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Following is a question by Dr Hon Lam Tai-fai and a reply by the Secretary for Education, Mr Eddie Ng Hak-kim, in the Legislative Council today (October 23):
Question:
It has been reported that, early this month, a large number of parents of cross-boundary students queued up overnight for admission application forms outside the kindergartens in districts such as the North District and Tuen Mun, etc. which gave rise to a phenomenon of intermediaries queuing on behalf of the parents. Some mainland parents criticised the kindergartens concerned for the improper arrangements, while local parents marched to protest about cross-boundary students affecting the opportunities of local children to study in kindergartens close to their homes. Moreover, owing to the "Year of the Dragon" effect, the number of children born in Hong Kong in 2012 is higher than those in other years. As such children will apply in the next year for kindergarten places in the year after next, some parents in Hong Kong are worried that the competition for kindergarten places next year will be even more intense than this year. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the respective numbers of local and international kindergartens in each of the past five years, broken down by District Council district, the respective numbers of places in Nursery, Lower and Upper classes provided by those kindergartens, as well as the respective numbers of cross-boundary students who applied for and were admitted to those kindergartens;
(b) whether it has projected the demand for kindergarten places in Hong Kong in the coming five years and, among such places, the number of those which will be taken up by cross-boundary students; if it has, of the relevant figures and the details of the method adopted for the projection; if not, the reasons for that; and
(c) given that the Secretary for Education said publicly on October 7 this year that kindergartens could use vacant classrooms to flexibly provide places for different classes, of the respective numbers, according to the Government's estimation, of kindergartens in the North District, Tuen Mun, Yuen Long and Tai Po which can provide additional places through this method in the 2014-2015 school year, as well as the respective numbers of places to be flexibly provided in each of these districts through using vacant classrooms; the respective numbers of cross-boundary students which the authorities expect to be admitted by the kindergartens in these districts in the 2014-2015 school year ?
Reply:
President,
Our reply to the question raised by Dr Hon Lam is as follows:
(a) Distribution of local and non-local kindergarten (KG) by district, distribution of students and places in local and non-local KG by district and by class level, as well as distribution of cross-boundary KG students by district for the past five years, i.e. 2008/09 to 2012/13 school years, are set out at Annexes 1, 2 and 3 respectively.
KGs, including KG-cum-child care centres, in Hong Kong are all privately-run. It is up to the parents to choose whether to apply for one or more KGs suitable for their children with regard to their needs. As for student admission, it is at the discretion of individual KGs. Hence, the Education Bureau (EDB) does not have statistics on the number of KG applicants (including the number of cross-boundary applicants).
(b) In projecting the overall demand of KG places in Hong Kong, we will take into account factors including:
(1) the number of students (including cross-boundary students) already in KGs;
(2) the projected school age population, which is compiled based on the population projections and the latest demographic changes (including the number of newly-arrived children from the Mainland) as updated by the Census and Statistics Department from time to time;
(3) the KG attendance rates for children of different age groups and the latest trend; and
(4) the estimated number of cross-boundary students.
Among the above factors, the population projections are based on a number of factors and assumptions. Of particular relevance is that related to babies born in Hong Kong to Mainland women. However, it is difficult to predict with accuracy the actual numbers of such babies who would settle in Hong Kong and if so, when. As for the number of cross-boundary students, it is subject to year-on-year changes depending on family factors, distribution of their places of residence, adjustment of relevant policies, etc. Therefore, it is difficult to make an accurate projection. For these reasons, we will only estimate the number of KG students for the coming year in the annual controlling officer's report. As for the long-term projection of the overall demand of KG places, we consider it only suitable for internal reference.
In view of the public concern about KG places recently, we have made an estimation regarding the overall demand of KG places for the 2014/15 school year (about 168 000) and the number of students aged three to five (including cross-boundary students) for the 2014/15 school year in the four districts close to the boundary control points earlier than usual (Annex 4). In estimating the demand, we have made reference to the actual number of KG students in the 2012/13 school year and taken into account the number of cross-boundary students already attending KGs in Hong Kong and the year-on-year progression of these students. Later this year, when we get hold of the actual number of KG students in the 2013/14 school year, we will be able to estimate more accurately the overall demand of KG places for 2014/15.
(c) We will closely monitor the supply and demand of KG places in various districts. When needs for additional school places are identified, we will request KGs to optimise their campus capacities for providing more classrooms and encourage them to admit more students by making full use of their registered classrooms such as re-commissioning vacant classrooms. We will also approach school sponsoring bodies and encourage them to expand or open KGs in districts with a high demand for school places. Some school sponsoring bodies have responded positively to the EDB's appeal and already decided to open new KGs in the North District in the 2014/15 school year.
In the 2012/13 school year, there were about 5 200 school places available in vacant classrooms, involving about 60 KGs, in Tuen Mun, the North District, Tai Po and Yuen Long. Details are given in Annex 5. Later this year, when we get hold of the actual number of KG students and the number of school places for the 2013/14 school year, we will be in a better position to make a more accurate estimation on the number of vacant classrooms and school places available in the 2014/15 school year.
The estimated numbers of students aged three to five (including cross-boundary students) in the North District, Tuen Mun, Yuen Long and Tai Po for the 2014/15 school year are set out at Annex 4. With the announcement by the EDB of the six special measures relating to admission of KG students in Tai Po and North District for 2014/15, it is difficult for us to estimate at this stage the number of cross-boundary students to be admitted to KGs in Hong Kong.
Ends/Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Issued at HKT 15:53
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