Maturity
and advancement
The academic year
2002-03 will go down in the Institute's history as a
landmark. After nine years of intensive development,
we have reached a new stage of maturity that has been
recognised by the University Grants Committee (UGC).
The UGC commissioned an international panel
to conduct a Teaching and Learning Quality Process Review
(TLQPR) in June 2002 and their report stated:
The Panel feels that HKIEd has now
reached a point of maturity where internal quality
assurance and improvement processes are operating
at a level that provides confidence in the quality
of its programmes and graduates. (TLQPR 2003)
The Panel commended our robust and comprehensive
internal systems which ensure a strong and unwavering
commitment to quality control and assurance.
The success of this exercise moves us closer
to becoming a self-accrediting university-level institution
which was the goal of Education Commission Report No.5
and has been central to the Institute's planning. An
Institutional Review, to decide whether we are self-accrediting,
constitutes the final step in the process of upgrading.
The UGC decided in early 2003 to embark on such a Review.
The achievement of self-accrediting status
is necessary not only to enhance the status and professionalisation
of teaching in Hong Kong, but also to allow us to compete
more effectively with other institutions and respond
more flexibly to meet the ever-changing needs of the
community. Unfortunately the Review was delayed by the
SARS outbreak, and was rescheduled for October 2003.
High employment
in a tough environment
We endeavour to ensure that our graduates are well equipped
to obtain employment upon graduation. Their employment
injects new energy into the profession, supports curriculum
reform and serves as a testimonial to the effectiveness
and relevance of the programmes we offer.
Despite a declining school age population,
especially in the primary school sector, our employment
survey completed in early 2003 revealed that 95% of
our 2002 graduates had secured a job or were pursuing
further studies. Amongst them, the highest employment
rate (98%) was for the first cohort of our Bachelor
of Education (Honours) (Primary) Programme.
Within the reporting year, we conducted
a study in which 385 school principals who had employed
our 2001 and 2002 graduates were surveyed. This revealed
that they were generally satisfied with our graduates'
performance and, in particular, were highly appreciative
of those attributes they deemed as most important for
teachers, namely a sense of responsibility, a willingness
to learn, an enthusiastic working attitude, effective
use of Chinese in the classroom, the ability to work
collaboratively, and their knowledge of the major subjects
they taught.
|