The Fifteen-year Free Education Program
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Educators Push to Scrap Voucher Scheme
Members of the education sector recently signed a petition at The Hong Kong Institute of Education (HKIEd) demanding the government abolish its “problematic” voucher fund scheme and fully subsidise early childhood education. The joint statement, which won the support of major political parties, was signed on February 21 in front of 400 academics and kindergarten principals at the 15-year Free Education Forum: Implementation and Way Forward of Quality Early Childhood Education organised by HKIEd’s Centre for Childhood Research and Innovation (CCRI). Initiated by the CCRI, the Council of Non-profit Making Organizations for Pre-primary Education, and the Pacific Early Childhood Education Research Association, the joint statement was also signed by 25 other early childhood education organisations at the start of the forum. The groups said every child was entitled to quality early childhood education, which would best be provided through 15 years of free education. “We request the abolition of the current Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme and the government’s commitment to fully subsidise early childhood education,” a spokesman for the groups read in a joint statement. They also demanded that the government address the issue of full-day early education; lower child-teacher ratios; establishing a quality assurance mechanism; as well as setting up a consultative platform, and a mechanism to form policy and strategy for the development of early childhood education. Speaking at the forum’s opening ceremony, HKIEd’s President, Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, highlighted the importance of early childhood education. He said that Scandinavian countries had excelled in early childhood education because of their investment in it, adding that Macau also launched a policy of 15-years free education in 2010. “The 21st century is an era driven by knowledge and creativity. Nations around the world have invested heavily in nurturing high quality and creative talents. Nurturing talents should start from early childhood education,” he said. Forum speakers demanded that the government begin a policy of 15-years free education and abolish its voucher system, launched in 2007, which offers a school fee subsidy to kindergarten parents. Educators at the forum said the voucher scheme, aimed at boosting competition between kindergartens to improve the quality of education, had, in fact, worsened the quality of Hong Kong’s early childhood education. Kindergartens only offered what parents wanted, they said, which did not necessarily translate into good quality education. Early childhood education expert Dr Gail Yuen Wai-kwan, Assistant Professor of the Department of Education Policy and Leadership at HKIEd, said kindergartens were under pressure to get enough children to enrol, which meant they attempted to put far too much material into the courses to attract parents, and in turn put young children under pressure. Teachers also struggled with heavy workloads and high pressure, she said. The voucher subsidy is only enough to cover half-day school fees, meaning working parents with children studying in full-day classes have to pay the rest. Speaking at the forum, legislators from major political parties and chief executive election candidate Albert Ho Chun-yan all demanded the next administration fully subsidise early childhood education. However, two other candidates Henry Tang Ying-yen and Leung Chun-ying were ambivalent in their stance on the implementation of 15-years free education. The forum moderator said Tang had stated in his platform that he would enhance the voucher system. Education lawmaker Cheung Man-kwong asked the forum’s attendees not to give up their years-long fight for 15-years free education. “Hope will remain with those who fight,” he said.
Study and find schools in Macao
Macao, which can also be spelled “Macau,” is, with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People’s Republic of China. Macao is located on the western side of the Pearl River Delta across from Hong Kong, which occupies the eastern banks, and the region borders Guangdong Province to the north and the South China Sea to the east and south. A former colony of Portugal, Macao was the first and last European colony in China, first settled by Portuguese traders in the 16th century, and it remained a colony until it was ultimately handed over to the Chinese in December of 1999. Today Macao’s economy is heavily dependent on the gambling and tourism industries, and while the region is responsible for its own legal system, police force, monetary system and customs and immigration policy, it depends on China for its defense and foreign affairs—a policy known as “one country, two systems.” With a total geographic area of only 11 square miles and a population of over half a million, Macao is the most densely populated region in the world. The majority of the population, or roughly 95 percent, is ethnic Chinese, while most of the remainder is either of Portuguese descent or of mixed Portuguese/Chinese heritage, an ethnic group commonly referred to as Macanese. Nearly half of the population was born in mainland China, of whom close to 75 percent was born in Guangdong province and approximately 15 percent in Fujian. The rest of the people are native-born Macao (42%), or hail from Hong Kong (4%), the Philippines (2%) or Portugal (0.3%). Chinese, or more specifically the Cantonese dialect, and Portuguese are both considered official languages in Macao, although Chinese is most commonly spoken among the people and is used for all official matters of the state. Chinese folk religions, borrowing elements of Taoism, Buddhism