COLLOQUIUM
Hong Kong Pre-primary Education in Transition: ‘Consultation Document of the Working Party on Harmonisation of Pre-primary Services’
KENNETH SIU WOO LEE, ANNA YEUNG ON NA,
& WONG SHUK YEE
Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU), Hong Kong SAR
ABSTRACT Hong Kong’s most recent education reform proposal is the Consultation Document of the Working Party on Harmonisation of Pre-primary Services (Consultation Document. This examines the feasibility of combining kindergarten and childcare centres and having one single body regulating them. It has stimulated great responses from the early childhood education sector. As one of the major training institutions for kindergarten teachers and childcare workers, the faculty and students of the Hong Kong Baptist University have had extensive discussions on the Consultation Document with experts in the sector. This article reviews the development and rationales of the Consultation Document and examines its recommendations on teacher training, subsidy schemes, and transition arrangements. The authors’ views and counter-proposals are also discussed.
The Education Reform in Hong Kong Background
Hong Kong, which was returned to China on 1 July 1997, is more than just one of the great cities of China. Hong Kong is a cosmopolitan metropolis that embraces both Chinese and Western cultures. In view of this, education in Hong Kong needs to leap forward into this new era. In order to accommodate more effectively the changing social environment and the needs of local families in the twenty-first century, the education system, curriculum, and pedagogy in Hong Kong have become important aspects for reform. After considering the future trends of educational development, the Education Commission (2000) therefore drafted and published the Reform Proposals for the
Education System in Hong Kong (Reform Proposals). The Reform Proposals originated from a three-stage review that commenced in early 1999:
Stage 1: ‘Aims of Education in the 21st Century’ (first round consultation:
January–March 1999)
Stage 2: ‘Direction and Overall Framework for Education Reforming in the Education System’ (second round consultation: September–December 1999) Stage 3: ‘Proposals for the Reform of the Education System’ (third round consultation: May–July 2000)
The recommendations in the Reform Proposals exert far-reaching influences on the reform of early childhood education.
The ‘Reform Proposals’
Aims of Early Childhood Education
The Reform Proposals regard early childhood education as the foundation for lifelong learning and as an important stage for all-round development. Children should cultivate a positive attitude towards learning and good living habits in an inspiring and enjoyable environment.
The reform objectives are:
(a) for children to develop curiosity and an inquisitive mind as well as an interest to learn;
(b) for children to develop a sense of responsibility and respect for others;
(c) for children to have a balanced development in the domains of ethics, intellect, physique, social skills, and aesthetics;
(d) to prepare children to experiment and explore;
(e) to prepare children to learn to face up to problems and find solutions;
(f) to prepare children to develop self-confidence and a healthy self-concept.
Early Childhood Education System
Currently, early childhood education providers in Hong Kong include full-day and half-day kindergartens and childcare centres. They are subject to two different sets of legislation and are regulated by the Education Department and the Social Welfare Department respectively. In fulfilling the needs of different people in Hong Kong, kindergartens and childcare centres have developed their unique way of providing services. While the former have been giving the general public the impression that they focus on providing education, the latter focus on providing childcare services. However, it was suggested in the Reform Proposals that the Education Department and the Social Welfare Department form a joint working party to examine the feasibility of having one governmental department to regulate and monitor all kindergartens and childcare centres.
Professional Standards of Early Childhood Education
The Education Commission realised that the professional competence of early childhood educators determines the quality of early childhood education. It therefore recommended upgrading the professional standards of both teachers and principals of kindergartens, and workers and supervisors of childcare centres through raising entry requirements and strengthening professional training.
The entry requirements, effective from the 2001/2002 school year, were raised from two passes in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education examination to five passes (including Chinese and English languages). Over time they are to be continually upgraded by stages to levels of Higher Diploma, Certificate of Education (Early Childhood Education) and Associate degree. It was also recommended that, when appropriate, the entry requirements would be raised to the level of a Bachelor’s degree.
For the strengthening of professional training, the Education Commission drew up a timetable requiring all serving kindergarten teachers to complete recognised courses. For kindergarten principals and childcare centre supervisors, the Education Commission also required that all new recruits must have completed the Certificate of Early Childhood Education course by September 2002.
In order to implement the above recommendations, the Hong Kong Government and teacher training institutions of early childhood education were urged to provide more courses and to foster a mechanism for transferring academic qualifications.
Modes of Financial Assistance for Early Childhood Education
The Hong Kong Government has been providing both parents and non-profit- making kindergartens and childcare centres with financial assistance of various kinds. When the Education Commission drafted the education system Reform Proposals in 1999, one of the suggestions received during the public consultation periods was to have the Hong Kong Government furnish full subventions for early childhood education as well as 50 per cent subventions for the salaries of qualified kindergarten teachers.
