Divided society must focus on civic education
I am pleased that Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor is honouring her election promises, by proposing extra funds for the education sector in her policy address.
The new funding will make a huge difference for public subsidised schools, which are underprivileged when compared to directly subsidised and private schools, due to a lack of capital to nurture potential talents.
However, besides improving the hardware of local schools, I believe that the development of moral and civic education should also receive a push.
With the increasing influence of the internet, traditional moral values are fading. Cyber-bullying is common, as are online wars of words between peers and even between generations. Personal privacy is not as respected as it was before.
The future could be unimaginably terrifying if people did not comply with moral standards any more, as public order would be impossible to maintain. Making civic education mandatory in schools is the only solution.
Positive messages effectively delivered to all students will in the long run benefit all of society, if people act with altruism, courtesy and honesty, as seen in countries with strong civic education, such as Japan.