ENG-1977 — Page 96

EDUCATION

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pupils attended night schools. During the school year, 13,584 new primary places were provided in new and developing schools, compared with 15,120 the previous year. Further provision of places is planned to meet the needs of developing areas, partic- ularly the new towns in the New Territories.

Under the Education Ordinance, the Director of Education has the power to order parents to send children to primary school if it appears that they are being withheld without reasonable excuse. These powers are exercised only after careful investiga- tion of family circumstances and the needs of the child. Parents can appeal to a specially-constituted board of review.

During the year, 53 primary schools from different parts of Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories were included in a school social work scheme organised jointly by the Education Department and the Social Welfare Department. The scheme provides help and guidance to pupils found to have learning, emotional and other problems arising from home circumstances.

Chinese is the language of instruction in most primary schools, while English is taught as a second language. Ten junior schools five operated by the government, three by the government-subvented English Schools Foundation, and two by private bodies cater for children whose first language is English.

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Special Education

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Special education continued to expand in 1977, when the number of special places for handicapped children increased from 12,180 to 14,540. There are now 37 special schools two for the blind, four for the deaf, 18 for the physically handicapped, six for the slow-learning and seven for the maladjusted and socially deprived. In addition, 145 special classes 94 for the slow-learning, 27 for the partially hearing, five for the partially sighted and 19 for the maladjusted - are provided in ordinary government schools and 207 special classes 183 for the slow-learning and 24 for the maladjusted - in ordinary aided schools. More than 560 less severely physically handicapped children are in ordinary classes in government and aided schools.

The progress of these children is supervised regularly by the Education Department's Special Education Section, which also expanded its assessment and remedial services during the year. The assessment services include audiometric, vision and speech screening in primary schools; audiological testing; psychological testing; speech testing; and educational assessment. The remedial services include speech and auditory training; speech therapy; adjustment groups; and teacher and parent counselling. These services are provided in two special education centres - the Sir Ellis Kadoorie Government Primary School at Sai Ying Pun and the Perth Street Government Primary School at Ho Man Tin. These two centres dealt with more than 175,400 children in 1977.

The training programme for specialist staff also expanded. It now includes overseas training for specialist staff of the Special Education Section and local in-service courses for teachers in special schools and special classes. In addition, short courses, seminars and workshops are organised by the Special Education Section for teachers in ordinary schools and for trainee-teachers at colleges of education.

In April, 1977, the section established a Chinese Braille Unit, which has taken over the braille printing press from the Government Printer. The unit produces primary