However, the Education Commission believed that subventions would not guarantee the quality of early childhood education. Instead, it believed that quality would be improved more directly and effectively with reform measures aimed at education itself. The Education Commission therefore recommended the following principles of subventions for children, parents, and operators:
• to ensure that no children will be deprived of receiving early childhood education due to their family’s financial situation;
• to enhance the subsidies to parents, i.e. relaxing the means-tested assistance schemes and increasing the amount of subventions so as to benefit more families;
• to increase objectively and appropriately the subsidies to non-profit-making service providers, which will encourage their teachers to upgrade their professional levels.
As a result of the Reform Proposals, the Education Department and the Social Welfare Department set up the Working Party on Harmonisation of Pre- primary Services (the Working Party) to study actively the feasibility of having one single body regulating all kindergartens and childcare centres. To further explore the development of pre-primary education, the Working Party published a consultation document (Consultation Document) in April 2002 to seek input from educational professionals (Education Department and Social Welfare Department, 2002). Due to the large amount of feedback, the two- month consultation period was extended to 31 July of the same year.
The ‘Consultation Document’
Responses
With regard to the recommendations in the Consultation Document (Education Department and Social Welfare Department, 2002), views from the sector can be consolidated as follows:
1. Functions of day crèches are being denied
The document points out that day crèches are primarily to cater for families and are not to be education-oriented (Education Department and Social Welfare Department, 2002).
2. Staffing ratio will be lowered
The statutory staff to children ratio is 1:14. The document recommends adopting the ratio of 1:15 for all children aged two to six as the minimum standard (Education Department and Social Welfare Department, 2002).
3. Problems of integration for kindergartens-cum-day nurseries: the PIPIs and the SQSs
Kindergartens-cum-day nurseries that serve children aged two to six will have to follow different regulations in respect of services for children aged two to three and three to six, but will only have to deal with one joint office staffed by Education Department and Social Welfare Department officers (Ming Pao, 26-27 April 2002, 18 May 2002, 1 June 2002).
4. Teacher qualifications: transferability remains in doubt
There are many unqualified pre-primary staff who can not achieve the governmental requirements, which are to pass five subjects in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education examination. The document expects that by September 2004 staff will attain the target of a fully trained pre-primary workforce (Newsletter of the Hong Kong Childcare Worker Association, 2002).
5. Professional ladder will be degraded, eventually sacrificing education quality The document recommends that the kindergartens and childcare centres should encourage and facilitate their staff to acquire higher qualifications,
such as a Certificate of Education (Early Childhood Education) or an Associate (but not a Bachelor’s) degree in Early Childhood Education (Hong Kong Professional Teacher Union, 2002).
6. Additional expenses for parents: charging lunch fees and school fees separately Lunch fees are presently included in the fees of the full-day school setting.
The document suggests that the cost of food and employing a cook or cooks should be reflected in the lunch fee, which should be charged separately (Hong Kong Professional Teacher Union, 2002).
7. Modes of schooling will be changed: subsidising half-day schools and thus making full-day schools shift to half-day mode (Newsletter of the Hong Kong Childcare Worker Association, 2002)
8. Competition will be intensified between the present childcare centres and kindergartens
The document recommends that service providers may operate kindergartens and childcare centres at the same venue under the auspices of two ordinances (Sing Tao Daily News, 25 May 2002).
Discussion
Many of the recommendations in the Consultation Document are based on the Reform Proposals. Some of the more controversial ones are discussed as follows (see also Appendix 1).
Staff to Children Ratio of Early Childhood Education
In Hong Kong, childcare centres comprise day crèches and day nurseries. The former provide services for children from birth to the age of two, whereas the latter serve children aged two to six. Both services give the public the impression that the emphasis is on care. At present, the staff to children ratios in day crèches and day nurseries are 1:8 and 1:14 respectively.
Kindergartens are for children aged three to six and emphasise education.
At the beginning of the 2001/2002 school year, the teacher to pupil ratio began to be improved to 1:15 in phases over three years. It was suggested that, when appropriate, operators might consider adopting a more generous staffing ratio to give children more individual attention.
As recommended in the Consultation Document, the Social Welfare Department is to regulate the care-oriented services for children aged below three. These institutions will be called childcare centres. The Education Department is to regulate the education-oriented services for children aged between three and six. These institutions will be called kindergartens. In order to cater for the different needs of Hong Kong people, the Consultation Document also recommends that the same institution might operate both a day nursery and a kindergarten. These kindergartens-cum-day nurseries will have dual registration under the Education Ordinance (1996) and the Child Care Services Ordinance (1996).
