XN000022-1995-11-17 — Page 26

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Mr Lam told the party that by November 8, a total of 156 contracts worth $92.5 billion had been awarded, with Japanese companies clinching 25 per cent of the contract value, followed by Hong Kong (23 per cent), the United Kingdom (16 per cent) and China (eight per cent).

End/Friday, November 17, 1995

Working group on Putonghua summer courses to be formed

A 10-member working group on the provision of introductory Putonghua courses for primary and secondary school students during the summer holidays will be formed next month (December 1995).

A spokesman for the Education Department said today (Friday) the new working group would be formed following the Finance Committee's approval of a $29.8 million commitment for the project.

The working group will comprise staff of the Education Department's Curriculum Development Institute and Advisory Inspectorate, and primary and secondary school teachers. It will be responsible for the design of curriculum and guidelines for the reference of teachers.

"Invitation to participate in the project will be sent to schools in early March 1996. The Education Department will organise seminars for participating teachers. Schools are expected to submit their applications by May 1996," the spokesman said.

The summer courses in Putonghua for primary and secondary school students are scheduled to be launched next July.

"We are expecting a good response to the courses," the spokesman added.

At present, Putonghua is an optional subject at upper primary and junior secondary levels in the school curriculum. Although Putonghua will be extended to the formal curriculum at Primary 1-3 and Secondary 4-5 levels with effect from September 1998 and it is expected that more schools will offer the subject by then, students in schools which do not offer Putonghua in the school curriculum will not have the opportunity to learn the subject in the 1995-96 to 1997-98 school years.