More than one disgruntled parent or ambitious politician has toyed with the idea of opening a school in Hong Kong. The opportunity to mould the next generation is a notion that appeals to hard-nosed realists and idealists alike, but for many the desire remains little more than a pipedream. Between the lengthy red tape and battle for funding, the hurdles are considerable.
Peter Wong Hong-yuen and a group of like-minded individuals have been discussing plans for a new school since the idea was born at a dinner two years ago. One guest complained about her child's school and others joined in, voicing a desire that had been at the back of Mr Wong's mind since he helped found the Open University a decade ago.
Mr Wong, a partner at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and a member of the Commission on Strategic Development, was the third generation in his family to be sent to Britain for a boarding school education, and his children represent the fourth. 'I would like Hong Kong to have a school that is good enough for my grandchildren, one that has enough pluses that parents don't have to send their children abroad. I want a school where children have the chance to be a Hong Kong or Chinese person and also be good at English,' he said.
The group is competing for one of four sites that will be allocated by the Education Department through the Private Independent Schools (PIS) scheme. The allocation of PIS sites has become an annual exercise as part of the Government's initiative to broaden the range of schools available. This year's sites are in Southern District, Braemar Hill, Discovery Bay and Pokfulam. The successful applicants will be informed later this month.
'We've been challenged by the Chief Executive to make Hong Kong a world-class city. We need a school that meets today's needs, a school where the students will go on to become the leaders of Hong Kong and the leaders of Asia,' said Mr Wong.
International schools were geared towards a Western curriculum and culture, he said. What Hong Kong needed was a truly local school. 'We must remember that we are part of China. If our Hong Kong leaders and merchants are to survive, they must have a better working knowledge of China and be able to speak Putonghua like a native.' To this end, he intends the school to be 'dual language', with lessons taught in both English and Putonghua and students able to slip easily between the two. And IT will form an integral part. The aim is to develop a school that 'brings out the best in people and promotes a standard of excellence'.