Kirkpatrick's agenda clashes with real needs of language learning
Andy Kirkpatrick's peculiar slant on language education in Hong Kong needs to be understood in the right context ('No good beating about the Bush, language is changing, Education Post, June 23). After all, Professor Kirkpatrick has a vested interest in maintaining Hong Kong Institute of Education's struggling teacher-training programme which has contributed, at least indirectly, to the problems faced by local schools in implementing genuine reform.
The quality of HKIEd graduates had been quite disappointing for some time, partly because they were products of this outmoded exam-driven education system themselves and HKIEd failed to 'add value' to their limited experience. Now their head of English wants us to lower our standards to make way for his students who are obviously struggling to find employment with their limited qualifications.
The difference between the stated aims of 'trilingual and biliterate' and reality can be very stark indeed. Very few students in the local system achieve mastery in any one of these languages - and this problem is also true in the staff room. Instead of 'apologising' for this poor standard and resigning ourselves to a mediocre education system as Professor Kirkpatrick advocates, let's work with our strengths.
We have an existing pool of outstanding native English-speaking teachers working in difficult situations to educate not only their students but also their local colleagues with professional development on a range of issues. These professional educators understand fundamentally what the reforms are about, as well as the ongoing professional development needs of teachers. Many have clear visions for their schools as well, but no one is listening and they are not eligible, under existing NET scheme arrangements, for promotion to management roles within those schools.
We need to give these genuine professionals a greater say in school decision-making processes and expand their numbers to achieve that 'critical mass' when the reforms truly can be integrated into local schools but most especially in the English language area. Students love having NETs in their school because they seem to understand their genuine needs and interests and can open up a whole world of possibilities.
