Stakeholder Monitoring Survey on Education Reform and Major Education Initiatives
Final Report
Executive Summary
Introduction
1. To collect systematically feedback from different stakeholders on the education reform and major education initiatives over time, the Education Bureau has commissioned the Policy 21 Limited to conduct a Stakeholder Monitoring Survey during the period from December 2009 to July 2010. The previous rounds of surveys were conducted in 2004 and 2006. The study covers 8 groups of stakeholders, namely, school sponsoring bodies (SSB), school management committees (SMC)1, principals, teachers, students, parents, early childhood educators and teacher educators. It focuses on 5 major areas of education reform and major education initiatives, namely learning and teaching, support for schools, quality assurance, diversity in curriculum and overall students’ learning outcomes. In addition, views of the general public were also gathered through the 2010 Thematic Household Survey commissioned by the Census & Statistics Department 2.
2. Information was collected from the respondents through the use of a self- administered questionnaire mailed to the target respondents, follow-up telephone reminders and, where appropriate, field visits to the schools concerned. The survey includes enumeration of all SSB, SMC, school principals, early childhood educators and teacher educators, and a two-stage stratified random sample of 115 ordinary primary, 95 ordinary secondary and 19 special schools. For the second stage sampling, 100% of teachers, 16.7% of students in Primary 4 – 6 in ordinary primary and special schools, 8.3% of students in Secondary 1 – 7 in ordinary secondary schools, parents of 8.3% of students in Primary 1 – Secondary 7 in ordinary schools and primary special schools and parents of 16.7% of students in secondary special schools were randomly chosen.
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1 In this Survey, school management committees (SMC) refer to all incorporated management committees and school management committees.
2 The Education Bureau (EDB) requested the Census & Statistics Department to commission the Thematic Household Survey (THS) in 2004, 2006 and 2010 to collect information on the public’s perception on education reform and major education initiatives. THS focused on the same major areas of education reform and major education initiatives as the Survey on the eight groups of stakeholders, with the only exclusion of students’
learning outcomes, and were conducted by face-to-face interview. In 2010, a total of 8 011 households had been successfully enumerated out of a total of 10 665 households sampled, constituting an overall response rate of 75.1%. The target respondents within the sampled household were household members who were Hong Kong residents and aged 18 or above, were randomly selected by using the Kish Grid method, or were working in education industry during the time of enumeration. A total of 5 600 500 persons were projected in this survey at the time of enumeration. . The main fieldwork was conducted between 6th March 2010 and 30th April 2010.
Before tabulation and analysis, data collected from the survey were grossed up in accordance with the distribution of the Hong Kong Resident Population aged 18.
3. This report is based on questionnaires completed by nearly 80% of early childhood educators, over 70% of school principals, teachers, students and parents sampled, over 60% of SSB and SMC, and about 30% of teacher educators. It is believed that the low response rate of the teacher educators is due to a number of factors. For instance, some teacher educators are too busy to respond, while some may not fully agree with the approach adopted in the survey or do not consider the survey is significant enough to warrant their attention. Given that participation in the survey entirely voluntary, the decision of individual target respondents to respond or not to respond should be respected. Thus, caution should be taken in interpreting the survey findings, noting that information gathered in the survey only represents those who have responded in the survey, especially views from the teacher educators. Furthermore, the survey is primarily an opinion survey and it is not designed to gather information on the reasons why different groups of stakeholders have different views and perspectives.
Learning and teaching
New senior secondary curriculum
4. More than half of SSB, SMC, principals and teachers of secondary schools, students of secondary schools and their parents, parents of students of primary schools, teacher educators and the general public (58% - 100%) agreed that the change in the New Senior Secondary curriculum would help to develop the potential of individual students. More than half of SSB, SMC, principals of secondary schools, students of secondary schools and their parents, teacher educators and the general public (55% - 86%) also agreed that the change in the New Academic Structure for Senior Secondary Education and Higher Education would result in a smoother articulation to different pathways for students to study and work and to succeed in life.
5. In addition, most of SSB, SMC, principals and teachers of secondary schools, students of secondary schools and their parents, parents of students of primary schools, teacher educators and the general public agreed that students could develop independent learning capability, critical thinking skills, multi-perspective taking and broad-based knowledge through Liberal Studies (63% - 100%) and that Applied Learning courses should be offered to senior secondary students to cater for their diverse needs, interests and abilities (72% - 100%).
