EdUHK Partners with HKEP to Launch Teaching Materials on Basic Law and National Security Education
The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) will, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Educational Publishing Company (HKEP), launch a set of teaching materials this August in phases to promote the Basic Law and national security education.
Presented in a lively and systematic approach, these materials aim to facilitate students’ learning of the origins, basic concepts and contextual backgrounds of the Basic Law. Special emphasis will be placed on the learning needs at different levels during primary schooling, with a view to nurturing students to become responsible citizens respecting the rule of law with a positive attitude towards the development of the country.
A project team comprising curriculum development experts and frontline educators has been formed to compile and produce the materials, with EdUHK President Professor Stephen Cheung Yan-leung, Special Adviser to the EdUHK President Mr Tai Hay-lap, EdUHK’s Chair Professor of Hong Kong Studies Professor Lui Tai-lok, Professor Albert Chen Hung-yee from the University of Hong Kong’s Faculty of Law and former convenor of the Basic Law Promotion Steering Committee Working Group on Teachers and Students Dr Simon Lee Hoey, as project advisers.
Primary school students will be taught in five major learning areas with contents adapted from daily lives, namely “Constitutional and Basic Law Education”, “National Security Education”, “National Security Law”, “Rule of Law” and “Citizenship Education”. In addition to legal knowledge, Chinese culture and history, the national flag and national emblem, an overview of national development, as well as global topical issues will be covered. Together with a 24-episode animated video series, there will be a comprehensive set of study manuals developed for four units for each school year group, in addition to worksheets, lesson plans and power-point slides.
At a seminar held today (30 May), Professor Cheung, Mr Tai and Ms Cheng Lai-kuen, Vice Principal, F.D.B.W.A. Chow Chin Yau School elaborated on the project’s background, objectives and approaches when addressing participants from the primary school sector. This was followed by a briefing by the production team.
“Teaching the Basic Law in primary schools is by no means easy, given its historical context as well as legalistic concepts and clauses. The implementation of the national security education, in particular, has posed added challenges to frontline teachers. The project team has therefore devised a ‘SIR’ approach in ensuring that the teaching contents will be ‘Structured’, ‘Interesting’ and ‘Relevant’,” said Professor Cheung.
He said, “This year marks the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. We are pleased to see EdUHK play a role in the promotion of the Basic Law and national security education, and we look forward to working with the school sector in cultivating students’ global perspectives and affection for their country.”
Apart from primary schools, EdUHK will soon launch another set of materials tailored to kindergartens to start Basic Law education at an early stage. As for pre-service teacher training, there are elements of the Basic Law and national security education incorporated into the University’s compulsory General Education curriculum, field experience and education studies, on top of numerous exchange opportunities in the Mainland offered to all undergraduate students. Plans are also afoot to provide school-based consultancy services for in-service teachers to strengthen their knowledge of the subject.
* August 2022 (for P1 and P4), February 2023 (for P2 and P5) and August 2023 (for P3 and P6).
EdUHK Partners with HKEP to Launch Teaching Materials on Basic Law and National Security Education
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