Which School?

06/08/2015

HURTS TO READ BUT A GOOD REMINDER NOT TO GO GRADES CRAZY

"... Madam Ng said that in January, just three hours after getting her results slip, her granddaughter jumped to her death.

Except for two Bs - in English and Mathematics - the student had scored distinctions for her other subjects.

The only child left a note for her parents: "Mum, I am sorry for being a disappointment. I should have done better.

"Dad, I am sorry you will not have the chance to walk me down the (church) aisle to give me away."

The child's parents used to fight over their daughter's education. The girl had been a straight-As student who attended a top school.

The mum wanted to push her to excel and her dad felt that the child should be left alone... "

What we think:
Happy families, happy children beat anything else, anytime.

She is still coming to terms with the devastating death of her teenage granddaughter, who committed su***de over scoring two Bs in her O levels. Then, three months after the 16-year-old plunged to her death, Madam Ng Siang Mui's grief-stricken and guilt-ridden daughter, who was the teen's mother, al…

06/06/2015

UK SCHOOL TO BAN HOMEWORK?

What we think:

It may improve the wellbeing of students but at what cost? It is fact that homework makes for regular practice of skills and experience. It reinforces knowledge learnt in class, and provides mini outlets for the young to deal with difficulties and obstacles. Homework provides such experiences at little cost. The only debate, we think, is how much to give, not if it should be altogether removed.

Cheltenham Ladies’ College, pictured, could introduce meditation sessions, long walks between classes and no homework as part of their plans to combat teenage mental illness.

13/05/2015

HONG KONG NO. 2 IN WORLD'S BIGGEST SCHOOL RANKINGS BY JURISDICTION; SINGAPORE TOP

'The top five places are all taken by Asian countries - Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan and Japan.

The five lowest-ranked countries are Oman in 72nd, Morocco, Honduras, South Africa and Ghana in last spot.

"If you go to an Asian classroom you'll find teachers who expect every student to succeed. There's a lot of rigour, a lot of focus and coherence...

These countries are also very good at attracting the most talented teachers in the most challenging classrooms, so that every student has access to excellent teachers." '

A global school league table based on science and maths tests puts five Asian countries at the top, with the UK in 20th and the US in 28th.

10/05/2015

Worth discussing

For more than a decade, Singapore, along with South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Finland, has been at or near the top of international leagues tables that measure children’s ability in…

30/04/2015

A PROMISING EDUCATIONAL TOOL AT REASONABLE COST, BUT LITTLE INTEREST FROM SCHOOLS

Think virtual technology that is able to bring generations of students through say, trips through a rainforest, a desert, the ocean or even the solar system, all without leaving the confines of one single classroom.

Therein lies the promise of the ImseCave, developed by researchers from The University of Hong Kong's Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering (the Department) at a relatively low set-up cost of below HK$1 million. By comparison, schools have reportedly spent that amount on iPads.

The ImseCave, for many of us laymen, is quite literally the future come alive. Remember Ironman Tony Stark's interactive 3D virtual reality technology? The Department's tech is perhaps a more basic, but no less impressive form of that. The video attached below would paint a better picture of what it is than could ever be described here.

Those interested in the ImseCave so far, we hear, include the police force, port and container operators, and airlines, mostly for training purposes.

But despite the relatively low set-up cost, and the potential benefit to thousands of generations of high school, or even primary school, students, it is surprising to learn that there has been little to no interest from these schools.

Apart from those mentioned at the start, we can think of many more academic uses for the ImseCave: dissection of animals, mixing of dangerous chemicals that cannot be done in a physical laboratory, extreme geography lessons involving steep gorges and caverns, etc.

Yet, those that see the benefits of ImseCave remain, perhaps unsurprisingly, mostly commercial entities.

If only the education sector at large could be more far-sighted in such regard.

The imseCAVE is a fully immersive and interactive virtual reality system developed by Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering, The Uni...

23/04/2015

The furore over kindergarten interviews - those dreaded sessions where toddlers mingle in a classroom sans parents, to be appraised by teachers - have reached a new level.

