The education system should be spared any further overhaul after more than a decade of reform, the man hotly tipped to be the next education minister says.
In an interview yesterday, Examinations and Assessment Authority chairman Eddie Ng Hak-kim said the education system would have to diversify and make students more competitive by teaching them to learn in their own way.
But he remains confident in the quality of education in the city, citing the series of reforms since 2000, when the Education Commission set out a plan to bring Hong Kong in line with Western countries. Demands made on children were also eased, while encouraging lifelong learning.
'A 12-year [reform] is a thorough and large-scale [reform] ... there is no need for an overhaul,' Ng said.
Ng, a human resources management consultant by training, refused to be drawn on whether he would leave his current role before the end of his term in August.
He is tipped to take over from Education Secretary Michael Suen Ming-yeung, who leaves at the end of next month when chief executive-elect Leung Chun-ying and his ministers take office.
But Ng did outline an education strategy he believes the government should take, emphasising the importance of 'seamlessly' communicating with the public and not bulldozing policies forward. 'If you push [policies] without paying attention to the difficulties facing your colleagues, it is problematic,' he said.