A riddle is currently circulating on campus – what does 15, 70 and 128 stand for? People who are familiar with HKIEd’s history will know the answer with a few simple calculations.
15: The HKIEd was formally established in April 1994 with the amalgamation of five former colleges of education – Northcote College of Education, Grantham College of Education, Sir Robert Black College of Education, the Hong Kong Technical Teachers' College and the Institute of Language in Education. 2009 will be the Institute’s 15th Anniversary.
70: Northcote Training College was established in 1939, the oldest of the five former Colleges of Education. 2009 is the College’s 70th Anniversary.
128: The historical roots of HKIEd can be traced back to 1881, when the first Government Normal School was established in Wan Chai, by the then Governor of Hong Kong, Sir John Pope Hennessy. Our teacher training heritage has therefore been in place for 128 years. |
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| Officiating and distinguished guests at the Ceremony included Mr Michael Suen, Secretary for Education, Education Bureau; Professor Pan Yong-hua, Director General of Education, Science and Technology Department, Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR; the Honourable Cheung Man-kwong, Member, Legislative Council; and Mr Chu King-yuen, Representative, Tai Po District Council cum Chairman, Tai Po District Primary School Heads Association; as well as Dr Simon Ip, Founding Council Chairman of HKIEd. Also present were our media partners in the celebration programme, members of the education community, along with Council and Academic Board members, as well as hundreds of faculty staff, students and alumni.
Two special TV advertisements featuring Mr Frederick Ma Si-hang, former Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, and Mr Lowell Lo Koon-ting, composer-cum-singer, made their debut during the Ceremony. The advertisements, which highlight the importance of education and the contribution of teachers, served as a kick-off for the celebration activities of “Education Year”. |
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| “Education Year” embraces a series of academic conferences and community events. Amongst them was the Parent-Teacher Summit 2008 held in early November, which brought more than 300 parents and teachers together to explore the roles of parents in a changing education environment (please see separate article). A series of Education Matters public lectures, commencing from November onwards, also invites both local and international personalities to share their views on various issues and topics of public concern. In addition, the HKIEd will be hosting the Asian Roundtable of Presidents of Universities of Education in mid-2009. Around 50 presidents and senior management from Asia’s major education universities and institutions are expected to attend this roundtable to exchange views on the future development of education within the region. |
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| Another highlight within “Education Year” is our Education Heritage Project, which comprises the collection of historic documents and artifacts related to Hong Kong’s education history, the compilation of the oral history of Hong Kong’s education heritage, a conference and an exhibition. In the long term, we intend to extend this project into a permanent museum for Hong Kong’s education history, paying tribute to the valuable contributions of teachers in Hong Kong. Conserving Hong Kong’s education history will allow the public to better understand the different challenges to education at various points in history, and to think ahead on how education in Hong Kong should be positioned into the future. To accomplish this task and coordinate the project, we have set up an Advisory Committee, consisting of an ex-director of the Education Department, cultural heritage enthusiasts, museum specialists, and our own alumni. |
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| To further enhance public awareness on education, we will be working with Cable TV to produce a feature programme, consisting of two episodes on education heritage and development. The Institute has also joined hands with Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK), to co-produce a radio programme called “Humans and Human Touch”. This programme, first broadcast on 13 October, will be aired over three months on RTHK Radio 1.
For detailed activities of “Education Year”, please visit our 15th Anniversary Celebration Website at http://www.ied.edu.hk/15a/ |
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| Mr Frederick Ma Si-hang, former Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development. |
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| “No Orphans!” About 200 HKIEd students, dolls in hand, petitioned Mr Michael Suen, Secretary for Education, Education Bureau, when he attended the Institute’s 15th Anniversary Celebration Launch Ceremony, seeking official endorsement for HKIEd’s quest for university status. The peaceful and orderly demonstration displayed the students’ genuine concern for the future of their alma mater, and their courage in taking matters into their own hands to express their views. It also demonstrated the power and the fruits of education, providing a colourful addition to the continuing fanfare at the Launch Ceremony. |
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| Mr Kenneth Chen Wei-on (left, front row), Under Secretary for Education; and Professor Anthony Cheung (right, front row), President, HKIEd sign the joint declaration on home-school cooperation at the opening ceremony of the Parent-Teacher Summit 2008. |
Home is where children receive their first education input, and parents are their first role models of learning. School, on the other hand, carries an important mission – the systematic nurturing of the next generation outside the family hierarchy. Family education is as important as school education. If a partnership can be formed between the two, fostering closer collaboration in educating the next generation, the impact could be doubled.
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| Taiwanese specialist on family-school cooperation, Ms Chin Hsiu-lan |
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As such, we organised a Parent-Teacher Summit on 8 November 2008, with support from the Education Bureau, the Committee on Home-School Co-operation (CHSC), and the Federation of Parent-Teacher Associations in 17 districts. A major event in our 15th Anniversary celebrations, the Summit provided a platform for exchange among overseas experts, local academics and experienced educators through keynote speeches, topical seminars and group discussions. Seeking to merge academic research with frontline experience, the Summit thoroughly explored the development, direction, challenges and opportunities for parent-teacher cooperation. Fostering home-school cooperation and raising social concerns with regard to its importance were the Summit’s ultimate goals.
Two renowned academics were invited to give keynote speeches at the event. Professor Cheng Yin-cheong, HKIEd Vice President (Research and Development) was one of the keynote speakers, addressing the “Challenges to our Children’s Future ﹣ the Prospects of Parent-Teacher Partnership”. Based on international and local trends, Professor Cheng analysed the various challenges and opportunities faced by our children under the impact of globalisation. He pointed out that as fundamental changes have taken place in the target and content of learning, parents and teachers must adjust their roles accordingly. Only in this way can our children, when faced with challenges, be blessed with a better environment for continuous growth, together with the ability and creative power for life-long and sustainable development.
Ms Chin Hsiu-lan from Taiwan was the second keynote speaker. In her speech entitled “Parent-Teacher (Community) Cooperation - Taiwan’s Experience and Future Challenges”, Ms Chin discussed Taiwan’s experiences – that the value of a school is determined by the quality of service it provides to its community. To pursue parent-teacher cooperation is to seek the “common good”, a new philosophical concept in itself. In her speech, Ms Chin touched on the path trodden by parent-teacher cooperations in the name of love, and elaborated on the schools’ practical experiences during different stages of their operations. Ms Chin described the current situation and the bottlenecks encountered in the implementation of the parent-teacher cooperation programme in Taiwan, and also outlined the mission for future school workers in this aspect. Ms Chin is a winner of the Excellence Award in the Teachers’ Professional Attainments Action Research Project sponsored by Taiwan’s Education Bureau. Her expertise is in parent-teacher cooperation, modelled under the administrative planning of schools. |
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