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Nora Tong

Nine-year-old prodigy's education gained momentum at British six-formers' college

The extraordinary educational journey of nine-year-old prodigy March Boedihardjo, who may become the youngest person to enter a Hong Kong university, started when he moved to Britain two years ago.

Unable to find a place at a primary or secondary school in Oxford, where the family was moving to, March's parents made the unorthodox decision to send him to a private tutorial college for sixth-formers.

March, then seven,  had only completed Primary One in  Hong Kong.

Tony Boedihardjo, March's father, said: 'The school interviewed him over the phone while we were still in Hong Kong. I don't know exactly what they asked him, but I think they must have been satisfied.'

He  said the family had needed to move to Britain because his elder son, Horatio, was offered a  University of Oxford place at the age of 14 and needed to be accompanied by a parent to enrol.

March's mother remained in Hong Kong. March and his father returned to Hong Kong  this summer when Horatio turned 16.

Mr Boedihardjo said he would have preferred March to go on to Primary Two in Hong Kong rather than go to Britain,  but circumstances forced his hand. 'We had no choice,' he said. 'I thought it would have been easier on him to have progressed year by year like a normal child.'

March had always demonstrated a talent in maths, his  father said. But he refused to put his sons through IQ tests for fear that his children would slacken off with proof of a high IQ.

'Even if there were a school for the gifted [in Hong Kong], I wouldn't have sent my sons there,' he said.

Mr Boedihardjo said schools in Britain were more open-minded in the recruitment of gifted students.

'People there respect you, even if you are smarter,' he said, adding that he hoped university students in Hong Kong would let go of their bias against gifted students.

Mr Boedihardjo said Hong Kong schools  were inflexible when it came to letting gifted students skip to higher grades.

He said his elder son had been an average student until Form One, because he felt bored as the curriculum did not challenge him.

But the school had not been willing to move Horatio into a class with older students, and he had been forced to move first to an international school and ultimately to a secondary school in Britain for a more accelerated education.

Horatio, who will graduate from Oxford next year, said his younger brother had always loved maths.

'He has no problem academically,' he said, and believed March would be able to adapt to the social life at university.

March has been interviewed for a place at a number of local universities, including Baptist University and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. If accepted he would become Hong Kong's youngest university entrant.

Mr Boedihardjo said the decision on  where March would  study  depended on which university was able to provide the highest level of support for someone of his age.

'Successful maths prodigies, like Terence Tao and Leonhard Euler,  have very good mentors to be their role models,' he said. 'The university's reputation is not the most important. What matters is who they appoint as mentor, whether they can get along with March and how much time they can spend on my son. This will affect his whole life.'

Ng Tai-kai,  associate dean of science at the University of Science and Technology, said young students would not be discriminated against but any decision would have to be made prudently.

'Does the student have to be accompanied by his mother? If so how should we support them? There are many practical questions to be resolved,' Professor Ng said.

An academic at  Baptist University, who  did not wish to be identified, said the maths department  was supportive of March's application but the final decision would be left to its president, Ng Ching-fai.

University of Hong Kong registrar Henry Wai Wing-kun  said if admitted to HKU, March's age would not be a factor as the university had an equal-opportunities policy.

'We would have to discuss with the parents how to provide a conducive environment for the boy if we were to admit him,' he said.



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Boy's learning curve began with move