Such interviews, uncommon anywhere else but Hong Kong in its magnitude, have attracted much criticism for betraying the essence of childhood that should ideally be unencumbered by any race to be the fittest.

In spite of this, parents have been sending their wee ones, even as they can barely walk, to interview preparatory classes so that they can impress teacher-appraisers. The fact is many have given in quietly to a if-you-can't-fight-it-join-it mindset.

Recently though, all this subtlety has like a ripening zit burst into public consciousness, with a tuition agency resorting to shock advertising to attract business for its prep classes for kindergarten applicants. On its poster, a teary-eyed girl is seen above the words "You don't like competition? Competition will find you nonetheless!"

The ad, not surprisingly, has garnered much comment, mostly repeats about how the whole phenomenon is killing childhood.

What we think:
The offending ad does nothing that many in Hong Kong are already doing anyway. Like it or not, this is a city that has always been into competition - it must have the world's lowest tax rates, best port, best airport, etc. It has the world's freest market, so why should education be immune from competing market forces? (We actually think it should be but that's a story for another day.)

Already, private hospitals charge an arm and a leg for maternity services, based on basic demand-and-supply maths. So interview classes for toddlers is but an extension of that strain of market economics that starts before these youngsters were even born.

Back to the poster. While it is most definitely in-your-face, it is also an honest reflection of education in Hong Kong. If the community is not happy with this, as the article alludes to, then parents have to resist the temptation of sending children to such prep classes. No demand means no supply. The good thing about a free market is that one always has choices. So choose wisely.

【晴報專訊】近年幼兒面試班受家長熱捧，有補習社以訓練幼童成面試之王做招徠，廣告形容「你不愛競爭？但競爭會找上你」，附圖為一名滿眶眼淚女童，網民鬧爆廣告嚇人，剝奪孩子的快樂童年。幼師界則指，過分操練令小孩失去童真，面試隨時被扣分。有網民在fb上載一張活學教育易拉架廣告相片，宣傳幼稚園K1及小一面試班，前者對象為滿十八個月或以上的幼童，呼籲家長立即報名，讓孩子成interview（面試）之王。 ...

22/04/2015

Come 2022, students from The University of Hong Kong (HKU) might only be allowed to graduate if they have undergone mainland learning experience, the school announced recently. It's a big "if" though, with many since reacting unfavourably to the news. A rigourous consultation process will now determine how this will unfold.

What we think:
This is a global world and more often than not, every jurisdiction is opening up to foreigners with better CVs, better relevant experience. And these days, experience in mainland China, and proficiency in Mandarin, quite simply, betters a CV. And when China becomes the world's number one economy - and this is most definitely a when, not an if - that experience might even become mandatory for anyone with a modicum of ambition.

By announcing such a policy, HKU is but aiming to give its students a global competitive edge. And this is an edge that cannot be more easily obtained, such is Hong Kong's proximity to the mainland.

It is of course, the prerogative of Hong Kong students to refuse a chance like this, a chance that lies quite literally on their doorstep. But they should bear in mind that this is an chance coveted by students all over the world. And in a couple of years, when the same batch of students enter the global market, guess who's going to be missing out?

We think HKU should just go ahead and implement the scheme. What do they say again about bitter medicine?

When Tse Sau-yi received notice to spend three months teaching English in Jiangxi province back in 2007 - an opportunity the University of Hong Kong's social science faculty offered its students through its global outreach programmes - she was...

15/04/2015

Overheard: a parent was lamenting the growing need for double incomes in a city as expensive as Hong Kong, even as the need for parental oversight is ever increasing with the proliferation of violent and overtly s*xual material not just online, but in everyday advertising.

What we think:
This mother has hit the nail right on the head. All around the world from Hong Kong and Singapore to London and Paris, governments have been calling for more double incomes to boost economies. Ironically, especially in such cosmopolitan areas, Internet po*******hy continues to grow at alarming rates, and commercials and mass entertainment go on objectifying women and violence, possibly more so than ever (think super successful movies, TV programmes and games like Fast n Furious, Game of Thrones, and Grand Theft Auto).

