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JEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1985
ON LANGUAGE IN EDUCATION, SIR EDWARD SAID THE GOVERNMENT INTENDED TO ESTABLISH A CHINESE TEXTBOOKS COMMITTEE.
THE PURPOSE OF THE COMMITTEE, SIR EDWARD SAID, WOULD BE TO ENSURE THAT SUFFICIENT SECONDARY SCHOOL TEXTBOOKS OF GOOD QUALITY, WRITTEN IN CHINESE, BECOME AVAILABLE WITHIN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.
HONG KONG'S POSITION AS AN IMPORTANT INDUSTRIAL, COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL CENTRE, NOW AND IN THE FUTURE, REQUIRED THE BEST EFFORTS TO ENSURE THAT THE CHILDREN COULD USE BOTH CHINESE AND ENGLISH WITH EASE, HE SAID.
SIR EDWARD SAID THOSE SECONDARY SCHOOLS WHICH TAUGHT IN ENGLISH WOULD BE ASKED TO CONSIDER WHETHER THEY WISHED TO MAKE GREATER USE OF CHINESE.
MORE WIDESPREAD USE OF CHINESE, HE SAID, WAS IN NO WAY INTENDED TO DIMINISH THE IMPORTANCE OF A HIGH STANDARD OF ENGLISH.
+OUR OBJECTIVE, WHICH WE BELIEVE TO BE ACHIEVABLE, IS HIGH STANDARDS IN BOTH, HE SAID.
TURNING TO COMPUTER EDUCATION, SIR EDWARD SAID THE COMPUTER STUDIES PILOT SCHEME HAD GROWN TO COVER, BY LAST MONTH, A TOTAL OF 210 GOVERNMENT AND GOVERNMENT-AIDED SECONDARY SCHOOLS SINCE ITS IMPLEMENTATION IN 1982.
IT WAS INTENDED THAT ALL AIDED SECONDARY SCHOOLS SHOULD, IF THEY WISHED, INCLUDE COMPUTER STUDIES IN THEIR FORM 4 AND FORM 5 CURRICULA FROM SEPTEMBER 1986. HOWEVER, MORE TEACHERS HAD TO BE TRAINED FOR THE PLAN.
A CAPITAL GRANT OF $4 MILLION HAD BEEN MADE EARLIER THIS YEAR FROM THE MACLEHOSE FUND FOR SETTING UP A FULLY EQUIPPED COMPUTER EDUCATION CENTRE TO PROVIDE FURTHER TRAINING FOR TEACHERS INVOLVED IN THE USE AND APPLICATION OF COMPUTERS.
SPEAKING OF THE JOINT FUNDING SCHEME FOR HONG KONG STUDENTS IN BRITAIN, SIR EDWARD SAID IT HAD BECOME A VALUED SOURCE OF SUBS IDISED PLACES IN HIGHER EDUCATION, ADDITIONAL TO THE PLACES AVAILABLE LOCALLY.
IN 1984-85 THERE WERE OVER 1 300 SUCCESSFUL APPLICATIONS FOR GRANTS UNDER THE SCHEME, THE COST OF WHICH WAS SHARED EQUALLY WITH THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT.
SIR EDWARD SAID IN 1985-86, THE AMOUNT AVAILABLE FOR GRANTS HAD INCREASED SLIGHTLY TO FOUR MILLION POUNDS STERLING.
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