6. More than half of the stakeholders agreed that diversified modes of assessment should be used to help assess accurately the performance and abilities of students in various aspects of learning (68% - 100%), that School-based Assessment, as part of the ongoing learning and teaching activities, helped to give a more comprehensive appraisal of students’
abilities (63% - 97%), and that the Student Learning Profile, which demonstrated students’
personal qualities and competence, provided useful information for university admission processes (69% - 100%)..
7. Furthermore, well over half of SSB, SMC, principals and teachers of secondary schools, students of ordinary secondary schools, and parents, and the general public (65% - 92%) agreed that the change that students were no longer streamed into Arts, Science, and Commerce broadened students’ horizons.
Learning goals
8. More than half of principals of ordinary schools (58% - 91%) were highly confident that students of their schools were able to “lead a healthy lifestyle and develop an interest in and appreciation of aesthetic and physical activities” (71% – 82%), “possess a broad knowledge base through learning in the eight Key Learning Areas” (62% - 88%), “develop a habit of reading independently” (58% - 89%), “engage in discussion actively and confidently in Cantonese” (90% - 91%), “develop creative thinking and master independent learning skills” (65% - 77%), “understand national identity and committed to contributing to nation/
society” (63% - 70%), “show concern for the well-being of family, society and nation” (75%) and “recognize roles and responsibilities in family, society and nation” (77%-81%). The percentages of principals of special schools (0% - 63%) holding similar views were much lower.
9. A much lower percentage of principals of ordinary schools (42% - 67%) were highly confident that students of their schools were able to “engage in discussion actively and confidently in English or Putonghua”. The percentages of principals of special schools (0% - 46%) holding similar views were much lower.
10. In general, a higher proportion of principals of ordinary schools in 2009/10 (42% - 91%) were highly confident that their students could attain the various learning goals, as compared with those in 2003/04 (15% - 88%) and 2005/06 (23% - 85%), with the exception of “develop(ing) habit of reading independently” for principals of ordinary secondary schools and “engag(ing) in discussion actively in Putonghua” for principals of special schools.
Similarly, a higher proportion of principals of special schools in 2009/10 (6% - 63%) were highly confident that their students could attain the various learning goals, as compared with those in 2005/06 (9% - 45%), with the exception of “engag(ing) in discussion actively in Putonghua”.
11. The percentages of teachers holding similar views were much lower. In general, a higher proportion of teachers in 2009/10 (21% - 71%) was highly confident that their students could attain the various learning goals, as compared with those in 2003/04 (9% - 67%) and 2005/06 (16% - 60%). On the other hand, the proportions of teachers of special schools holding similar views were lower (7% - 49% for special primary schools; 8% - 53% for special secondary schools).
Four key tasks
12. Over 70% of stakeholders agreed that “Information Technology for Interactive Learning helps to improve students’ attitude towards proper use of information” (76% - 99%),
“Project Learning helps students to integrate and apply their knowledge within and across Key Learning Area” (78% - 100%), “Project Learning helps students to develop their independent learning capabilities” (78% - 100%), “Reading to Learn helps students to develop interest in learning” (79% - 100%), “Reading to Learn helps to motivate students to acquire knowledge on their own” (78% - 100%), “Reading to Learn helps students to widen their knowledge base” (84% - 100%), “National Education in school helps to enhance students’ sense of pride of being Chinese” (74% - 99%) and “National Education in school helps to enhance students’ knowledge and understanding of motherland” (80% - 100%). With the exception of principals of special schools (67%) and general public (68%), over 70% of
stakeholders agreed that “National Education in school helps to enhance students’ sense of commitment for the betterment of the motherland” (67% - 96%).
13. Over half of the students agreed with the five statements related to the four key tasks.
In general, the percentages for students of primary schools were higher than those of secondary schools with the exception of “the use of Information Technology has helped to improve my competency in gaining access to and processing information” and “I am able to use IT for collaborative learning and communication” in special schools..
Five essential learning experiences
14. For principals of ordinary schools, over 70% of them were highly confident that every student of their schools would have acquired the essential learning experiences in moral and civic education (85% - 92%), intellectual development (73% - 90%), community service (75% - 84%) and physical and aesthetic development (72% - 82%), except for career-related experiences (30% - 54%) . For principals of special schools, on the other hand, the percentages were lower than those of ordinary schools except career-related experiences (52%) and physical & aesthetic development (74%).
