Report No. 32, March 1999

Chapter 8

Practical Schools and Skills Opportunity Schools

Summary and key findings

A. Introduction. In 1990, the Education Commission proposed the setting up of Practical Schools (PS) for unmotivated pupils and Skills Opportunity Schools (SOS) for pupils with severe learning difficulties. These pupils are those in the 12 to 14 age group (Secondary 1 to Secondary 3 pupils) who are unable to benefit from the common-core curriculum in ordinary schools. PS and SOS offer them a modified curriculum combining academic and practical subjects. There are four PS and seven SOS in operation. Audit recently conducted a review to examine the effectiveness of PS and SOS. B. Low enrolment in the Hong Kong Sea School (HKSS). The average enrolment rate of the HKSS (a Practical School) was only 68% for the past six years. As in November 1998, the HKSS had 144 unfilled school places, representing under-utilised resources estimated at $4.9 million a year. Audit noted that the main reasons for the low enrolment were: youngsters generally did not like pursuing a seafaring career; the nature of the HKSS curriculum was limited; there was a misconception among parents that their children could only secure employment as sailors after leaving the HKSS; and the HKSS admitted boys only (paras. 13 to 22). C. Low enrolment in SOS. In November 1998, there was an under-utilisation of 31.4% of the 1,400 planned school places of SOS. With the low enrolment rate, the Education Department (ED) reduced the number of classes and provided recurrent funding for 1,220 places. Nevertheless, there were still 260 unfilled school places, representing under-utilised resources for recurrent expenditure estimated at $15 million a year. Audit observed that when the provision of SOS places was planned, the ED used 0.9% of the whole population of the 12 to 14 age group as the basis for the projection of demand. The ED did not allow for the possibility that some of the parents would not want their children to be enrolled in SOS. As a result, the supply of SOS places outstripped the demand. The ED had taken action to improve enrolment, but there was only limited success (paras. 28 to 36). D. Consequences arising from the relaxation of admission criteria for SOS. To deal with the low enrolment situation in SOS, the ED had relaxed the admission criteria for SOS which brought about undesirable consequences. By relaxing the admission criteria to admit pupils with varied abilities, teachers had greater teaching difficulties. Furthermore, some pupils were inappropriately placed in SOS (paras. 39 to 44). E. Difficulties in the placement of pupils after Secondary 3. In the past three years, 44% of post-Secondary 3 pupils from PS continued Secondary 4 education in ordinary schools and 41.6% continued training in vocational training institutions. For those pupils who completed Secondary 3 in 1996-97 and continued their studies, 43.1% eventually dropped out because they were unable to adapt to the more demanding curriculum of these schools and institutions. For those pupils who completed Secondary 3 in 1996-97 and joined Secondary 4 in ordinary schools, 43.9% managed to cope with their studies. As integration is a long-term goal of the ED, there is a case for integrating PS pupils into ordinary schools (paras. 48 to 56). F. In 1997-98, 68.5% of SOS pupils (children with severe learning difficulties) relied on the Skills Centres of the Vocational Training Council (VTC) as an opening for post-Secondary 3 placement. However, "learning difficulties" had been deleted from the categories of disability in accordance with the 1995 White Paper on Rehabilitation. As a result, SOS pupils with no disability would no longer be eligible for admission into the Skills Centres after 1998-99. This has aroused anxiety among parents of SOS pupils. Meanwhile, the ED has not been successful in securing preferential admission for SOS pupils to continue their studies in the VTC Technical Institutes/Industrial Training Centres (paras. 58 to 64). G. Inadequacies in teachers training. Audit noted that 50% of teachers in PS and 19% in SOS had not received any teacher training. For those teachers who had received training, only 20% in PS and 32% in SOS had received both initial and special education teacher training. These figures are on the low side when compared with the 63% of their counterparts in Special Schools (paras. 67 and 68). H. Audit recommendations. Audit has made the following major recommendations that the Director of Education should: (a) take prompt and effective actions to improve the enrolment rate of the HKSS. These actions include examining its role as a school devoted to the promotion of a seafaring career and revising the curriculum (para. 23); (b) in planning for the demand for SOS and other school places, identify all relevant factors so as to make more accurate forecasts of the demand (first inset of para. 37); (c) take effective actions to resolve the problem of unfilled school places in SOS (second inset of para. 37); (d) critically review whether those pupils who are studying in SOS have been suitably placed in these schools (first inset of para. 46); (e) review the admission criteria for SOS to ensure that they only accept those pupils who would benefit most from SOS (second inset of para. 46); (f) better prepare PS pupils for further studies in ordinary schools or vocational training institutions (para. 55); (g) ascertain whether the special educational needs of pupils studying in PS would be better met by the education provided in ordinary schools (first inset of para. 56); (h) consider integrating pupils studying in PS into ordinary schools in view of the fact the integration is a long-term goal of the ED (second inset of para. 56); (i) identify suitable placement opportunities for SOS pupils (para. 65); and (j) explore more training opportunities for teachers in PS and SOS to enhance the professional expertise to discharge their duties (first inset of para. 70). I. Response from the Administration. The Director of Education has accepted all the audit recommendations. She has also said that she will certainly do her best to implement these recommendations (para. 78).