Following is a question by the Hon Ginny Man and a written reply by the Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, in the Legislative Council today (February 4):
      
Question:

     The Education Bureau (EDB) announced in December 2025 the launch of the AI for Empowering Learning and Teaching Funding Programme (the Funding Programme) to support primary and secondary schools in utilising artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance learning and teaching effectiveness. Successful school applicants will receive one-off funding of $500,000 to purchase/subscribe to/lease AI-powered devices/services that facilitate AI-assisted teaching, and to subsidise students' participation in activities that enhance their AI literacy and skills. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) given that in the Guidelines on the Use of Funding on AI for Empowering Learning and Teaching Funding Programme published by the EDB, subsidising teachers to enrol in AI-related courses is listed as an example of improper use of the funding, of the rationale behind it;

(2) given that the EDB launched in 2025 the AI for Science Education Funding Programme to arrange for secondary school science teachers to enrol in short courses on AI, but primary school teachers were not included in the programme, whether the authorities have launched similar programmes to subsidise primary school teachers to enrol in AI training courses; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(3) given that some members of the education sector consider that the Funding Programme only mentions the objective of "enhancing students' AI literacy and skills", but does not provide clear teaching guidelines, whether the authorities will specify a teaching framework for schools to follow; if so, of the details; and

(4) as regards the teaching of AI literacy and skills, whether the authorities will provide systematic teaching resources to support teachers and schools, such as platforms for sharing teaching resources; if so, of the details?

Reply:
      
President,

     As announced in the 2025 Policy Address, $2 billion has been set aside in the Quality Education Fund (QEF) to take forward the strategic measures proposed by the Steering Committee on Strategic Development of Digital Education (Steering Committee) for promoting digital education in primary and secondary schools, which cover optimising curricula, strengthening training for teachers, optimising digital infrastructure, and providing resource support for schools. With an allocation of approximately $500 million from the above funding earmarked, the AI for Empowering Learning and Teaching Funding Programme (the Funding Programme) launched by the Education Bureau (EDB) in late 2025 disburses a one-off funding of $500,000 to each successful publicly-funded school applicant, so as to support their promotion of digital education according to their specific circumstances and school-based advantages. This serves as a core driving force for the overall digital transformation in primary and secondary schools.

     The reply to the question raised by the Hon Ginny Man is as follows:

     Each programme under the QEF has its designated purposes. Successful school applicants are required to use the funding for the specific areas of individual education programmes. Schools' applications are processed in accordance with the established mechanism under the Funding Programme, which mainly subsidises schools to procure artificial intelligence (AI) tools and resources (including purchase of hardware and software, as well as subscriptions to platforms and school-based AI application solutions), and subsidises students to participate in activities for AI literacy enhancement. The main purpose of the Funding Programme is to support schools in initiating or promoting school-based education programmes related to AI.

(1) Successful school applicants are required to fulfil the prescribed requirements under the Funding Programme, such as incorporating the "Development of AI-empowered Education" into the School Development Plan and/or Annual School Plan, and implementing AI-‍assisted teaching in different subjects/curriculum areas with development of teaching examples or learning and teaching resources. The designated purposes of the funding approved and the requirements prescribed for the participating schools under the Funding Programme do not include supporting teachers to enrol in training courses. As such, "subsidising teachers to enrol in AI-related courses" is listed as an example of improper use of the funding. This has been specified in the relevant circular memorandum and explained in detail to the school personnel during the briefing sessions.

(2) The EDB attaches equal importance to science education in primary and secondary schools. The EDB has stepped up efforts to integrate learning elements of innovation and digital education and enhance related professional training for teachers.

     Launched with the funding support from the QEF in the 2024/25 school year, the AI for Science Education Funding Programme was for pilot implementation in Junior Secondary Science. Successful school applicants may use the funding to enrol science teachers in short courses (including seminars and workshops) on AI-assisted teaching offered by tertiary institutions or related professional bodies, with a view to supporting the schools in taking forward AI-assisted teaching.

     As for Primary Science, since the introduction of this new subject, the EDB has been offering courses, such as Professional Teacher Training Series for Introduction of Primary Science, and Science and Technology Education Series at Primary Level, to share and consolidate teaching exemplars with teachers through sharing sessions, classroom demonstrations, workshops, etc. The sharing covers the enhancement of teaching effectiveness by, among others, using AI to generate science conceptual diagrams and employing computer simulations, as well as the ways to aid science learning, such as conducting inquiry activities with the use of microcontrollers and accessing the Primary Science Online Learning Platform, so as to progressively enhance the professional competence of primary teachers in using AI and e-tools to assist teaching. These teacher training courses are designed according to the curriculum by the EDB, and will be refined with reference to participants' feedback. At present, the EDB has no plans to further subsidise primary teachers to enrol in training courses offered by external organisations.

(3) The Blueprint for Digital Education Development in Primary and Secondary Schools, which is being formulated by the EDB, is expected to be released within this year. The Blueprint will map out the directions and strategies for implementing digital education, with a focus on enhancing the AI literacy and skills of students. Meanwhile, the EDB is also formulating an AI literacy learning framework and working on illustrations of the implementation principles and good practices for AI-‍assisted teaching in primary and secondary levels for schools' reference and teachers to follow. The EDB will continue to listen to the views of the Steering Committee and other stakeholders, as well as refine the draft Blueprint and relevant documents, with a view to supporting the implementation of digital education in schools to achieve the objective of using AI to empower education.

(4) The EDB is committed to providing schools with quality teaching materials, including learning and teaching resources for different subjects, covering the Key Learning Areas and cross-disciplinary subjects or areas of the school curriculum. In view of the trend of digital education development, the EDB Educational Multimedia platform has launched for some of its short videos a pilot "AI-assisted teaching" function, which will undergo continuous development and optimisation according to feedback. The EDB, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Education City (HKEdCity), has also been providing one-stop services on e-learning, e-reading and e-assessment tailored to the needs of local schools, including platforms such as the eRead Scheme and the Student Assessment Repository (STAR), to tie in with the provision of the online learning platform and courses related to AI and computational thinking for students. In addition, the HKEdCity will continue to enhance relevant e-learning resources and platforms with the support of technology enterprises to further achieve the aim of sharing resources.

Ends/Wednesday, February 4, 2026
Issued at HKT 12:15

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