About 70 per cent of Hong Kong teachers polled support proposed revamp of liberal studies
- Survey by Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers also finds 40 per cent of the teachers are worried about job security and 65 per cent expect to face problems following subject revamp
- Union vice-chairman Tang Fei says educators hope authorities can release new teaching materials and sample exam papers as soon as possible
As much as 70 per cent of educators polled by a pro-establishment teachers’ union said they supported a proposed revamp of Hong Kong’s controversial liberal studies subject, as a month-long consultation on reforming the syllabus ends on Tuesday.
In a poll released on Sunday, the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers found that up to 75 per cent of teachers polled said they either “support” or “strongly support” keeping liberal studies as a core subject for compulsory examinations. About 71 per cent of the respondents said they agreed that the subject should be reformed and have parts of it removed.
The poll also found that 40 per cent of the teachers were worried about their job security and 65 per cent expected to face problems when dealing with changes to the subject.
“The scale of the changes are likely to be quite large, and the amendments are expected to take place by the new academic year in September,” Tang Fei, the federation’s vice-chairman, said.
“The teachers hope the Education Bureau can announce the details, such as the teaching materials and sample exam papers, as soon as possible.”
Tang also said the reduced content on the liberal studies syllabus would mean teachers spending more time teaching additional subjects, as the overhaul would slash 100 hours of class time.
