Not all school principals welcomed a recent Education Department proposal that they take part in leadership courses.
However, as a secondary school principal, I welcomed this proposal as being forward-looking and something that could only help improve the quality of education in Hong Kong.
School principals are going to face many challenges and changes, as we enter the new millennium.
However, in spite of the Education Department putting forward this proposal, when it came to my case, it was a case of officials adopting double standards.
The department encouraged principals to take paid study leave. Heads and teachers are entitled to take paid study leave up to one year.
However, my application for half-year study leave for the last stage of my course at a local university on leadership and quality education, was turned down on the grounds that the whole course lasts longer than a year.