Teachers are under greater pressure than ever as they cope with educational reforms and students who are increasingly difficult to teach, an educator warned.
Chairman of the Hong Kong Subsidised Secondary Schools Council Stephen Hui Chin-yim said yesterday's suicide of Law Kwok-wai in Sai Kung highlighted the strain felt by teachers burdened by extra work.
Pressure was no longer measured by the number of students or classes, he said.
'Teachers are having more meetings, some of them with parents, which puts a lot of pressure on them in addition to teaching classes,' Mr Hui said. 'Parents demand a lot from teachers . . . I often hear teachers complaining about difficulties in teaching when I walk into staff rooms.' He said teachers were also blamed when students failed their exams.
Students were increasingly distracted by the Internet and family problems caused by a relatively weak economy and high unemployment rates.
But legislator Cheung Man-kwong, who represents the education constituency, said yesterday's tragedy was 'an isolated incident'.
