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The Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Mr Jia Qinglin, accompanied by the Vice-Minister of Education, Mr Yuan Guiren, and the Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Chen Zuoer, today (December 24) met with the Secretary for Education, Mr Michael Suen, and the 800-strong "Delegation of the Hong Kong Students National Education Programme Series" at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing .
Mr Jia said, "I would like to express my sincere gratitude towards the different sectors of Hong Kong for rendering their long-term support for the national education of youth in Hong Kong. Their work has borne fruit. Young people are the future of the society. I believe the various sectors in Hong Kong will continue to render their strong support towards the work of national education and strive for better results."
A total of 190 senior secondary school students and teachers, who participated in the Award Scheme for Hong Kong Student Leaders: National Education Course organised by the Education Bureau (EDB), are part of the delegation visiting Beijing. They form the core of the delegation's 12 sub-groups. The visit aims to provide opportunities for Hong Kong students to enhance their knowledge of the Mainland through personal experience.
The Vice-Minister of Education, Mr Yuan Guiren, and the head of Renmin University of China, Mr Ji Baocheng, officiated at the opening ceremony of the National Education Course at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing today.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Mr Suen pointed out that the rapid development of the Mainland has brought new opportunities and challenges to Hong Kong. He encouraged Hong Kong students to strive to equip themselves with knowledge and skills so as to make a contribution to the future development of the motherland.
Mr Suen said: "We will pursue building up a closer partnership with our Mainland counterparts to organise various kinds of exchange activities in order to enhance our youngsters' knowledge of the motherland."
He expressed his gratitude to the Ministry of Education, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR and Renmin University of China for designing a comprehensive course for Hong Kong students to broaden their knowledge of the motherland.
In the 2007 Policy Address, the Chief Executive laid down a clear directive that "the Government will make every effort to promote national education and foster students and teachers' understanding of the Mainland."
In this regard, the EDB has coordinated the efforts of various community sectors and Government departments in organising this large-scale students' exchange delegation to the Mainland. The EDB will also make good use of the opportunity generated by the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games to strengthen Hong Kong studentsˇ¦recognition of their national identity.
Participants at the current National Education Course in Beijing will attend in-depth studies, organised by the Renmin University of China, on three main themes: history, culture, and education and sports. Topics on politics, economics, technology and the "Basic Law" and "One Country, Two Systems" in Hong Kong will also be covered.
While in Beijing, course participants will also take part in various study tours. These include a visit to China's manned space flight technology centre to talk to scientists and astronauts, a visit to watch the flag-raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square, and visits to sites and facilities for the Olympic Games as well as renowned universities including Tsinghua University and Peking University.
Ends/Monday, December 24, 2007
Issued at HKT 19:27
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