We can take pride in our students and learn from them
Open learning culture necessary to allow young adults to become independent thinkers
I was among several guest speakers who were invited by the alumni association of the Master of Arts in Chinese history at the University of Hong Kong to speak at its annual award ceremony last weekend. But the best speeches were from two award-winning students who had just graduated from high school and are now first-year undergraduates.
Their enlightening speeches and the eloquence of their delivery made me really proud.
Their star performance is firm proof that our schools are still turning out excellent students. Both were born in Hong Kong, educated at local schools, taught the local curriculum and accepted into local universities. Their speeches displayed admirable sophistication in structure, analysis and vision. They are comparable to the best students anywhere in the world.
We must not fall prey to the superficial yet popular view that our education system has failed badly and that anxious parents are herding their children overseas. In the face of these two students' performance, the claims sound more like myth than truth.
The two top students came from separate secondary schools. Yet they both attributed their keen interest in Chinese history to inspiration from their respective subject teachers. It shows that irrespective of whether a subject is on the core curriculum, capable teachers can and do inspire their pupils to take a genuine interest.
The conventional wisdom that no pupil would take a subject seriously unless it is tested in open examination, and with grades that count towards university entrance, does not hold universally.