Curriculum

The primary school curriculum aims to provide a coherent and
well-balanced programme to promote all-round development. All
government and aided primary schools adopt a core curriculum including
Chinese, English, Mathematics, General Studies, Music, and Physical
Education as well as Art and Craft. From the 1998-99 school year,
Putonghua will be scheduled in the core curriculum. A syllabus for each
core subject is prepared by the CDC. The syllabuses are regularly
reviewed to meet changing educational and community needs. Recently,
the General Studies syllabus has been revised and updated following Hong
Kong's reunification with China. Other learning programmes such as civic
education, drug education, environmental education and sex education are
offered on a cross-curricular basis or as separate optional subjects.
Awareness of the benefits of the activity approach is growing, and in the
1997-98 school year, it is adopted by 464 primary schools, or 56 per cent
of the total.

Since 1994, the government has promoted the Target Oriented
Curriculum (TOC) which aims to make teaching and learning more lively
and effective by developing clear targets and stimulating approaches.
During the year, the Curriculum Development Institute (CDI) continued to
develop the TOC and to prepare for its full implementation in schools by
providing necessary resource and support services. Suggested TOC
assessment mechanism has been developed and incorporated into the
Assessment Guidelines for schools' reference and adoption. The
conceptual framework of TOC will be incorporated into the future
revision or updating of other subject syllabuses. In the 1997-98 school
year, over 680 primary schools (about 80 per cent) implemented TOC in
the core subjects of Chinese, English and Mathematics in Primary 1 to 3,
1 to 2, or 1.

The junior secondary curriculum is intended to be well-balanced and
suitable for all students, whether or not they continue formal education
beyond Secondary 3. The senior secondary curriculum aims to prepare
students for education beyond Secondary 5 as well as for work. It offers
a diverse range of subjects. Teaching syllabuses are prepared by the CDC
for 46 subjects at junior secondary and 42 at senior secondary levels.
These syllabuses are reviewed and revised as necessary to meet the
changing needs of the community. In 1997, six syllabuses at secondary
level were revised. To prepare students for future challenges, elements of
information technology and its applications were incorporated into
relevant syllabuses. A new syllabus for Putonghua has also been
developed and will be implemented from the 1998-99 school year starting
with Secondary 1 and 4. At sixth-form level, there are 20 subjects at the
AS-level and 22 at the A-level. A new AS-level subject, Electronics, was
implemented in the 1997-98 school year. The CDI also offers short
courses and seminars to help teachers implement and become familiar
with the curricula at both secondary and sixth-form levels.

For cross-curricular studies in such areas as civic education, moral
education, drug education, environmental education, sex education and
AIDS education, the CDI has provided teaching guidelines and support
materials to schools. These areas are integrated into various subjects in
the secondary curricula. Revision of the Guidelines on Sex Education was
completed with emphasis on equipping students at all levels, from
pre-primary, with the attitudes, values, skills and knowledge for resolving
sex tensions and making decisions based on informed choices.

Civic education also has an important place in the school curriculum. The
new Guidelines on Civic Education have been implemented in schools
from September 1996 to enhance students' understanding of the Basic
Law, the 'One Country, Two Systems' principle, knowledge of China and
the Chinese culture. Emphasis was also laid on promoting students'
critical thinking. To ensure the effective implementation of the guidelines,
seminars were organised and teaching kits produced. A new syllabus is
being developed for civic education at Secondary 1 to 3 to be introduced
to schools from the 1998-99 school year.

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