https://www.scmp.com/rss/325849/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Parents unhappy with the allocation of Primary One places descended on popular schools in Hong Kong on Saturday in a last-ditch bid to secure the education wanted for their children. The rush on schools came despite a drop in the number of pupils seeking entry into the city’s primary system and the highest success rating for the process since 2011. More than 27,000 pupils across the city found out where they will be starting school in 2019-20 with the release of the Central Allocation for... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3012718/primary-one-admissions-hong-kong-parents-disgruntled?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3012718/primary-one-admissions-hong-kong-parents-disgruntled?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Jun 2019 08:01:03 +0000 The Hong Kong government has been urged to come up with a sustainable policy to handle African swine fever, after the sudden shutdown of a slaughterhouse on Saturday dried up supply and left consumers paying over the odds for pork. The discovery of a second case of the disease on Friday night meant health authorities could cull 4,100 pigs at the premises in Sheung Shui, which along with any subsequent sanitation, should take four days. A lawmaker and some butchers said the closure of the larger... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3012715/african-swine-fever-returns-hong-kong-hitting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3012715/african-swine-fever-returns-hong-kong-hitting?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Jun 2019 07:48:41 +0000 Kindergarten teachers have to work up to 70 hours a week following the introduction of a free education scheme two years ago that risks triggering an exodus of staff, a survey has found. More than 90 per cent of the 1,255 kindergarten teachers and principals polled also said they were stressed and not getting enough sleep because of the extra administrative burden of the system. The findings were revealed on Tuesday in a survey conducted in May by the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3012183/kindergartens-hong-kong-facing-staff-shortages-teachers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3012183/kindergartens-hong-kong-facing-staff-shortages-teachers?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 May 2019 23:30:06 +0000 A united society with young people interested in serving the city’s needs is a possible future for Hong Kong envisioned by winners of the Student of the Year Awards, organised by the South China Morning Post.  The annual event, held at the Kowloon Shangri-La Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui on Saturday, celebrates secondary school students who showed academic excellence and outstanding commitment to community service. The awards are sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club with support from the Education... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3011808/south-china-morning-post-honours-academic-excellence-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3011808/south-china-morning-post-honours-academic-excellence-and?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 May 2019 12:15:53 +0000 Three years ago Daisy Ngan Yu-ching would not have dared to dream of finishing high school and going to university, she was too busy worrying about how to feed herself and two younger brothers. But rather than whining about life’s difficulties, the 19-year-old used the challenges as motivation and her perseverance and dedication have carried her to the final round in the best improved category at this year’s Student of the Year awards. The results will be announced at an award ceremony on... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3011472/hong-kong-student-who-had-balance-learning-keeping-herself?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3011472/hong-kong-student-who-had-balance-learning-keeping-herself?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 May 2019 06:44:16 +0000 A 12-year-old boy was in critical condition on Tuesday morning after he fell from the third floor of his residential building in Tsuen Wan, Hong Kong. Police said they believed the boy was alone at home and hanging laundry from the window of his flat when the incident occurred. His 42-year-old mother was later arrested on suspicion of ill-treating or neglecting a child. Emergency personnel were called to the scene at around 8am on Chuen Lung Street. Boy falls from third-floor flat and saved by... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3011044/boy-12-falls-fourth-floor-flat-hong-kong-after-losing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3011044/boy-12-falls-fourth-floor-flat-hong-kong-after-losing?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 May 2019 02:03:00 +0000 Best known for designing some of the most iconic buildings in the world, Chinese-American architect Ieoh Ming Pei, who died aged 102 on Thursday morning, had always kept China and Hong Kong close to his heart. Also known as I.M. Pei, the creative maestro, whose most famous work is Paris’s Louvre Pyramid, never lost his Chinese roots despite spending more than 60 years in the United States. He died in his home in Manhattan. In Hong Kong, his legacy lives on through the Bank of China Tower, which... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3010698/hong-kong-famed-architect-im-peis-legacy-stands-tall-through-bank?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3010698/hong-kong-famed-architect-im-peis-legacy-stands-tall-through-bank?