XN000022-1992-04-08 — Page 4

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 1992

UNLIKE THE TERTIARY SECTOR WHICH WAS UNDERGOING A PHASE OF QUANTITATIVE EXPANSION, THE SCHOOLS SECTOR WAS ENTERING A PERIOD OF CONSOLIDATION WHERE THE EMPHASIS WAS ON QUALITY RATHER THAN NUMBER, MISS CHOW SAID.

"THE DECLINE IN ENROLMENT IN SCHOOLS DUE TO DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGES TOGETHER WITH THE MORE COST-EFFECTIVE MEASURES THAT WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO INTRODUCE HAVE RESULTED IN CONSIDERABLE SAVINGS WHICH HAVE BEEN PLOUGHED BACK TO THE SCHOOLS SECTOR FOR VARIOUS IMPROVEMENTS.

Ir

FOR EXAMPLE, MEASURES COSTING $465 MILLION ON FULL IMPLEMENTATION HAVE BEEN INTRODUCED SINCE 1990.

FURTHERMORE, AS A RESULT OF THE REVISION OF THE NUMBER OF FIRST-YEAR-FIRST-DEGREE PLACES FOLLOWING THE 1991 CENSUS POPULATION PROJECTION, THE GOVERNMENT HAS DECIDED TO REDEPLOY $300 MILLION TO THE SCHOOLS. THIS IS ON TOP OF THE 1.5 PER CENT OF REAL INCREASE MENTIONED EARLIER AND WILL ENABLE FURTHER IMPROVEMENT MEASURES то

PROCEED IN THE 1992 SCHOOL YEAR.

CONSEQUENTLY, ALL APPROVED POLICIES ARISING FROM EDUCATION COMMISSION REPORT NO. 4 AS WELL AS OTHER IMPROVEMENTS SUCH AS ENHANCEMENT TO THE KINDERGARTEN FEE REMISSION SCHEME WILL BE FUNDED.

ADDITIONAL, FUNDING WILL HAVE TO BE EARMARKED FOR RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE EDUCATION COMMISSION TO IMPROVE THE TEACHING PROFESSION WHEN THEY ARE ACCEPTED AS GOVERNMENT POLICY.

MISS CHOW ALSO SPOKE OF THE NEED TO KEEP EDUCATION PLANS AND PROGRAMMES UNDER CONSTANT REVIEW.

POLICIES,

POLYTECHNIC GRANTS

ON TERTIARY EDUCATION, THE UNIVERSITY AND COMMITTEE (UPGC) HAS BEGUN ITS SCHEDULED REVIEW ON THE IMPLEMENTATION

THE EXPANSION PROGRAMME.

OF

THIS REVIEW WILL TAKE INTO ACCOUNT ALL RELEVANT FACTORS RELATING TO THE SIZE AND QUALITY OF THE STUDENT INTAKE AND HOW THE TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS HAVE COPED WITH THE CHALLENGE of EDUCATING A LARGER AND MORE DIVERSE GROUP OF STUDENTS.

WITHIN THE SCHOOLS SECTOR, THE EDUCATION COMMISSION HAS BEEN MONITORING PROGRESS ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF POLICIES ARISING FROM THE RECOMMENDATIONS IN ITS VARIOUS REPORTS AND CONSIDERING THE PRIORITY OVER THE ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES.

INDIVIDUAL

ALTHOUGH THERE WAS SUFFICIENT MONITORING FOR COMPONENTS OF THE EDUCATION SYSTEMS, SHE SAID THE GOVERNMENT DID NOT RULE OUT THE NEED FOR A MORE THOROUGH REVIEW.

AS REGARDS THE MAINTENANCE OF STANDARDS IN THE TERTIARY SECTOR, MISS CHOW POINTED OUT THAT THE TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS ARE DEDICATED то THE MAINTENANCE OF HIGH ACADEMIC STANDARD AND THE UNIVERSITIES ALSO HAVE THEIR OWN SYSTEM OF PEER GROUP REVIEW AND EXTERNAL EXAMINERS.

APART FROM THEIR INTERNAL MECHANISM FOR QUALITY CONTROL, THE POLYTECHNICS AND THE COLLEGES ARE ALSO REQUIRED ΤΟ UNDERGO ACCREDITATION BY THE HONG KONG COUNCIL FOR ACADEMIC ACCREDITATION.

/TURNING TO