TNAG-1072-FCO40-1322-Policy-of-the-Government-of-Hong-Kong-on-education-1981 — Page 88

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3.6

3.7

3.8

3.9

The Baptist College has adopted the Government's proposed 2-2-1 programme structure: Programme of Basic Studies (2 years), Senior Diploma (2 years), Honours Diploma (1 year). However, only in 1980 were students admitted to the new style Senior Diploma and there are no Honours Diploma students. Therefore, the visiting party was not able to appraise these programmes on the basis of their operation or by meeting students (other than first year Senior Diploma students), or by looking at examination papers; appraisal therefore had to be through intent, the likelihood that the staff and resources would permit achievement of that intent, and past achievements on the old style diploma programmes. The three year Higher Diploma programmes in the Polytechnic were, by contrast, seen in operation, and it was possible to meet the students and to see examination papers.

The Hong Kong Polytechnic uses examination boards and (to a limited extent) external examiners, but the Baptist College has only just begun to introduce the use of external examiners - so far only for the Civil Engineering programme. The Baptist College makes decisions on student awards through the grade point average, without the need for moderation by examination boards.

The relationships between the Polytechnic and the two universities appear to permit easier use of university resources by staff and students, than is the case with the Baptist College; the latter does not have easy access to Polytechnic resources.

At an institutional level, there appear to be some similarities. Both institutions have an academic structure in which resource control and academic planning are separated (the Polytechnic Council and the College Council are responsible for resources, rather than the Academic Boards), both have rather primitive mechanisms for programme vetting, monitoring and evaluation, neither have well developed notions of collective decision making and implementation at the programme level, and neither have much commitment to research or other forms of professional activity. This last point is not only linked to resource priorities but to the Hong Kong context in which industry is geared towards production without a strong interest in research and development of new products. These institutional factors mean that it is not sensible to take judgements about programmes and their comparison outside of the institutional context. Therefore, the present report must be read alongside the institutional assessment of the Baptist College.