Information Paper
Education for New Arrival Children from Mainland China
Purpose
This paper provides an update on the provision of education and support services for new arrival children from mainland China.
Background
2. At the LegCo Panel on Education meeting held on 12 July 1996, Members were last briefed on education and support services for new arrival children. Such services are summarised in Annex I.
Developments since July 1996
Removal of age-limits on new arrival children
3. In July 1996, the condition that the additional 30 new arrival children allowed entry into Hong Kong under the increased One-way Permit daily quota should be outside the 6-14 age group was removed. Since then, the Education Department has been keeping a close watch on the number and age distribution of new arrival children with a view to planning adequate provision of school places and support services for such children.
Provision of school places
4. In planning new schools, the Education Department has taken into account the requirements arising from the influx of new arrival children. To meet the immediate demand for school places, five new primary schools are being constructed and targeted for use from the 1997-98 school year. To meet demand up to the 2001-02 school year, the department is making plans to build another five primary and fourteen secondary schools.
Placement assistance
5. A flowchart showing the placement arrangements applicable to new arrival children is at Annex II.
6. On 14 August 1996, the Education Department issued an Administration Circular "Admission of Immigrant Children from China to Schools" requesting schools to give favourable consideration to applications for school places in respect of new arrival children. Schools were reminded that such children should not be refused a place on grounds of over-age and low academic standard. A copy of the Circular is at Annex III.
7. The District Education Offices (DEO) are required to place new arrival children in schools within 21 days from the receipt of a request and where necessary, difficult cases will be handled by the Central Placement Unit in the Education Department Headquarters. Such placement assistance is also available to new arrival children aged 15 and above. So far the DEOs have successfully placed in schools all new arrival children in the age range for compulsory education in respect of whom placement assistance has been requested. In the 1995-96 school year, the DEOs successfully placed 5,378 new arrival children in schools. The corresponding number for the 1996-97 school year up to end November 1996 is 1,365.
8. Under the existing Junior Secondary Education Assessment (JSEA) System, eligible Secondary 3 leavers of JSEA participating schools will be allocated subsidised Secondary 4 places on the basis of their internal assessments and parental choice. Hence eligible new arrival children who have secured a Secondary 3 place in a JSEA participating school will be allocated a subsidised Secondary 4 place. Non-JSEA participants, including new arrival children, who are of the right age and who have attained academic standards comparable to local Secondary 3 leavers, may apply to schools direct for a Secondary 4 place. As there is now no centrally administered public examination for the purpose of allocating subsidised Secondary 4 places, it is not possible to place non-JSEA new arrival children on the basis of their performance in such examination.
Other education opportunities for new arrival children aged 15 or above
9. To broaden education opportunities for new arrival children aged 15 or above, from September 1996, the admission age to the Adult Education Course (General Background) and English Course offered by the Adult Education Section of the Education Department and courses offered by non-governmental agencies has been lowered from 18 to 15. In addition, new arrival children aged 15 or above can enrol in craft courses run by technical institutes of the Vocational Training Council.
10. Like other youngsters in Hong Kong, new arrival children may sit for the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination as private candidates if they have reached the age of 19 by 1 January in the year of the Examination.
Induction / Extension Programmes and other support services
11. To enable more new arrival children to enrol in the Induction and Extension Programmes run by non-governmental organisations, the eligibility has been extended from those who have been in the territory for not more than six months to those not more than one year. From April to December 1996, 33 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) organised 549 and 310 classes of Induction and Extension Programmes which were attended by 6,820 and 3,809 new arrival children respectively. Many Induction and Extension classes are now provided within schools for convenience of the participants.
12. To run special full-time classes for considerable periods in designated schools for new arrival children is not considered the best way to help such children integrate into the local community and local education system. Such schools and classes may develop into "special" schools and "special" groups of new arrival students inside schools, defeating the purpose of early integration.
13. To support the teaching of English to new arrival children, the Education Department has recently issued to all schools a handbook entitled "English language for Children Recently Arriving in Hong Kong from Various Parts of China" which recommends a framework of teaching contents and strategies. Also, the department will soon distribute an English language self-learning package to all primary schools and NGOs offering Induction / Extension Programmes to enable new arrival children to improve their English language skills on their own.
Publicity
14. From November 1996, an improved version of the information leaflet on the local school system and education assistance for new arrival children (with a more user-friendly self-addressed business reply slip) has been made available at Lo Wu immigration checkpoints, DEOs and District Offices. A copy of the revised leaflet is at Annex IV. In addition to the Induction and Extension Programmes, placement assistance has also been publicised in radio announcements in both Cantonese and Putonghua.
Further service enhancement
15. Following a review, we are considering ways to further enhance support services for new arrival children to help them integrate into the local education system as early as possible. We will announce the new measures after finalising the details and subject to securing the necessary resources in the context of the draft 1997-98 estimates.
Education Department
January 1997
Annex I
A Summary of Education and Support Services for New Arrival Children Referred to in LegCo Paper No. PL 359/95-96 dated December 1995 and LegCo Paper No. CB(1) 1816/95-96 dated July 1996
- District Education Officers will arrange placement for new arrival children into appropriate schools in the district where they are residing or in another district if there is no vacancy.
- Every effort will be made to find suitable places for those over the age of 15 in ordinary schools. Failing that, they will be encouraged to attend evening schools or adult education classes.
- Since April 1995, a 60-hour Induction Programme has been implemented to help new arrival children aged 6 to 15 to adapt to local social and school environment.
- Since October 1995, a 60-hour Extension English Programme has been introduced to help new arrival children aged 9 to 15 to improve their standard of English.
- To help teachers and tutors teach the English subject to new arrival children, a curriculum guide was issued to all schools in September 1995 to provide a framework of teaching contents and strategies.
- A wide range of support and remedial services are available in schools for new arrival children with special education needs such as education and personal guidance services; remedial teaching in English, Chinese and Mathematics.
- For children who have more severe learning or adjustment difficulties, a spectrum of intensive remedial services as well as other assessment and supportive services are provided. Schools are informed of these services through the circular on Helping Immigrant Children from China issued in August 1995.
- A Central Placement Unit has been set up in February 1996 to handle difficult placement cases.
- From April 1996 onwards, information leaflets with a pre-paid reply slip have been distributed at Lo Wu checkpoints, District Education Offices(DEO) and District Offices to enable parents of new arrival children to request education assistance for their children.
issued to all schools in September 1995 to provide a framework of teaching contents and strategies.
- A wide range of support and remedial services are available in schools for new arrival children with special education needs such as education and personal guidance services; remedial teaching in English, Chinese and Mathematics.
- For children who have more severe learning or adjustment difficulties, a spectrum of intensive remedial services as well as other assessment and supportive
Last Updated on 14 August 1998
