English degrees in short supply

Some 25.1 per cent of English teachers at secondary schools, and 48.1 per cent of those at primary schools, did not major in English at university, a survey reveals. The survey, carried out by the Department of Education in the 1999 to 2000 academic year, showed that 4,417 English teachers at secondary schools and 1,317 at primary schools were 'non-subject trained'.

There is no specific qualification for English teachers and principals decide which teachers teach which subjects. 'It's a common phenomenon,' said Frederick Leung Koon-shing, dean of the education faculty at the University of Hong Kong. 'Many principals find it difficult to find enough English teachers who majored in English.'