Professional Level of Early Childhood Education
Currently, at least 60 per cent of teachers from all kindergartens have completed their training and two-thirds of workers from all childcare centres have finished their training. In order to strengthen the quality of pre-primary education, the Hong Kong Government has promised to provide more courses for the Certificate of Education or Associate degree through local tertiary and vocational institutions. The vision here is to raise continuously the qualifications and professional level of pre-primary educators. The Consultation Document requests that from August 2003 all new recruits will have had pre- service training. It also requests that by the 2004/2005 school year all pre- primary educators must possess the relevant qualifications.
Modes of Financial Assistance for Early Childhood Education
The financial assistance for parents and children includes the Child Care Centre Fee Assistance Scheme (CCCFAS) and the Kindergarten Fee Remission Scheme (KGFRS). The two schemes have very different objectives. To be eligible for the CCCFAS, a family has to demonstrate a social need for childcare, for example to release the single parent to go out to work. It provides assistance with no preset ceiling on family incomes. The KGFRS is to ensure that no children will be deprived of kindergarten education due to a lack of means.
Applicants are not required to prove their social need. Children attending for both half days and full days are eligible at rates appropriate to half-day and full- day sessions.
Since childcare centres and kindergartens are both offering similar services, the Working Party proposes to adopt a single means-testing mechanism, which is also for students up to tertiary level, to determine what financial assistance should be provided for young children. Accordingly, it also recommends that the ambit of the KGFRS be expanded to replace the CCCFAS and that it be processed centrally, thus covering children from birth to the age of six.
The Hong Kong Government also provides financial assistance to non- profit-making operators. Non-profit-making kindergartens, day nurseries, and day crèches are eligible for reimbursement of rent, rates, and government rent so that their fees do not have to increase substantially. In 1982, a five per cent Subsidy Scheme was introduced to aid day nurseries and day crèches. It has been providing them with financial assistance to cover cash-flow problems that arise from fluctuations in enrolment and to meet unexpected increases in operating costs. In addition, aided non-profit day nurseries or day crèches may apply to the Lotteries Fund for renovation and repair of their premises, for purchase or replacement of furniture and equipment, or for grants for new projects and fitting-out works.
Since kindergartens and childcare centres (i.e. day nurseries and day crèches) are both offering services to pre-primary children, the Working Party
recommends having the same mechanism for determining financial assistance for both of them. In fact, the recommendation is to have the ambit of the Kindergarten Subsidy Scheme expanded to cover childcare centres and replace the five per cent Subsidy Scheme. All non-profit-making operators may continue to receive reimbursement of rent, rates, and government rent for accommodation appropriate to their approved capacity.
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In view of the development of Hong Kong society and the aim to attain excellence in education reform, we appreciate the Hong Kong Government’s concerns and efforts in upgrading pre-primary education. First we had the Reform Proposals and now we have the Consultation Document – both reports conducted studies and analyses of the reform and development of pre-primary education. During their public consultation periods, the two reports provoked great responses from the sector.
With respect to the views mentioned earlier, it can be seen that the sector is very much concerned not only with the staffing ratio, modes of subsidy, teacher qualifications, and professional development, but also with the beliefs, quality monitoring, and school environment of pre-primary education. In addition, we, the Teacher Education Division of the School of Continuing Education at Hong Kong Baptist University, are concerned about the long-term goal and strategies of combining kindergartens and childcare centres, the transition arrangements, and the changes to governmental departments. As one of the major training institutions of kindergarten teachers and childcare centre workers in Hong Kong, we greatly appreciate the Government’s determination in upgrading the quality of pre-primary education as well as its sincerity in solving the problem left from history. However, after studying the Consultation Document carefully, we found that the Working Party’s considerations on harmonisation have not been thorough, and such inadequacy leaves us worried. We are concerned that while the Hong Kong Government is attempting to solve the problem, more problems shall arise.
We therefore have to express our concerns.
Conclusion
As the Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong’s unique cultural background is a prominent influence on its educational planning. With respect to pre-primary education, the Hong Kong Government should decide whether the childcare services for children from birth to the age of two be included in it. The decision should be based on Hong Kong’s cultural characteristics, with the experiences of other countries and regions drawn on for reference. One size does not fit all; there is no ideal pre-primary education model that suits all countries and regions. In view of the research about children’s growth and educational needs, the Government has been spending
too little. We believe that quality pre-primary education, which starts from birth, will lay the foundation for people of the twenty-first century. The influence of quality pre-primary education will last for generations and therefore its planning needs to be decided by all the people in a society.
Apart from this, if the Hong Kong Government is serious in unifying pre- primary education, it cannot be something like a ‘half-dragon and half-snake’.
