Upgrading the Quality of Teachers

37. Much work needs to be done in several areas to complement current education reforms and ensure that childhood, primary and secondary education is of good quality. To start with, we need to upgrade the quality of teachers. Many teachers in Hong Kong have a strong sense of mission. For years they have set admirable personal examples for their students. In so doing they have cultivated a promising younger generation for Hong Kong. Efforts should be made in two aspects to create the necessary conditions that will enable teachers at all levels to perform their best.

38. First, teachers must be given ample room to balance work, rest, learning and family life. From the last school year, an annual provision of $500 million has been shared among all public schools to create a better environment for teachers. Many schools have spent their allocation on increasing staff and purchasing services that reduce teacher workload. In the coming year, this allocation for secondary schools will increase by 50%. For instance, a secondary school with 18 classes will have its share of funding increased from $300,000 to $450,000. In primary schools, we will strengthen student counselling services by allowing schools to employ a counselling teacher or to provide social work service to help student development. To complement curriculum reform, Curriculum Officer posts will be created in stages to lead internal curriculum development.

39. Second, resources will be provided to encourage teachers to further their studies. With a view to upgrading the professional standard of all teachers, we will explore ways to enhance the professional development of serving teachers, provide extra support for new teachers, and strengthen co-operation and communication among teachers.

40. The qualifications of primary school teachers have improved considerably in recent years. The ratio of graduate posts has surged from 4.8% in 1997-1998 to 35% this year. From 2005 onwards, all graduates of the Hong Kong Institute of Education will be degree holders. For early childhood education, all newly-appointed kindergarten teachers will need five passes in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination, including Chinese and English, starting from this school year. From the 2003-2004 school year, all newly-appointed kindergarten teachers will be required to hold a pre-service kindergarten teachers qualification. To encourage kindergartens to recruit more qualified teachers, we will again raise subsidy levels for kindergartens in the coming year. For example, a group of 30 kindergarten students currently attracts a maximum subsidy of $41,000. If the kindergarten employed only qualified teachers, the subsidy would increase to $62,600.