15. For teachers, a lower proportion of them, as compared with principals, were highly confident that every student of their schools would have acquired the essential learning experiences in moral and civic education (43% - 59%), intellectual development (38% - 65%), community service (41% - 53%), physical and aesthetic development (49% - 67%) and career-related experiences (31% - 38%) except intellectual development for teachers of special primary schools (40%) and career-related experiences for teachers of ordinary secondary schools (31%).
16. Comparing the survey findings in 2005/06 (21% - 84%) and 2003/04 (15% - 88%), a higher proportion of principals and teachers of both ordinary and special schools in 2009/10 (30% - 92%) were highly confident that every student of their schools would have acquired the essential learning experiences in intellectual development, community service, physical and aesthetic development and career-related experiences.
Students’ participation in co-curricular or life-wide learning activities
17. The majority of students of ordinary primary schools and special primary schools (70% - 73%) indicated that they actively participated in co-curricular or life-wide learning activities. The proportions were lower for students of ordinary secondary schools (62%) and special secondary schools (38%). The average number of activities participated by students who had participated in extra-curricular activities was 3.1, 4.2, 4.3 and 5.0 for students of ordinary secondary schools, ordinary primary schools, secondary special schools and primary special schools respectively. The majority of students participated in at least one activity. The more common activities participated in were competitions, visits / excursions and interest groups.
Generic skills
18. Over 90% of principals (90% - 99%) considered developing students’ critical thinking ability, creativity and communication skills were their schools’ top priorities. The percentages of teachers (82% - 97%) holding similar views were lower. Compared with the survey findings in 2003/04 (61% - 87%) and in 2005/06 (75% - 94%), the proportions of principals and teachers of ordinary schools who agreed that developing students’ critical thinking ability, creativity and communication skills were their schools’ top priorities were higher in 2009/10 (82% - 99%) except for the percentages of principals of ordinary schools on students’ creativity. For special schools, the proportions of principals and teachers in 2009/10 were higher than those in 2005/06 except for the percentage of principals on students’
communication skills.
Information technology (IT) in education
19. The majority of SSB, SMC, principals, teachers, parents, teacher educators and the general public (77% - 100%) considered that students were able to use IT for collaborative learning and communication.
20. The majority of SSB, SMC, principals, teachers, parents, teacher educators and the general public (77% - 100%) considered that teachers were able to integrate IT in the learning and teaching process. The percentages for stakeholders holding similar views in 2009/10 were higher than those in 2005/06 other than for principals of special schools.
Medium of Instruction (MOI) in education
21. Most of the SMC, principals, teachers and parents of ordinary secondary schools, SSB, teacher educators, and the general public considered that the fine-tuned MOI arrangements facilitated secondary schools to devise school-based language policies to meet the different needs of students (62% - 92%).
22. Well over half of the stakeholders considered that the fine-tuned MOI arrangements enabled students to build up stronger confidence and motivation in learning English through greater opportunities to expose to and to use English in content subjects (60% - 90%).
23. Well over half of the SMC, principals and teacher of secondary schools, SSB, and teacher educators considered the six-year planning cycle provided schools a stable environment to develop teaching and learning (60% - 77%).
Whole-school approach
24. A majority of SSB, SMC, principals, teachers of ordinary schools and teacher educators (72% - 96%) considered that the whole-school approach enhanced the effectiveness of catering for students with special educational needs.
25. In addition, the majority of SSB, SMC, principals, and teachers of ordinary schools (83% - 98%) indicated that in adopting the whole-school approach, their schools had practised such measures as curriculum/ assessment accommodation, differential teaching strategies or peer support programmes, in order to enhance learning and attainment of students.
26. The great majority of SSB, SMC, principals and teachers (80% - 97%) indicated that through the whole-school approach, their schools established an inclusive culture where stakeholders in schools acknowledged the responsibility to cater for the needs of students with special educational needs.
Pre-primary education
27. Among the five given outcomes, 41% of teacher educators considered that “develop interest in learning” was the most important learning and teaching outcome of pre-primary education. It was similar in 2003/04 and 2005/06 when “develop interest in learning” was also ranked as the most important by about 42% and 50% of teacher educators respectively.
Compared with the survey findings in 2003/04 and 2005/06, the order of ranking of the five outcomes of teaching and learning in pre-primary education in 2009/10 was the same as those in 2005/06 but was slightly different from 2003/04, with “develop positive attitudes towards community” (5%) and “develop creativity” (5%) being the two least important learning and teaching outcomes of pre-primary education.
