Hong Kong: Local and International EducationHong
Kong
The
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China has
an area of 1,040 square kilometers (646 square miles), and a population of 6,805,600.
Negotiations between Britain and China in the early 1980s resulted in the signing
of the Sino-British Joint Declaration on the Question of Hong Kong, by which
the entire territory was restored to Chinese sovereignty on July 1, 1997. Hong
Kong retains a high degree of autonomy in all areas except foreign affairs and
defense, and its present capitalist system and lifestyle, including education,
are to remain unchanged for a period of 50 years.
 The system of education in Hong Kong follows a British pattern, with six years of primary school, three years of junior secondary school, two years of senior secondary school, and a two-year course leading to the advanced level examinations, which provide for entry into tertiary institutions offering diploma and three-year bachelor's degree courses. Primary and Secondary Education Education in Hong Kong is free and compulsory for nine years, from Primary One through Secondary Three. After kindergarten, at the age of six, children begin a six-year primary course. Primary education consists of a core curriculum of Chinese, English, mathematics, social studies, science, health education, music, physical education, and art and craft. Children's progress in Chinese, English, and mathematics is evaluated yearly with standardized Hong Kong Attainment Tests. In most schools, the language of instruction is Chinese, with English taught as a second language. Students are allocated places in junior secondary schools (Secondary One to Three) based on internal primary school assessment, parental choice, and school location. As there is currently only space for 85% of junior secondary students to enter senior secondary school, another allocation, based on internal school assessments and parental choice, takes place before students can enter Secondary Four. During Secondary Four and Five, students take courses in preparation for the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE). Approximately 50% of the senior secondary school curriculum focuses on the three core subjects of English, Chinese, and Mathematics. Because of keen competition in higher levels of education and the common idea that a specialized course will lead to good examination results, students normally choose either a science or a humanities track, concentrating only on relevant subjects. On the basis of their performance on the HKCEE, about one-third of the students who began Secondary Four two years earlier are provided spaces in government schools to study a two-year Secondary Six course leading to the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examinations. During these two years there is even more specialization in the subjects studied. In September 1997 the Hong Kong Government issued "The Medium of Instruction Guidance for Secondary Schools," which required local secondary schools to adopt a medium of instruction according to their students¡ è |