Hong Kong teachers can still discuss politically sensitive events under new code, but must avoid uninformed comments: education chief
- Education secretary Christine Choi addresses criticism of revised professional code for sector, stressing that focus will be on learning goals for students
- She warns against discussion based on ‘so-called opinions by some people’, citing ‘developing incidents’ and the need for national identity
Hong Kong teachers can still bring up historical events such as the Tiananmen Square crackdown in class under a revised code of professional conduct as long as they do not make sweeping statements based on limited knowledge, the city’s education minister has said.
Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin on Saturday also dismissed criticism that new guidelines would limit teachers’ free speech on social media, and offered assurances that they had a right to voice objections but must refrain from indecent comments, spreading hatred and inciting pupils to join illegal acts.
Choi’s bureau introduced a set of what authorities said was a long-overdue revision of the code of conduct for teachers on Thursday, and suggested that educators could risk deregistration if they failed to promote national education and report potential illegal activities or “morally deviant information”.
Hong Kong teachers must promote national education under revamped code
They were also advised not to use teaching materials “misaligned with the Education Bureau and relevant guidelines”.
Choi said the government would not stipulate topics that were off-limits in class. What mattered, she said, was whether discussions were appropriate and could help achieve learning goals for pupils, given their time in class was “very precious”.
“People have been asking whether June 4 can still be taught, but actually the topic is also included in our curriculum,” she said, a reference to Beijing’s 1989 military crackdown on a student-led, pro-democracy movement in Tiananmen Square.
But Choi warned it would be detrimental to the development of pupils if teachers deliberately gave inaccurate or biased information, or made sweeping statements not grounded in facts.
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“It will also not bring any good to students’ learning to have a discussion based on so-called opinions by some people,” she added.
She highlighted “developing incidents” which she said society had yet to draw conclusions from and that had nothing to do with learning goals.
The former administration pledged to revise the code after lawmakers accused some teachers of taking part or inciting pupils to join illegal activities during the 2019 anti-government protests.
Choi said the original code was drafted in 1995 and should be urgently revamped in light of recent developments, such as the need to highlight national identity, the significance of the “one country, two systems” governing principle in Hong Kong, and the Beijing-imposed national security law.
She also laid down a bottom line for teachers, and said: “They must try their best to do what they are required to do, and refrain absolutely from doing what they are not allowed to.”
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Schools will be required under the revised code to prepare a report for the bureau on complaints against teachers, who will be given 14 days to respond if the cases are substantiated.
A task force made up of directorate-grade education officials would decide penalties, which will range from warning letters to a deregistration period of at least three years and up to life.
Teachers who were sanctioned, however, would be given a chance to defend their position and lodge appeals.
Teresa Chan Mo-ngan, the deputy secretary for education, also revealed on Saturday the bureau had handled 502 complaints against teachers over the past three years.
A total of 179 of them were ruled to be unsubstantiated. Among the cases upheld, 20 teachers were deregistered. Most of them involved criminal cases.