28. About 36% of early childhood educators considered that “formation of good habits”
was the most important learning and teaching outcome of pre-primary education. It was followed by “develop positive attitudes towards community” (33%). The order of priorities in 2009/10 was different from those in 2003/04 and 2005/06 as “develop interest in learning”, which was the top of the list in 2003/04 (43%) and 2005/06 (44%), was ranked third by early childhood educators in 2009/10.
29. About 31% of general public considered that “formation of good habits” was the most important learning and teaching outcome of pre-primary education. It was followed by
“develop interest in learning” (23%). The order of priority in 2009/10 was different from those in 2003/04 as “develop positive attitudes towards community” (36%) in 2003/04 was ranked first. The order of priority between 2005/06 and 2009/10 were similar.
30. The percentage of teacher educators (89%) considered that the quality of pre-primary education and services had been further improved with the professional qualification of principals upgraded to degree level was slightly lower than that of early childhood educators (91%). On the other hand, the percentage of teacher educators (93%) considered that the quality of pre-primary education improved with increasing number of teachers possessing the certificate level of professional qualification was slightly higher than that of early childhood educators (90%).
Support for schools
School-based support of Regional Education Offices (REO)
31. A majority of SMC and principals (81% - 95%) considered that the school-based support of REO had enabled continuous development and improvement of their schools. A lower proportion of teachers held the same view (75% - 88%). Comparing survey findings in 2005/06 (44% - 88%) and 2003/04 (25% - 80%), the percentage in 2009/10 (75% - 95%) were higher for all stakeholders concerned.
32. When asked if they required any support services from REO, a higher proportion of SMC of ordinary schools (18% - 22%) and principals (18% - 25%) suggested “catering for learners’ diversity” and “sharing between schools” were areas needed support services. But for SMC (38%) and principals (50%) of special schools, “administration work” was the utmost needed support services.
33. Teachers of ordinary schools suggested that catering for Learners’ diversity (32% - 34%) was the utmost needed support services from REO. Similarly, teachers of special secondary schools (28%) considered that “catering for Learners’ diversity” was also the utmost needed support services. However, teachers of special primary schools (29%) regarded that “curriculum / teaching strategies” was the most needed support services.
Support provided by parents
34. The majority of SSB, SMC, principals, teachers, parents, teacher educators, early childhood educators and the general public (82% - 100%) considered that the Parent-teacher Association could help strengthen the link between school and parents, and promote home- school co-operation. Comparing survey findings in 2005/06 (74% - 100%) and 2003/04 (71%
- 96%), the percentages in 2009/10 (82% - 100%) were the highest apart from childhood educators (82%).
35. In addition, slightly over half of principals of special schools (51%) were of the view that the level of support received from parents was high or very high. The percentage holding such a view was lower for principals (38% - 46%) and teachers (22% - 26%) of ordinary schools.
Support provided by other non-school sectors
36. The majority of SMC, principals and teachers of ordinary and special schools (50% - 91%) indicated that their schools had sought support from non-school sectors (e.g. NGOs, tertiary institutions, professional bodies and government departments other than EDB) on school operation or development. Except for principals of ordinary secondary schools and principals of special schools, the percentages for other stakeholders in 2009/10 were lower than those in 2005/06 (55% - 95%). Among those who indicated that their schools had sought support from non-school sectors on school operation or development, the percentages for the stakeholders of ordinary primary schools (25% - 41%) were higher than those of ordinary secondary schools (20% - 35%). For special schools, the percentages were lower (16% - 33%).
Quality assurance
Quality assurance framework
37. The majority of SSB, SMC, principals, teachers, teacher educators and early childhood educators (83% - 98%) considered that school self-evaluation was an internal quality assurance mechanism to enhance school development and accountability. The percentages were slightly lower for teachers of ordinary secondary schools and teacher educators, with around 85% of them sharing such a view. In general, the percentages were higher in 2009/10 than 2005/06 for all stakeholders except for SMC of special schools in 2009/10 (97%) lower than that in 2005/06 (100%).
38. The majority of SSB, SMC, principals, teachers, parents, students, early childhood educator and general public considered that external school review enhanced school development and accountability (74% - 97%). Compared with the survey findings in 2003/04 (46% - 74%) and in 2005/06 (47% - 100%), the percentages in 2009/10 were higher for all stakeholders concerned except for SMC of special schools (97%).