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 May 2019 10:48:12 +0000 One of the major trainers of Hong Kong doctors has defended a decision not to lower the threshold for student admissions despite the city’s chronic shortage of physicians. Chinese University announced on Thursday that only high school graduates who score 40 or above in seven subjects on their entrance exam, who list the course as their first choice, and who perform satisfactorily in the admission interview will be guaranteed a place on its Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3010544/chinese-university-hong-kong-refuses-lower-entry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3010544/chinese-university-hong-kong-refuses-lower-entry?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 May 2019 12:42:35 +0000 Hong Kong’s pest control teams are unable to catch rodents because they use old-style trapping methods including sweet potatoes for bait, critics said on Wednesday, a day after three new cases of the rat hepatitis E infection in humans were revealed. Other complaints included a lack of support for private housing estates to tackle rats. Officials stepped up cleaning efforts on Wednesday morning at the public housing Yau Oi Estate in Tuen Mun – where a 74-year-old man infected with the virus, and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3010368/hong-kongs-pest-control-methods-slammed-cleaning?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3010368/hong-kongs-pest-control-methods-slammed-cleaning?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 May 2019 13:06:21 +0000 More than half of government-funded schools in Hong Kong have applied to raise tuition fees for the next school year, charging parents as much as 19 per cent more annually. Figures released by the Education Bureau on Tuesday showed that, as of May 3, it had received 39 applications for fee rises from 72 primary and secondary schools under the direct subsidy scheme (DSS), three fewer than in the same period last year. Direct subsidy scheme schools benefit from government funding but can also... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3009218/more-half-hong-kongs-direct-subsidy-scheme-schools-apply?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3009218/more-half-hong-kongs-direct-subsidy-scheme-schools-apply?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 May 2019 23:00:24 +0000 A teacher at an international school threatened to jump from a rooftop in Pok Fu Lam on Monday, after she was allegedly informed she could be terminated. The 36-year-old teacher who taught Chinese at West Island School, run by the English Schools Foundation (ESF) – the largest international school organisation in Hong Kong – was rescued by police and firefighters on Monday as she sat on the edge of a building. “The woman was returned to safety soon after emergency services arrived, and escorted... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3009080/esf-teacher-hong-kong-threatens-jump-roof-west-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3009080/esf-teacher-hong-kong-threatens-jump-roof-west-island?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 May 2019 13:01:16 +0000 Stargazing Hongkongers’ hopes of watching cosmic fireworks on Monday night could be washed away as wet weather is forecast for the early part of the week. The Hong Kong Observatory said there would be occasional showers and a few squally thunderstorms from Monday to Thursday as a trough of low pressure was affecting Guangdong and the northern part of the South China Sea. Temperatures will range from 20 degrees Celsius to 28 degrees. But skies will brighten up later in the week. “As the trough of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008930/cloudy-skies-and-wet-weather-set-dampen-hopes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008930/cloudy-skies-and-wet-weather-set-dampen-hopes?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 May 2019 13:02:49 +0000 A government-appointed group has recommended a campaign urging Hong Kong parents to cultivate a balanced and more fulfilling life for their children amid the city’s culture of excessive competition. The movement would be aimed at bringing about a mindset change in parents, as their obsession with academic grades could discourage the young from learning, said Tim Lui Tim-leung, chairman of the Task Force on Home-school Cooperation and Parent Education on Sunday. “It’s understandable that all... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3008899/will-government-backed-campaign-change-hong-kong-parents?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3008899/will-government-backed-campaign-change-hong-kong-parents?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 May 2019 07:00:25 +0000 A recruitment agency owned by acclaimed Hong Kong film director Alfred Cheung Kin-ting has been accused of failing to pay the wages of at least 30 English teachers working at dozens of kindergartens. One instructor said Dramatic English still owed wages from half a year ago. Others said the money paid was different to the amount stated in their contracts. A company owner confirmed salaries had been transferred late but laid the blame with the schools, saying some had delayed settling... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3008430/hong-kong-teachers-forced-fight-wages-film-director-alfred?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3008430/hong-kong-teachers-forced-fight-wages-film-director-alfred?