C.S. 166
CONFIDENTIAL # #
XCC(77)46
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Copy No ..34. of 80
Page 6 of 13
is the numbers at present not proceeding to senior secondary education in either sector who would wish to do so if such places were made available at prices they could afford. It is noted also that most full- time courses at all publicly-subvented tertiary institutions are over- subscribed, though it is difficult from this to gauge demand, as the extent of "multiple applications" is not known.
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Student ability is considered primarily in relation to pro- gression to senior secondary courses. At present senior secondary courses are preparatory to the Certificate of Education Examination, and the Director of Education believes that an examination of this standard is appropriate to Hong Kong's requirements and that the time is not ripe to develop non-academic senior secondary courses or to introduce a second examination that would be pitched at a lower standard of ability. Accordingly, it is appropriate to estimate the proportion of the population who are capable of tackling with a reasonable degree of success the type of academic course leading to the Certificate of Education. There are several examinations abroad that are similar in standard to the Hong Kong Certificate of Education and evidence to suggest that most of those who are able to complete them successfully fall within the top 40% of the ability spectrum, with IQ's of 105 or above. This group is larger than those who at present obtain a minimum successful score (5E's or above) in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education (27%, as noted in Table B, paragraph 2. 12), but the number of suitable candidates for an examination is necessarily larger than those who are successful in it. Furthermore, as not all students within the ablest 40% would be identified by any selection system that was confined to drawing out that proportion of the population, the Director of Education feels it would be necessary to draw the net more widely, to about 50%, if he is to be reasonably confident of providing a subsidised place for all with the ability to undertake the course successfully. The Director of Education feels that he can provide for up to 50% in sub- sidised senior secondary places without having to distort the curriculum and examination on that account.
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The Working Party considers that student ability for education at the post-Form V level can best be assessed in terms of passes in the Certificate of Education Examination rather than in terms of IQ bands. It believes that most of those capable of proceeding to tertiary education (except for craft level courses at technical institutes) are found among those with 5 passes at Grade E or better in the Certificate of Education education, and that those entering the sixth form should not normally have fewer than 3 passes at Grade C or better.
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