Diversity in curriculum
Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS) schools
39. A majority of SSB, SMC, principals, teachers and parents of ordinary schools, students of ordinary secondary schools, teacher educators and the general public (71% - 91%) considered that DSS schools could cater for the needs of those who were willing to pay school fees for extras such as small class, additional teachers and student enrichment programmes.
Compared with survey findings in 2003/04 (60% - 73%) and 2005/06 (61% - 81%), a higher proportion of them held such a view in 2009/10 except for general public. Similarly, a majority of them (69% - 86%) considered that in order to attract parents and justify the higher school fees charged, DSS schools had the incentives to improve the quality of education they provided. Compared with survey findings in 2003/04 (46% - 72%) and 2005/06 (56% - 79%), a higher proportion of the stakeholders held similar view in 2009/10 except for general public. A majority of them (71% - 91%) also considered that DSS schools had greater freedom in designing their curriculum to cater for the different abilities and aptitudes of their students. Compared with survey findings in 2005/06 (60%-79%), a higher proportion of the stakeholders held similar view in 2009/10 except for the general public.
Through-train mode
40. More than half of principals, teachers and parents of ordinary schools, SSB, SMC, students, teacher educators and the general public (74% - 90%) considered that “through- train” schools could enhance continuity in the curriculum between primary and secondary schools. Compared with the findings in 2003/04 (56% - 77%) and 2005/06 (57% - 84%), the percentage was higher for those in 2009/10 except for the general public.
41. Most of the stakeholders (74% - 89%) considered that “through-train” schools allow the school to have better understanding of and attention for its students as they progress from
primary to secondary school. And most of the stakeholders (73% - 89%) considered that
“through-train” schools alleviate students’ adaptation problems upon their promotion to the secondary school.
42. Parents of students of ordinary schools (33% - 53%) indicated that they would like their children to study in a “through-train” school. The corresponding percentages for students of ordinary schools (20% - 42%) were lower. Higher percentages were found among students of special schools (38% - 62%) than their counterparts in the ordinary schools.
Small class teaching
43. Higher proportions of SMC, principals and parents of ordinary primary schools (40%
- 51%) preferred maintaining a class size of 30 students to let students attend schools in the school net where they reside in the event of mismatch between the demand and supply of school places in a school net. However, a higher proportion of teachers of ordinary primary schools preferred implementing small class teaching while some students might have to attend schools in other school nets (54%) rather than maintaining a class size of 30 students (33%).
44. The majority of SMC, principals and teachers of ordinary primary schools indicated that changing classroom setting to facilitate interactions (81%-82%), increasing attention to students (92%-97%) and changing teaching strategies to enhance learning and teaching (88%- 92%) were of high / very high importance to small class teaching. The percentages of the parents holding the same views in these regards were lower (54%-72%).
45. The majority of teachers of ordinary primary schools (84%-88%) indicated questioning technique, group work as well as feedback and assessment for learning was of high / very high importance on teacher professional development to enhance their capacity to implement small class teaching.
Overall students’ learning outcomes
Native-speaking English Teacher (NET) Scheme
46. The NET Scheme was well supported by SSB, SMC, principals, teachers, parents, students of ordinary schools and teacher educators where the majority of them (67% - 97%) considered that the NET Scheme provided an authentic and purposeful environment for students to communicate in English in schools. Compared with the survey findings in 2005/06 (38% - 95%), a higher percentage of stakeholders in 2009/10 agreed except for students of ordinary secondary schools.
47. In addition, the majority of the stakeholders (62% - 95%) considered that the NET Scheme enhanced students’ interest and confidence in using English. Compared with the survey findings in 2005/06 (38% - 94%), a higher percentage of stakeholders in 2009/10 agreed except students of ordinary secondary schools and special secondary schools.
48. More than half of the stakeholders (61% - 100%) also considered that the NET Scheme promoted and enhanced professional development of local teachers in the area of
learning and teaching English. Compared with the survey findings in 2005/06 (34% - 84%), a higher percentage of stakeholders was found in 2009/10.
49. More than half of the stakeholders (56% - 93%) also considered that the NET Scheme resulted in a marked improvement in the confidence of students in the use of English in schools. Compared with the survey findings in 2005/06 (38% - 88%), a higher percentage of stakeholders was found in 2009/10 except for SMC of special schools.
