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Following is a question by the Hon Cyd Ho and a written reply by the Acting Secretary for Education, Mr Kenneth Chen, in the Legislative Council today (July 8):
Question:
Under the new senior secondary academic structure to be implemented in September of this year, the Government will provide 12 years of education, including six-year primary, three-year junior secondary and three-year senior secondary education for students with intellectual disability (ˇ§ID studentsˇ¨). Since the authorities have set the age for ID students to leave school at 18, students who start their education later than usual and those who have learning difficulties might not be able to complete their secondary school education. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) given that it is stipulated in both the Code of Aid for Special Schools and the Code of Aid for Aided Schools that students of special schools may study in schools until they are 20 years old, why the authorities have set the age for ID students to leave school at 18 under the new senior secondary academic structure; whether they have assessed if this arrangement has violated these Codes; if such an assessment has been made, of the outcome;
(b) why it is stipulated in the above Codes that students of special schools may only study in schools until they are 20 years old, but the age cap for students of ordinary schools is not stipulated in these Codes; whether it has assessed if the stipulation of the age cap has violated the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (Cap. 487); if the assessment outcome is in the affirmative, whether the authorities will amend such Codes, and of the details of the amendments; if the assessment outcome is in the negative, the reasons for that; and
(c) whether the authorities will, under the new senior secondary academic structure, offer assistance in matters related to the further studies of ID students who have completed senior secondary education; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
(a) According to the Code of Aid for Special Schools, if a student of a special school wishes to remain in a secondary class after the end of the school year during which he reaches his/her 20th birthday, he is required to seek the approval of the Permanent Secretary for Education. This requirement has all along been applicable to students taking the mainstream curriculum leading to the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE) in schools for children with hearing impairment (HI) and some schools for children with physical disability (PD) which offer such curriculum. Students with PD need to receive various therapies owing to their disability and hence take longer time to learn. Students with HI also take longer time to learn as they usually encounter delays in language acquisition and expression. The above arrangements allow these students a longer period of time to prepare for the HKCEE in the light of their learning needs.
As for students studying in schools for children with intellectual disability (ID schools), owing to their limitations in intellectual functioning, ID schools are offering an adapted curriculum, which differs significantly from the mainstream curriculum. During the 12 years of education, ID schools have to set learning objectives and draw up an individualized education programme for each student with intellectual disability (ID) based on his/her development and ability. Schools will review and revise the programme regularly to reflect the actual learning progress of each student with ID and to ensure that he/she will attain the academic level corresponding to his/her ability by the time he/she leaves school.
Students with ID are normally admitted to a school at the age of six and receive 12 years of education. They are pursuing an adapted curriculum provided by the school. At present, for those students with ID who have reached the age of 18 but have yet to receive 12 years of education because of late admission to school due to various reasons, the Education Bureau (EDB) approves in principle their extension of stay in the following school year.
The EDB has always been flexible in handling applications for extension of stay. In accordance with the specific mechanism, students who have reached the age of 18 can apply for extension of stay due to various justified reasons. Apart from allowing an extension of stay for students at 18 or above who are absent from school for half a school year due to health or other justifiable reasons, schools can also let students with justifiable reasons to extend their stay for one year by making full use of the vacancies in the approved classes. A number of such applications are approved each year.
At the operational level, we need to plan for the number of classes to be operated in the following school year. To this end, we ask schools to submit the number of students who are leaving school at the age of 18 and the information on those who wish to extend their stay each year. Based on the existing enrolment, the estimated number of new students and the number of school leavers, we determine the number of approved classes and handle the applications for extension of stay.
The above school leaving arrangements for students with ID have been implemented for years. The New Senior Secondary (NSS) academic structure will be introduced in all schools on a one-grade-per-year basis starting from the coming school year. Students with ID will continue to receive 12 years of education, and the established school leaving arrangements, including the flexible mechanism for handling applications for extension of stay, will still be in place.
(b) Other than the school leaving arrangements, special schools and mainstream schools also differ in various aspects. To cater for the abilities and special educational needs of their students, the curriculum, class structure, class size, manpower resources and other administrative arrangements of special schools differ significantly from those of mainstream schools. To make an isolated direct comparison between the school leaving arrangements of the two types of schools is inappropriate. As the juridical review of the school leaving arrangements for ID schools is underway, it is not appropriate for the EDB to comment whether these arrangements have violated the Code of Aid for Special Schools and the Disability Discrimination Ordinance.
(c) Under the NSS academic structure, special schools will continue to make school leaving arrangements for students approaching the leaving age so that they can receive vocational training or rehabilitation services provided by the Vocational Training Council, the Social Welfare Department or other organizations.
As students of ID schools are going to pursue the NSS (ID) curriculum tailor-made for them, we have to make reference to their expected learning outcomes upon completion of the NSS curriculum in the three core subjects, elective subjects and other learning experience. We will work collaboratively with the appropriate organizations concerned to explore opportunities for their further studies and other related matters.
Ends/Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Issued at HKT 12:38
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