ENG-1983 — Page 120

EDUCATION

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Expansion programmes now in hand will help meet the demand for more technical institute courses. The construction of an additional floor and a six-storey annex to the Lee Wai Lee Technical Institute was completed for occupation in the 1983-4 academic year. Work on a five-storey annex to the Haking Wong Technical Institute began in July. Architects have been commissioned for the design of two new technical institutes, one to be built in Tuen Mun and the other in Sha Tin. Computing facilities at the institutes were improved during the year by an increase in the number of terminals connected to the main computer at the Lee Wai Lee Technical Institute, and by providing each institute with microcomputers.

The demand for technical institute courses remained high. During the first term of the 1983-4 academic year, there were about 4 955 full-time, 10 334 part-time day-release and block-release, and 24 739 part-time evening students. The teaching establishment of the technical institutes was about 460, with some 390 support staff. The annual employment survey of full-time students completing their courses again showed that graduates had little difficulty in finding appropriate employment.

Industrial Training

Two large complexes, located in Kowloon Bay and Kwai Chung, are being built by the Vocational Training Council to house eight industrial training centres to provide basic off-the-job training for various industrial and commercial sectors: automobile repairs and servicing; electrical; electronics; hotels; machine shop and metal working (including welding); plastics; printing; and textiles.

The training centres will cover the training of workers ranging from operatives to technologists and from front-line supervisors to senior managers. The scheme is expected to begin in late 1984, with the aim of training about 9 000 workers a year. Key staff for the centres have been recruited for the preliminary planning work. The fitting out of a temporary seamen's training centre in Little Sai Wan was nearing completion at the end of the year.

A scheme to provide practical training to engineering graduates to enable them to meet the training requirements of professional institutions, and to ensure that Hong Kong has an adequate supply of well trained engineers, was launched in the summer. The council was also in the process of setting up a management development centre.

Two training authorities were set up as statutory bodies in 1975 empowered to collect revenue to be used for constructing, operating and maintaining training centres. These are the Clothing Industry Training Authority which collects a training levy based on the export value of clothing items manufactured in and exported from Hong Kong, and the Construction Industry Training Authority which collects a levy based on the value of all construction works undertaken in Hong Kong which exceed $0.25 million. Two construction industry training centres are already in operation and there are plans for a third. A second clothing industry training centre was under construction during the year and will open in 1984.

Apprenticeship Scheme

The Apprenticeship Ordinance provides a legal framework for the training of craftsmen. and technicians. It requires an employer to enter into a contract of apprenticeship when engaging a person aged between 14 and 18 in a designated trade unless that person has completed an apprenticeship in the trade. The contract must be registered with the Director of Technical Education and Industrial Training. Contracts of apprentices engaged in

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