50. More than half of the stakeholders (66% - 92%) considered that through the NET scheme there were more innovative strategies being used in classrooms during English lessons. Compared with the survey findings in 2005/06 (30% - 83%), the percentages of stakeholders in 2009/10 were higher.
51. Furthermore, while most (71% - 91%) principals, teachers, and students of primary schools considered that NETs collaborated closely with local English teachers in teaching, lower percentages of students of ordinary and special secondary schools and teacher educators (57% - 71%) shared this view. Comparing survey findings in 2005/06 (26% - 85%), the percentages in 2009/10 were higher for all stakeholders concerned.
School-based assessment (SBA)
52. The great majority of principals, teachers and parents indicated that SBA was a part of the ongoing learning and teaching activities (83%-98%), SBA helped students better understand their strengths and weaknesses (77%-98%) and SBA enabled students to achieve their best in a relaxed setting (69%-93%). The percentages for the students regarding the three statements of SBA were lower (61%-68%). And the great majority of principals and teachers (78%-100%) indicated that SBA provided feedback for teachers to reflect on their teaching strategies.
Homework
53. The great majority of principals and teachers (92%-99%) considered that homework helped teachers identify students’ problems and provided useful feedback to improve learning and teaching.
Effects of school’s student assessment
54. The majority of principals (94% - 100%) and teachers (88% - 98%) considered that their school’s student assessment was helpful to teachers to diagnose the strengths and weaknesses in students’ learning, to provide quality feedback and specific advice to students, to adjust expectation of students, and to improve curriculum design and teaching strategies accordingly.
Performance of students Primary Schools
Students of Ordinary Primary Schools
55. Commenting on the standards of performance of ordinary primary students in general, over half of the parents of primary students were satisfied with the team spirit (55%) of their children. The corresponding percentages for other aspects of performance were 50%
for competency in Chinese, 50% for sense of responsibility, 49% for competency in Mathematics, 48% for positive values and attitudes, 47% for competency in Putonghua, 45%
for self-confidence, 44% for communication skills, enthusiasm for learning and creativity, and 38% for competency in English. Compared with the findings in previous rounds, the parents of primary students in 2009/10 were more satisfied with all aspects of performance of their children in 2005/06 and roughly similar to those in 2003/04.
56. On the other hand, relatively higher proportions of ordinary primary students were satisfied with their own performance in generic skills than those of parents. With the exception of enthusiasm for learning (49%) and self-confidence (47%), over half of the ordinary primary students were satisfied with other aspects of their performance, i.e. 60% for positive values and attitudes, 55% for team spirit, 54% for creativity, 53% for sense of responsibility, and 52% for communication skills. Compared with the findings in previous rounds, primary students were less satisfied with all aspects of their performance in 2003/04 but more satisfied than those in 2005/06 except for positive values and attitudes and creativity.
57. Furthermore, over half of the students of ordinary primary schools considered their performance in extra-curricular activities (73%), conduct (62%) and Mathematics (56%) excellent or good. The corresponding percentages were lower for Putonghua (49%), English (48%), and Chinese (44%). Compared with that of parents, students’ assessment of their own performance was apparently more favourable except Chinese. Comparing survey findings in 2005/06 and 2003/04, the percentage in 2009/10 was higher for English, Mathematics and conduct, but was slightly lower for Chinese.
Students of Special Primary Schools
58. Commenting on the standards of performance of special primary students in general, Less than half of the parents with satisfied with all aspects of performance of their children.
Compared with the survey findings in 2005/06, the parents of primary special students in 2009/10 were more satisfied with all aspects of performance of their children.
59. On the other hand, relatively higher proportions of special primary students were more satisfied with their own performance in generic skills in enthusiasm for learning (53%), positive values and attitudes (51%), team spirit (47%) and creativity (38%), but less satisfied in communication skills (38%), sense of responsibility (38%) and self-confidence (38%) than those of parents of special primary schools. Compared with survey findings in 2005/06, the percentages in 2009/10 were higher in all aspects except creativity and self-confidence.
60. Furthermore, over half of the students of special primary schools considered their performance in extra-curricular activities (69%), Chinese (53%) and Mathematics (52%)
excellent or good. The corresponding percentages were lower for conduct (48%), Putonghua (37%), English (34%). Compared with that of parents, students’ assessment of their own performance was apparently more favourable. Comparing survey findings in 2005/06, the percentage in 2009/10 was higher for conduct, English and Mathematics, but was lower for extra-curricular activities and Chinese.
