It is no coincidence that the candidates for the coming chief executive election have embraced an education agenda and have attended forums organised by education groups. Education matters, for it determines not only our city's competitiveness, but also the quality of our citizenry.
Nowadays, international comparisons and league tables have become common, and countries and cities are too ready to look to others for inspiration and policies. Hong Kong is no exception.
Without playing down the need for learning from others, it is also time for Hong Kong to look inwards - to make sense of and consolidate our own experiences more systematically so that we know our strengths and weaknesses, and the areas where we have succeeded and where we have failed.
After a decade of extensive - and at times contentious - education reforms, we should take stock and concentrate on the more critical areas of transformation in the years ahead.
Internationally speaking, Hong Kong is a high performer in both secondary and tertiary education. We have one of the world's best- performing school systems, according to studies conducted by McKinsey & Company in 2007 and 2010. Our students also rank high in Pisa (the Programme for International Student Assessment), a worldwide evaluation - commissioned by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development - of 15-year-old pupils' scholastic performance.
Our universities are among some of the best in the world, with several among the top 100. There is no doubt that Hong Kong has a strong capacity as a major education hub in the region. Yet, some studies still find that Hong Kong students lack creativity. Our educational system is at times too rigidly operated.
Hong Kong has entered the new '3-3-4' academic structure - three years each in junior and senior secondary education, and four in tertiary education.