and Confucianism, are the most commonly practiced religious faiths in Macao. Christianity, particularly Roman Catholicism and Protestantism, is practiced by 7% and 2% of the population respectively, and 17 percent practices the traditional Mahayana variety of Buddhism. Education in Macao Education in Macao is overseen by the Chinese government and educational leaders within the region. The education system is modeled exactly after that of the Chinese, and a fifteen-year free education is currently being offered to all Macao residents. The current system includes three distinct levels: kindergarten, primary education and secondary education. Most of the schools, in fact all but one, provide instruction and written materials in Chinese, while the lone dissenter features Portuguese instruction. Kindergarten is a three-year program that is equivalent to preschool + kindergarten in the United States and Europe. This level serves children ages 3-5, and its main purpose is to help prepare children for primary school through pre-reading classes and by teaching children how to work and play cooperatively with one another. The primary and secondary education levels in Macao each last six years, serving students between the ages of 6 and 18. Macao schools offer a broad curriculum of mathematics, science, language arts, history, geography and cultural, religious and social studies. Those who successfully complete the secondary level of education are awarded a diploma and are eligible to pursue higher education opportunities either within the Macao region or in China, opportunities which consist of both university-level and vocational education. The adult literacy rate in Macao is 93.5 percent, but most of the illiterate population is made up of seniors aged 65 and above, individuals who did not have the same educational opportunities as students enjoy today in the region.
Macau
Macau (?omén), also spelled Macao, is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China. It lies on the western side of the Pearl River Delta, bordering Guangdong province to the north and facing the South China Sea to the east and south. The territory's economy is heavily dependent on gambling and tourism but also includes manufacturing. Macau was a Portuguese colony and both the first and last European colony in China.[2][3] Portuguese traders first settled in Macau in the 16th century and subsequently administered the region until the handover on 20 December 1999. The Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration and the Basic Law of Macau stipulate that Macau operates with a high degree of autonomy until at least 2049, fifty years after the transfer. Under the policy of "one country, two systems", the PRC's Central People's Government is responsible for the territory's defense and foreign affairs, while Macau maintains its own legal system, police force, monetary system, customs policy, and immigration policy. Macau participates in many international organizations and events that do not require members to possess national sovereignty. According to The World Factbook, Macau has the second highest life expectancy in the world. Education Main article: Education in Macau File:UM Admin Building.jpg A fifteen-year free education is currently being offered to residents, that includes a three-year kindergarten, followed by a six-year primary education and a six-year secondary education. The literacy rate of the territory is 93.5%. The illiterates are mainly among the senior residents aged 65 or above; the younger generation, for example the population aged 15–29, has a literacy rate of above 99%. Currently, there is only one school in Macau where Portuguese is the medium of instruction. Macau does not have its own universal education system; non-tertiary schools follow either the British, the Chinese, or the Portuguese education system. There are currently 10 tertiary educational institutions in the region, four of them being public. In 2006, the Programme for International Student Assessment, a worldwide test of 15-year-old schoolchildren's scholastic performance coordinated by OECD, ranked Macau as the fifth and sixth in science and problem solving respectively. Nevertheless, education levels in Macau are low among high income regions. According to the 2006 by-census, among the resident population aged 14 and above, only 51.8% has a secondary education and 12.6% has a tertiary education. As prescribed by the Basic Law of Macau Chapter VI Article 121, the Government of Macau shall, on its own, formulate policies on education, including policies regarding the educational system and its administration, the language of instruction, the allocation of funds, the examination system, the recognition of educational qualifications and the system of academic awards so as to promote educational development. The government shall also in accordance with law, gradually institute a compulsory education system. Community organisations and individuals may, in accordance with law, run educational undertakings of various kinds.
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1 With the introduction of 15-year free education in Macau and several provinces in Mainland China in recent years, a heated debate has broken out in Hong Kong over the proposal of providing free pre-primary education in addition to the existing 12-year free education at primary and secondary levels.
2 The findings suggested that members of the community tended to support the implementation of 15-year free education, but several fundamental issues have been neglected by the supporting party and addressing these issues would be imperative.
3 A basic 15 years compulsory, free education, is offered to those pupils who have been enrolled at the schools which have met certain requirements stipulated by the government.