Secondary Schools
Students of Ordinary Secondary Schools
61. Commenting on the standards of performance of ordinary secondary students in general, over half of the parents of students of ordinary secondary schools were satisfied with the team spirit (58%), sense of responsibility (57%), and positive values and attitudes (54%) of their children. The corresponding percentages for other aspects of performance were 48%
for communication skills, 47% for competency in Chinese, 46% for self-confidence, Mathematics and enthusiasm for learning, 44% for creativity and competency in Putonghua, and 39% for competency in English. Comparing survey findings in 2005/06 and 2003/04, the percentage in 2009/10 was higher in almost all aspects but was lower for “self-confidence”;
and almost the same for “team spirit”.
62. In general, ordinary secondary students’ own assessment of their performance was similar or less favourable than those as reported by parents. About 54% of them were satisfied with their positive values & attitudes. The corresponding percentages for other aspects of performance were 48% for sense of responsibility, 46% for team spirit, 42% for communication skills, 40% for creativity, 36% for enthusiasm for learning and 34% for self- confidence. Comparing survey findings in 2005/06 and 2003/04, the percentages in 2009/10 were lower for all aspects of performance, with the exception of creativity, and almost the same for positive values and attitudes, communication skills and enthusiasm for learning.
63. Furthermore, only about 58% of ordinary secondary students considered their performance in conduct excellent or good. The corresponding percentages were less than half, 49% for extra-curricular activities, 34% for Mathematics, 33% for Putonghua, 32% for English, and 29% for Chinese. Compared with that of parents, secondary students’ assessment of their performance was less favourable. Comparing survey findings in 2005/06 and 2003/04, the percentage in 2009/10 was higher for English, but was almost the same for Mathematics, conducts and extra-curricular activities and lower for Chinese.
Students of Special Secondary Schools
64. Commenting on the standards of performance of special secondary students in general, over half of the parents of special secondary students were satisfied with the aspect of team spirit (51%) of their children. The corresponding percentages for other aspects of performance were lower. Compared with the survey findings in 2005/06, the parents of the secondary students in 2009/10 were more satisfied with the aspects of positive values and attitudes, communication skills and self-confidence, less satisfied in competency in Mathematics and English, creativity, enthusiasm for learning, sense of responsibility and team spirit and it was almost the same for competency in Chinese. .
65. On the other hand, relatively higher proportions of students of special secondary schools were more satisfied with their own performance in positive values and attitudes, creativity and communication skills but less satisfied in enthusiasm for learning, sense of responsibility, team spirit and self-confidence than those of parents of special secondary schools . Compared with survey findings in 2005/06, the percentages in 2009/10 were lower in all aspects except team spirit.
66. Furthermore, over half of students of special secondary schools considered their performance in extra-curricular activities (55%) and conduct (54%) excellent or good. The corresponding percentages were lower for Mathematics (34%), Chinese (34%), Putonghua (33%) and English (21%). Compared with that of parents, students’ assessment of their own performance was apparently more favourable in Mathematic, Putonghua and English.
Comparing survey findings in 2005/06, the percentage in 2009/10 was lower except for conduct which was similar to that in the previous round.
General Observations
67. In general, most stakeholders held positive views about most of the education reform and major education initiatives. Some general observations have been drawn:
Trend Analyses
68. Compared with previous rounds of SMS, most of the stakeholders expressed more positive views in the areas of learning goals, five essential learning experiences, generic skills, IT in education, whole-school approach, school-based support, school self-evaluation and ESR, Direct Subsidy Scheme, through-train mode, NET scheme.
Differences among stakeholders
69. In comparison, SSB, SMC and Principals expressed more positive views than teachers. Stakeholders of primary schools were more positive than those of secondary schools.
70. Levels of agreement among the general public on the impact on student learning after implementation of the four key tasks and the use of IT for collaborative learning and communication by students were high.
Analyses by sub-areas
71. The majority of the stakeholders agreed with the NSS curriculum.
72. The majority of the stakeholders agreed with the fine-tuned MOI arrangements.
73. Students of both ordinary primary and secondary schools expressed less positive views on their self-confidence and enthusiasm for learning. However, their parents were less satisfied with their children’s performance in creativity, communication skills and enthusiasm for learning.
74. Students of primary schools were more satisfied with their performance than the parents. However, students of secondary schools were less confident with their performance than the parents.
75. Parents considered that English was the weakest subject of their children while students perceivedthat Chinese was their weakest subject.
