ENG-1997 — Page 195

EDUCATION

Service Bureau, the Education Department, and the Social Welfare Department, and public bodies such as the Housing Authority, on the comparability of non-local qualifications with local standards for the purpose of staff appointments.

With the commencement of the Non-local Higher and Professional Education (Regulation) Ordinance in June 1997, the HKCAA became the named adviser to the Registrar of the Non-local Courses Registry who is the Director of Education. The HKCAA provides independent and authoritative advice on the accreditation/ recognition status of non-local institutions or professional bodies, and the comparability of standards of non-local courses conducted in Hong Kong as against those conducted in their home countries. The advice of HKCAA enables the Registrar to determine whether a non-local course meets the criteria for registration and helps in monitoring these courses.

To keep itself abreast of the latest development in accreditation practices and academic standards around the world, the HKCAA maintains strong international and regional links with higher education and accreditation authorities outside Hong Kong, especially those with the Mainland. The HKCAA is an active member in the International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education, and other international bodies.

Management of Schools and Tertiary Institutions

School Management Committees

Each school registered under the Education Ordinance has a management committee which is responsible for the education of the pupils and proper operation of the school.

Each aided primary or secondary school is operated under a letter of agreement with a sponsoring body, which contributes the full cost of furnishing and equipping the premises and manages the school through its management committee headed by a supervisor. In the 1997-98 school year, 1042 aided schools were in the care of 448 sponsoring bodies, the largest of which operated 112 schools.

School Management Initiative

By September 1997, more than 360 government and aided primary, secondary and special schools had joined the School Management Initiative (SMI) Scheme. The scheme was introduced in 1991 to give government and aided schools more decision- making power and more flexibility in the use of resources, while putting in place more formal procedures for planning, implementing and evaluating their activities.

Governing Bodies of Tertiary Institutions

Each tertiary institution has its own structure of governance, set out in its ordinance. In all cases, that structure includes a governing body (called the court, the council or the board of governors), and a body to regulate academic affairs (called the senate or the academic board). Some institutions operate under three bodies: a governing body, an executive body and a body dealing with academic affairs.

The Chief Executive of HKSAR is empowered by the ordinances to appoint the chairman of each governing body, as well as a prescribed number of members. This ensures a balanced distribution of members from the industrial, commercial and academic fields.

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