34.
C28
subject committees of the Curriculum
Development Committee.
It is clear that the success or otherwise of proposals such
As the
as these to liberalise sixth-form studies will denend to a large extent
on corresponding changes in university admission requirements.
Committee's report points out, the Advanced Level examination already
offers a wide range of subjects and imposes hardly any limitations on
the choice of such subjects; furthermore, the conditions of entry to
the examination and the requirements for matriculation tend to ensure
a balanced pre-Sixth Form education, so that apparently the examination
does not inhibit the ability of schools to plan effective and educationally
sound courses. However, as the Report points out: "Two factors encourage
an intensive narrow study in Sixth Form courses. The first is the
requirement of certain faculties of the University of Hong Kong for
specific subject groups (for example, to enter the Physical Sciences
Group of the Science Faculty, masses in pure mathematrics, chemistry
and physics are essential). The second factor is the intensive competition
to enter tertiary education which demands very high grades for admission.
This encourages the narrow examination-dominated type of study which tends
to lead to rote learning rather than intelligent appreciation of the subject.
The Chinese University has a four-year undergraduate course. Students are
not required to select their major and minor fields of study until the
beginning of the second year. Consequently, there is less demand for a
high level of academic preparation in a narrow range of subjects in the
Sixth Form and this is reflected in the matriculation requirement of
passes in five subjects at the Higher Level examination including Chinese
language and literature and English language.
Nevertheless there are
certain faculty requirements which set the pattern of the one-year course
in the schools. In most schools with the one-year course leading to the
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