Singapore must be complimented for banning pornographic sites and Russia have taken similar measures. Recent protests have also taken place in Hong Kong and elsewhere against making women s*x objects. Still, we think that such gallant measures are but fingers grasping futilely at the flowing sands of commercialism; s*x and violence sell and free markets like Hong Kong will continue to carry them.

The key, as always, lies with good and proper upbringing and that starts with us as parents. The buck quite simply, starts and stops there. Granted, many households need both parents to work to maintain a certain standard of life. But perhaps in the absence of a better alternative, more governments can be called on to better regulate online and advertising businesses.

Hong Kong prides itself on being a free market, but that sometimes isn't quite that much of a good thing.

17/03/2015

Some thoughts on the current debacle unravelling at the Canadian International School of Hong Kong.

Briefly, the principal of the primary section Mr Dylan Hughes has been suspended, and the vice-principal Ms Kathy Nutting reportedly sacked for unilaterally backing him in public. It has also been said that many teachers might leave voluntarily in a similar show of support. Mr Hughes was reportedly sidelined so that he would not reveal internal problems to the Council of International Schools, as the body evaluates the school for international accreditation, a prestigious next step for international schools. The Council has since postponed the evaluation (http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=21&art_id=155142&sid=44063978&con_type=1&d_str=20150313&isSearch=1&sear_year=2015).

These follow months of uncertainty surrounding school governance, during which the head of the school has been replaced. Incidentally, Mr Hughes and Ms Nutting are still officially listed as staff (http://www.cdnis.edu.hk/teaching-staff.html).

What we think:
Much has been said on the topic and it is clear that many parents and teachers are disgruntled over the way the school is being run.

This cannot be easily dismissed, not least because this is one of the most popular international schools in Hong Kong, a city home to around 300,000 Canadians - more than the population of certain cities in Canada itself. (Many had left fearing the future prior to the 1997 handover to Beijing, but returned later Canadian passport in hand.)

That said, the school - any school of this strength and history - is an institution that will always be bigger than any of its parts. What is happening there is unfortunate, and unsavoury even, and in the short term, it will suffer a reputation backlash.

But parents who are worried of a consequential dip in education quality should not be too perturbed. Assuming that the school implements stringent teaching recruitment guidelines, as is demanded of an institution of its standing, it is almost certain that teaching staff will be more than well qualified for the job.

This is but a blip in the history of the school, not its Waterloo.

Report card for Canadian school left blank - The Standard

11/03/2015

Bio sciences and business have attracted more university freshmen than other subjects in the past seven years, in the UK at least, which might well be a reflection of global trends.

The least popular courses? Joint honours degrees (down 45 per cent), followed by architecture, building and planning (down 21 per cent) and languages (down 6 per cent).

What we think:
It is ironic that joint degrees and languages are languishing in spite of overwhelming globalization. We would have thought that a joint honours degree in business and language would do graduates a lot of good in today's cross-border business environment.

- http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/news/surges-and-falls-in-demand-for-courses/2018596.article

02/03/2015

Have you ever wondered if your child is indeed smarter than you, as you have long suspected?

Here is one plausible explanation, among other key observations in this extremely interesting piece of news -
"Today we have a wider range of cognitive problems we can solve than people in 1900. That's only because society asks us to solve a wider range of cognitive problems. People in 1900 had minds that were perfectly adequate for remembering first cousins once removed, they were perfectly adequate for ploughing a farm, they were perfectly adequate for making change in a store. No-one asked them to do tertiary education.

"It's like a weightlifter and swimmer. They may have the same muscles when they were fertilised in the womb, but they would have different muscles at autopsy, wouldn't they? So today at autopsy, certain portions of our brain, for example those which use logic and abstraction, would have been exercised more and look differently. Other portions of the brain would have shrivelled a bit."

What is behind the so-called Flynn Effect - the pattern of rising IQ scores around the world?

20/02/2015

We wish all a very Delightful and Prosperous Lunar New Year, and may all students enjoy learning in this Year of the Goat!