ENG-1979 — Page 104

EDUCATION

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time day-release and evening basis. The main areas covered include: construction, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, marine and fabrication, textiles and clothing, com- mercial studies, industrial technology, design, printing, hotel-keeping and tourism, as well as general studies. A number of short courses are also offered to meet the specialised require- ments of industry and commerce. During the first term of the 1979-80 academic year, there were about 3,000 full-time, 7,500 part-time day and 14,000 part-time evening students. A credit-unit system has been adopted for technician study programmes mainly to provide greater flexibility. Programmes in the main disciplines such as electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, and building and civil engineering have already been validated by the Technician Education Council in Britain, while validation for others is being sought. The validated programmes carry accreditation and recognition from a large number of institutions and professional societies, both locally and overseas.

During the 1979-80 academic year, about 100 places were provided in technical institutes for handicapped students in various standard courses. This was in line with the government's policy of integrating the disabled into the community. A special unit was also established in the Technical Education Division of the Education Department to plan and advise on the provision of technical education and vocational training for the disabled.

A number of postal surveys have been conducted to collect information from past and present students. These have included an employment survey of former full-time students who left after completing the 1978-9 academic year, an opinion poll of final year part-time day-release students on the courses attended, and a 'tracer study' of former full-time graduates. The views of employers have also been sought, in collaboration with the industry training boards of the Hong Kong Training Council, on the usefulness of the technical institute courses to industry. These have provided the technical institutes with up-to-date information leading to the provision of new courses and the revision of existing courses to meet the demands of industry and commerce.

Post-Secondary Education

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The three approved post-secondary colleges, namely, the Hong Kong Baptist College, the Hong Kong Shue Yan College and Lingnan College are the only institutions registered under the Post-Secondary College Ordinance.

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The Hong Kong Baptist College, registered in 1970, has four faculties arts, business, social sciences, and natural sciences and engineering - with an enrolment of 3,100 students. Sixteen departments cover 18 major fields.

The Hong Kong Shue Yan College, registered in 1976, consists of three faculties – arts, social sciences and commerce - with an enrolment of 3,000 students. The college has 11 departments and offers day and evening courses.

Lingnan College was registered in October, 1978. It has faculties for arts, business and music with an enrolment of 630 students.

With the implementation of the recommendations of the 1978 White Paper on the Development of Senior Secondary and Tertiary Education, government financial assistance was offered to the Hong Kong Baptist College and Lingnan College on their restructuring their courses to provide two-year courses at the Form 6 level, followed by further two-year courses at the post-Form 6 level leading to professional or vocational qualifications. Financial assistance in the form of a block grant to these two colleges is provided in respect of students enrolled on these courses. The colleges also offer additional one-year courses for students completing the two-year post-Form 6 courses who have demonstrated the ability