Letters | As coronavirus shut Hong Kong schools, Education Bureau failed pupils with hands-off approach on e-learning

The bureau touted its HK$14 billion investment and HK$700 million annual expenditure on IT in education, but has not encouraged schools to implement their original teaching schedule through e-learning

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Schools in Hong Kong are expected to resume in phases after remaining shut for months over the coronavirus outbreak. Photo: David Wong

Published: 7:40am, 11 May 2020Updated: 7:40am, 11 May 2020

As the world battles Covid-19, it is a relief to see that Hong Kong had only single-digit imported cases in recent weeks and local schools are expected to resume in phases. Unfortunately, however, the Education Bureau has failed local schoolchildren and their parents with its hands-off approach to e-learning. Given the enormous amount of government expenditure on school education, the bureau must be held accountable for its maladministration during the coronavirus outbreak.

Due to the public health crisis, school has been suspended since late January. In a press release on February 12, the secretary for education encouraged schoolchildren to achieve “suspending classes without suspending learning”. The bureau touted its HK$14 billion investment and HK$700 million annual expenditure on information technology in education and expressed confidence in the systematic e-learning plans of local schools.

Yet, in another press release on April 2, the bureau played down the importance of e-learning and suggested that schools could use various means, such as printed learning materials and helpline services, to support learning.

While we agree that flexibility is important, the bureau must recognise that e-learning, especially real-time online teaching, is the closest substitute when on-campus teaching becomes impossible. This is why all local universities expect students and teachers to follow the usual schedules and hold online lessons.

In contrast to the universities’ commitment to quality education, it is regrettable that the bureau sees no need for schools to stick to the schedule or the curriculum through e-learning.

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In response to our inquiry, the bureau said it kept “close contact with schools to understand their learning and teaching arrangement during class suspension”. Yet, it cannot provide the number of schools it has contacted for such information, neither does it expect schools to make up for missed classes in the summer.