITH THE OPENING OF THE NEW TECHNICAL INSTITUTES AT TUEN MUN AND SHA TIN IN THE COMING YEAR, OVERALL STUDENT NUMBERS IN TECHNICAL INSTITUTES WOULD RISE FROM 45 500 TO OVER 52 000, REPRESENTING SOME 2 700 MORE STUDENTS AT THE TECHNICIAN LEVEL, AND NEARLY 3 900 MORE STUDENTS ENGAGED IN CRAFT-LEVEL COURSES.

/ON LANGUAGE