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 May 2019 10:00:14 +0000 Hong Kong’s 3.8 million workers will be able to stay at home for two hours after a storm subsides instead of returning to work immediately, under government proposals to avoid a repeat of the transport chaos seen in the aftermath of Typhoon Mangkhut last year. The amended storm guidelines, which were revealed on Tuesday, will not be legally binding however, and lawmakers suggested the changes would not keep people at home for longer. Typhoon Mangkhut prompted the city’s weather authority to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008347/two-hour-grace-period-hong-kong-employees-return?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008347/two-hour-grace-period-hong-kong-employees-return?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 May 2019 01:00:18 +0000 Performers who repeatedly cause noise nuisance could be blacklisted and retired police officers hired to step up enforcement under a raft of measures officials revealed on Monday to minimise the problem in public spaces. The plans were unveiled as lawmakers on the home affairs panel passed a non-binding motion to urge the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) to review the rules to mitigate noise nuisance in parks, eliminate cash rewards for the performers and increase penalties. A... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008169/noisy-performers-hong-kongs-public-parks-face?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008169/noisy-performers-hong-kongs-public-parks-face?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Apr 2019 12:21:49 +0000 A 68-year-old man has been arrested in Hong Kong after the decomposing body of his wife was found in their home. The woman, surnamed Wong, 64, was believed to have died a few weeks ago, but her husband never told police. Emergency personnel were called to Kwun Tong Garden Estate in Sau Mau Ping shortly before midnight on Friday. A security guard, surnamed Sze, 61, was patrolling the building in the public housing estate and called police after residents complained about an odour coming from an... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3007962/man-68-arrested-hong-kong-after-decomposing-body-wife?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3007962/man-68-arrested-hong-kong-after-decomposing-body-wife?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 27 Apr 2019 12:15:28 +0000 Beijing will lift restrictions on Hong Kong actors taking part in mainland Chinese TV productions, following an announcement earlier this week that it will relax curbs on the city’s film industry, according to a local delegation. The 25-member group, which wrapped up a three-day visit to the capital on Thursday, was led by superstar Jackie Chan, with members including actors Eric Tsang Chi-wai and Wong Cho-lam as well as Wilfred Wong Ying-wai, chairman of the Hong Kong Arts Development... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3006803/beijing-lift-curbs-hong-kong-actors-working-television-shows?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3006803/beijing-lift-curbs-hong-kong-actors-working-television-shows?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Apr 2019 15:00:48 +0000 Hong Kong’s chief auditor said Wednesday that nearly half of all government-funded environmental projects took more than four years to complete, exposing inadequate supervision by the city’s environmental watchdog. The Director of Audit’s twice annual report found that only 22 per cent of the projects approved by the Environment and Conservation Fund (ECF) had been completed in a year or less. The report also said 47 per cent of the 607 projects had been underway since 2014 without proper... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3006636/hong-kongs-chief-auditor-scolds-environmental?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3006636/hong-kongs-chief-auditor-scolds-environmental?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Apr 2019 16:18:27 +0000 Hongkongers go through more than 65 million tissues, 30 million sheets of paper towel and 10 million wet wipes every day while dining, all of which end up in landfills and weigh the equivalent of 12 double-decker buses in total, according to a green group. A survey by the World Green Organisation also found that Hong Kong residents lacked awareness on sustainability, with two-thirds of respondents mistakenly thinking paper towels could be recycled. Of the 500 locals over the age of 18... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3006265/hong-kong-diners-go-through-least-64-million-tissues-each-day-and-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3006265/hong-kong-diners-go-through-least-64-million-tissues-each-day-and-it?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Apr 2019 11:53:58 +0000 A controversy at a prestigious Hong Kong international school has cast light on the governance of overseas-funded schools, which have contrasting requirements for sitting board members. The German Swiss International School backed down from a plan to suspend the voting rights of non-German speaking parents sitting on its board. It made the U-turn on Wednesday, about two weeks after the plan had been revealed to the Post. The row erupted on the board of the school, which is funded by the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3006091/dispute-hong-kongs-german-swiss-international-school?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3006091/dispute-hong-kongs-german-swiss-international-school?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Apr 2019 08:01:50 +0000 Two younger siblings of a teacher who fell to her death in March at the school where she taught have expressed disappointment at the way the Education Bureau has handled the incident. The pair slammed the government for shying away from its responsibilities as their 48-year-old sister Lam Lai-tong, a Chinese and library studies teacher at TWGHs Leo Tung-hai Lee Primary School in Tin Shui Wai, was laid to rest on Saturday evening. Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung, Ken Tsoi Wing-sing,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3006053/siblings-teacher-who-fell-her-death-hong-kong-school-take?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3006053/siblings-teacher-who-fell-her-death-hong-kong-school-take?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Apr 2019 16:29:15 +0000 Hong Kong’s education chief on Friday fended off accusations that the government had been slow to react following a series of cases involving malpractice or maladministration uncovered in schools. Lawmakers gave Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung a grilling over a number of scandals at primary and secondary schools in which funds were misappropriated, pupil enrolments falsified or accounts audited unsatisfactorily. At a special sitting of the legislature’s finance committee, several... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3005940/missing-school-funds-fake-pupils-and-poor-audits-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3005940/missing-school-funds-fake-pupils-and-poor-audits-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Apr 2019 09:46:05 +0000 A self-learning robotic arm invented by a group of students at City University was the star attraction at an event showcasing new technology at the university on Tuesday, winning plaudits from a construction industry employer, who hopes it can be applied for industrial use. The innovation was one of 40 inventions shown to hundreds of employers at the event. The voice- and motion-activated digital tool called Jarvis, which is equipped with an array of grips, is trained by an AI manipulating... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3005433/praise-robotic-arm-designed-city-university-students-could?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3005433/praise-robotic-arm-designed-city-university-students-could?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Apr 2019 11:56:56 +0000 Three-quarters of more than 9,000 parents polled in a survey want a complete ban on e-cigarettes and other new tobacco products, saying a plan to choke only their supply, sale and promotion – but allow consumption – did not go far enough. The Committee on Home-School Co-operation and Federations of Parent-Teacher Associations, which released the survey results on Sunday, distributed questionnaires to parents of children in more than 100 kindergartens and primary and secondary schools on the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3005026/ban-e-cigarettes-and-other-new-tobacco-products?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3005026/ban-e-cigarettes-and-other-new-tobacco-products?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 07 Apr 2019 09:31:44 +0000 Wildlife managers in Hong Kong are to step up their fight against people who illegally feed boars and other animals, having recorded 12 cases in the past month. The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) said on Thursday that it conducted a series of special operations in feeding-ban areas such as country parks in March and saw a dozen cases of illegal feeding of wild animals, including pigs and monkeys. A department spokesman said it was still investigating the cases and it... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3004742/hong-kong-wildlife-chiefs-get-tough-people-who?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3004742/hong-kong-wildlife-chiefs-get-tough-people-who?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Apr 2019 01:00:07 +0000 Hong Kong health authorities have tightened the requirements for their airport vaccination service against measles after blood tests found almost 90 per cent of airport staff were immune to the highly contagious disease. The Centre for Health Protection came up with the new vaccination strategy to cope with the rising number of infections in the city, with most cases identified at the airport, where some 70,000 people work. The centre carried out blood tests for 100 airport workers starting from... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3004043/six-out-100-hong-kong-airport-workers-found-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3004043/six-out-100-hong-kong-airport-workers-found-be?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 Mar 2019 13:43:57 +0000 Imagine never having to wait in a queue ever again – that is the goal of two master’s students frustrated with long lines on the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology campus. The pair – Steve Ku Bon-kyung and Wu Aoyu – are using real-time human traffic flow technology in a bid to cut waiting times at cafeterias, bus stops and even the library. Their solution – the Pulse of HKUST – uses technology that collects big data through Wi-fi connections to analyse and monitor crowd distribution... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3003997/making-long-queues-thing-past-goal-two-computing-science?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3003997/making-long-queues-thing-past-goal-two-computing-science?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 Mar 2019 03:30:05 +0000 A tourist who fell to his death at the Grand Canyon while trying to take a selfie was a man from Macau travelling with a Hong Kong tour group. The Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong confirmed on Friday morning that the victim, believed to be in his 50s, was travelling with 11 others on a seven-day tour of the west coast in the US, including San Francisco, Las Vegas and Los Angeles – a trip he booked with Hong Thai Travel Services Limited in Hong Kong. The incident took place on Thursday... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3003771/tourist-who-fell-his-death-taking-selfie-grand-canyon-was?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3003771/tourist-who-fell-his-death-taking-selfie-grand-canyon-was?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Mar 2019 03:37:57 +0000 Most teenagers in the final year of secondary school in Hong Kong have never used a radio before – and it is leaving them potentially tuned out ahead of some important exams. Youth New World group, a non-profit organisation that serves students and teenagers from low-income families, interviewed 939 candidates sitting for their Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education from March to May. It found nearly 60 per cent had never used a radio, and more than 50 per cent feared unfamiliarity with radios... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3002058/gen-z-students-facing-exam-stress-because-they-dont-know?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3002058/gen-z-students-facing-exam-stress-because-they-dont-know?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Mar 2019 11:22:58 +0000 Hong Kong’s education chief has said it is inevitable that the Education Bureau would get help from the management of a school when a complaint is received against its board members, staff or the principal. Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung revealed on Sunday that the complainant’s identity may also be exposed during the handling process, but said that was only to better understand and effectively address their concerns. His admission comes nearly two weeks after the death of Lam... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3002050/school-heads-are-told-about-confidential-complaints-staff?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3002050/school-heads-are-told-about-confidential-complaints-staff?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Mar 2019 10:07:55 +0000 A Hong Kong businesswoman and her Italian husband have opened the city’s first international school using Italian-based educational techniques that eschew rote learning. The Reggio Emilia approach is an educational philosophy that allows children to learn and explore at their own pace, with teachers acting as partners in the process. Pauline Ngai Chiu-fung, co-founder of the Italian International Kindergarten, said children would learn by doing and experiencing, unlike in the local education... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3002002/kindergarten-using-reggio-emilia-approach-be-first-teach?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3002002/kindergarten-using-reggio-emilia-approach-be-first-teach?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 16 Mar 2019 13:03:27 +0000 Around 1,000 children skipped classes and took to the streets with their parents on Friday to urge the Hong Kong government to stop turning a blind eye to climate change. The marchers, including primary and secondary school students, called on the Environment Bureau to give youngsters a voice within the administration when it came to overseeing policies and driving bigger climate initiatives. The school strike was just one in a day of action by students in cities across the globe. Friday was the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3001908/hundreds-hong-kong-students-skip-school-call-action-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3001908/hundreds-hong-kong-students-skip-school-call-action-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Mar 2019 10:09:02 +0000 Hong Kong made the right decision in banning from its skies the aeroplane model involved in last week’s crash in Ethiopia, experts have said, though they added city regulators should be able to make decisions without reference to the US. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) only issued a ban on Wednesday, after regulators in about 40 countries had done so. The global action was taken after the Ethiopian Airlines crash in which Hong Kong man Victor Tsang Shing-ngai, a gender analysis... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/transport/article/3001743/hong-kongs-civil-aviation-department-should-act-without?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/transport/article/3001743/hong-kongs-civil-aviation-department-should-act-without?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Mar 2019 13:02:24 +0000 Hong Kong’s education minister has confirmed that authorities received a complaint against a primary school months before a teacher there fell to her death. On Wednesday, Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung admitted that instead of launching an investigation, the case was referred to the school’s committee for follow-up. Yeung was responding to media questions relating to the death of Lam Lai-tong, 48, a Chinese and library studies teacher at TWGHs Leo Tung-hai Lee Primary School in Tin... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3001605/complaint-against-school-received-months-teachers-death?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3001605/complaint-against-school-received-months-teachers-death?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Mar 2019 01:50:44 +0000 The governing body of a school where a teacher jumped to her death last week said he had called on the principal to come out and explain what happened, as it set up a panel to investigate working conditions before the incident. Vinci Wong Yin-chin, chairman of Tung Wah Group of Hospitals, which operates TWGHs Leo Tung-hai Lee Primary School, also pledged on his Facebook page during Tuesday’s early hours to review operations at the group’s 46 other kindergartens and schools. In an earlier... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3001243/tung-wah-group-hospitals-urged-principal-make-public?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3001243/tung-wah-group-hospitals-urged-principal-make-public?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 Mar 2019 06:09:05 +0000 Ethnic minority students in Hong Kong only understand 70 per cent of what is taught in class, a survey has found, raising concern about a lack of support for this group in the education system. Non-Chinese ethnic pupils also said they had difficulty in catching up with their peers, according to the study by the Hong Kong Policy Research Institute, a think tank which questioned some 200 such students from Primary Four to Secondary Three in 17 schools. “Results show ethnic minority students lack... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2189413/ethnic-minority-students-hong-kong-only-understand-70-cent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2189413/ethnic-minority-students-hong-kong-only-understand-70-cent?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 Mar 2019 11:40:00 +0000 Three people were injured on Sunday morning when two minibuses crashed in Aberdeen. A green-topped minibus was travelling along Shek Pai Wan Road near the Fish Marketing Organisation at about 9am, when a red-topped minibus smashed into the back of it. Police said it seemed the first bus – heading in the direction of Pok Fu Lam – was picking up a passenger when the accident happened. The woman who was boarding the bus, who was in her 40s, was lightly injured. A man, also in his 40s, was hurt... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2189376/three-injured-minibus-crash-south-hong-kong-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2189376/three-injured-minibus-crash-south-hong-kong-island?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 Mar 2019 03:05:21 +0000 Curiosity and a thirst for knowledge will drive students to become future leaders, top secondary school graduates shortlisted for a prestigious awards event have been told. Seventy candidates for the Student Of The Year Awards, organised by the South China Morning Post and Hong Kong Jockey Club, attended a CEO’s Talk last week, where they learned that a stomach for failure and being able to admit mistakes or ignorance were key to becoming successful and creative. At the talk, hosted by heads of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2189318/top-hong-kong-youth-told-hold-curiosity-and-thirst?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2189318/top-hong-kong-youth-told-hold-curiosity-and-thirst?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 Mar 2019 05:32:57 +0000 Hong Kong’s biggest group of schools catering to English-speaking children is set to adopt a new admissions system whereby pupils entering the first year at one of its kindergartens will be guaranteed a place at an ESF school all the way up to the secondary level. The English Schools Foundation announced on Friday that from 2020 students will not need to go through interviews at every stage of the education system. However, the change will only apply to students whose teachers believe they can... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2189179/children-joining-hong-kongs-esf-kindergartens-be-guaranteed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2189179/children-joining-hong-kongs-esf-kindergartens-be-guaranteed?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Mar 2019 06:59:36 +0000 A member of the public has revealed that he sounded an alert on a broken-down truck in the middle of a Hong Kong highway about 15 minutes before a double-decker bus slammed into the vehicle, killing both drivers and injuring 16 others. The Western Harbour Tunnel Company, which manages the motorway, is under increasing pressure to explain why it took nearly 45 minutes to become aware of the truck stopped in the second lane of the West Kowloon Highway on Monday morning. A “performance pledge” on... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2188839/fatal-crash-hong-kong-motorist-sounded-alert-stopped?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2188839/fatal-crash-hong-kong-motorist-sounded-alert-stopped?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Mar 2019 06:36:19 +0000 An elite girls’ school in Hong Kong has given in to angry parents who urged the Education Bureau to punish teachers after they called police to stop pupils taking photos at the campus gate on their last day. In an email to all Form Six pupils on Tuesday, St Paul’s Secondary School in Happy Valley said after careful consideration, it would open parts of the campus for its graduating class to return for two hours on Friday to take pictures. “Many of you have expressed your opinion that there was... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2188747/st-pauls-secondary-school-hong-kong-backs-down-schoolgirls?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2188747/st-pauls-secondary-school-hong-kong-backs-down-schoolgirls?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 Mar 2019 11:06:53 +0000 A graduate student expelled from Polytechnic University last week is planning a legal challenge against the decision, and has called on the institution to be more transparent with its disciplinary action. Gerald Ho Jun-him, who was in the final year of a master’s degree at the university’s nursing school, on Monday said he was innocent of accusations that he had assaulted staff. He also had not been allowed to hire a lawyer in his defence, he said. Ho is a member of the Student Independence... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2188598/hong-kong-polytechnic-university-student-plans-legal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2188598/hong-kong-polytechnic-university-student-plans-legal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Mar 2019 13:42:45 +0000 A new plan to provide more care facilities for children and the elderly will not disrupt Hong Kong’s property market, the city’s welfare chief has said. Secretary for Labour and Welfare Law Chi-kwong said on Monday about 20 private properties in the city would be acquired in a year for this purpose. “We won’t buy properties just for the sake of buying them or meeting the target, we will consider all factors such as price and location before we give it a green light,” Law said. Financial... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/2188492/hk20-billion-plan-provide-more-care-facilities-wont?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/2188492/hk20-billion-plan-provide-more-care-facilities-wont?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Mar 2019 04:50:23 +0000 Growing up in Hong Kong, Zara Campion and Emily Tarr loved going dragon boating with their parents. They weren’t especially good at the rowing part, but while their parents raced on the water the girls would soak up the sun ashore. The classmates eventually joined dragon boat teams as they got older, and with the outdoor sport came a love for nature, but also an awareness of how vulnerable it is. “We saw trash everywhere – we’d see it all out on the water and it was really gross to have plastic... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2188417/hong-kong-students-plan-school-boycott-protest-against?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2188417/hong-kong-students-plan-school-boycott-protest-against?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 Mar 2019 12:08:39 +0000 Every public secondary school in Hong Kong will have two social workers to counsel pupils in a bid to put an end to youth suicides, according to the budget unveiled by the city’s finance chief on Wednesday. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said the administration would spend HK$310 million (US$16.7 million) to implement the measure for the city’s 463 publicly funded secondary schools. According to government sources, the decision took into consideration recommendations made by the Committee... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2187939/all-publicly-funded-secondary-schools-hong-kong-get-two?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2187939/all-publicly-funded-secondary-schools-hong-kong-get-two?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Feb 2019 11:13:00 +0000 The Hong Kong Hospital Authority will hand out healthy pay rises to more than 60 per cent of its support staff in a bid to offset the shortages and extreme work hours brought on by peak flu season. A health care source said on Tuesday that the authority, which manages the city’s public hospitals, would spend at least HK$200 million (US$25.4 million) on salary increases of up to 14 per cent for about 16,000 workers, adding they would see their newly boosted paycheck as soon as April 1. “We want... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2187812/hong-kong-hospital-authority-fights-flu-season?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2187812/hong-kong-hospital-authority-fights-flu-season?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Feb 2019 15:39:35 +0000 Madina Kaliyeva arrived in Hong Kong four years ago from Kazakhstan hoping to learn how to become a successful businesswoman, she will leave with a better understanding of her place in the world and as an advocate for sustainability and change. Before travelling to the city, Kaliyeva had a rose-tinted view of what a “dynamic and highly developed” Hong Kong would be like. “I saw an international financial centre where east meets west,” she said. What the Polytechnic University student did not... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2187405/realities-life-hong-kong-rude-awakening-kazakhstan-student?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2187405/realities-life-hong-kong-rude-awakening-kazakhstan-student?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 Feb 2019 23:30:19 +0000 The head of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology said he and school staff decided after much consideration to not include the word “national” in the title of his Taiwanese alma mater in his biography but denied he was pressured to do so. Professor Wei Shyy, an alumnus of National Tsing Hua University, also said on Tuesday that as a Taiwanese, he would never do anything to betray his homeland. “We were not pressured into making the decision, there was never any discussion with anyone... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2186862/university-chief-hong-kong-says-he-was-not-under-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2186862/university-chief-hong-kong-says-he-was-not-under-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Feb 2019 01:02:46 +0000 A prominent Christian leader who vowed to clamp down on sexual harassment in Hong Kong’s churches has been removed as the supervisor at three schools operated by the Methodist Church after being accused of sexually harassing a female staff member late last year. Reverend Lo Lung-kwong, supervisor of secondary and primary schools run by the Hong Kong Methodist Church, was accused of making improper sexual advances towards a member of the teaching staff during a December 2018 meeting at the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2186698/hong-kong-methodist-church-investigates-school-supervisor?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2186698/hong-kong-methodist-church-investigates-school-supervisor?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 18 Feb 2019 14:15:45 +0000