With the same subsidy scheme, regulation and monitoring must be administered equally to kindergartens and childcare centres. We hope that the Hong Kong Government will unify the Education Ordinance and the Child Care Services Ordinance through legislation of a new ordinance, and thus one single authority would regulate both kindergartens and childcare centres. This would be more appropriate for the people of Hong Kong.
As to changing the staff to children ratio in day nurseries from 1:14 to 1:15, it will inevitably affect the quality of services. We regard such a recommendation as degeneration. If we look back to the 1970s when the Child Care Services Ordinance was legislated, the staffing ratios in day crèches and day nurseries were stipulated as 1:8 and 1:14 respectively. These requirements have been maintained for 30 years and today there will be no progression, but regression for no reason. The consensus on quality assurance which existed in the society of that time is now lost.
Lastly, what is most distressing to our Teacher Education Division is the degradation of teacher education. The Working Party recommends that the kindergartens and childcare centres should encourage and facilitate their staff to acquire higher qualifications such as a Certificate of Education (Early Childhood Education) or an Associate (but not a Bachelor’s) degree in Early Childhood Education. The Hong Kong Government declared about two years ago that the level of qualifications for early childhood teachers would be raised to that of a Bachelor’s degree. Where has this ambition gone? While the words were still echoing, the Hong Kong Government withdrew its subsidies to Hong Kong universities for Associate degree programmes. What is left behind is only the beautiful slogan ‘Learning for Life’. With our most sincere wishes for the development of Hong Kong early childhood education, we hope that the Hong Kong Government reorients itself to reaffirm the importance of teacher training. After all, teacher quality, and hence teachers’ professional development, is a fortress that cannot be lost.
Correspondence
Kenneth Lee Siu Woo, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong.
References
Education Commission (2000) Learning for Life, Learning through Life: reform proposals for the education system in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Government Printer.
Education Department (1996) Guide to the Pre-primary Curriculum. Hong Kong:
Government Printer.
Education Department and Social Welfare Department (2000) Performance Indicators for Pre-primary Institutions. Hong Kong: Government Printer.
Education Department and Social Welfare Department (2002) Consultation Document of the Working Party on Harmonisation of Pre-primary Services. Hong Kong:
Government Printer.
Hong Kong Childcare Worker Association (2002) Newsletter, issue 23. Hong Kong:
Hong Kong Childcare Worker Association.
Hong Kong Government (1996) Code of Practice. Child Care Services Ordinance and Regulations. Hong Kong: Government Printer.
Hong Kong Government (1996) Education Ordinance. Hong Kong: Government Printer.
Hong Kong Professional Teacher Union (2002) Issue 432. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Professional Teacher Union.
Ming Pao (26-27 April 2002, 18 May 2002, 1 June 2002). Hong Kong: Ming Pao.
OMEP-Hong Kong (1996) Service Quality Standards. Hong Kong: OMEP-Hong Kong.
Sing Tao Daily News, 25 May 2002.
APPENDIX 1
Major Operational Differences between Existing Day Nurseries and Kindergartens
Aspects Day nurseries (DNs) Kindergartens (KGs) Major operational issues
Admission age Children aged two to six Children aged three to six
Flexibility allowed to admit children having reached the age of two years eight months on 31 August of the year
Childcare centre:
children from birth to age three – more care-oriented
Kindergarten:
children aged three to six – more education- oriented
Staff to children ratio
1:14 at all levels for both half-day or full-day programmes
For the current school year:
1:15 for nursery classes; 1:20 for full-day lower and upper KG classes; and 1:30 for half- day lower and upper KG classes
The improved ratio of 1:15 extended to lower KG classes in the 2002/2003 school year
In the 2003/2004 school year the improved ratio of 1:15 extended to all KG classes Trained staff At least two or three of the
total number of staff of the centre should be trained
At least 60 per cent of the teachers should be qualified KG teachers
From August 2003 new recruits for both DNs and KGs must have received pre- service training
Financial assistance:
for parents
for operators
Child Care Centre Fee Assistance Scheme (CCCFAS)
Reimbursement of rent, rates, and government rent
Five per cent Subsidy Scheme
Capital grant for initial fitting-out, furniture, and equipment (Lotteries Fund grants)
Major repairs,
replacement of furniture and equipment (Lotteries Fund grants)
Kindergarten Fee Remission Scheme (KGFRS)
Reimbursement for rent, rates and government rent Kindergarten Subsidy Scheme
Enhance the KGFRS from the 2002/2003 school year
The new KGFRS should be expanded to replace the CCCFAS and cover children from birth to age six
Five per cent Subsidy Scheme for childcare centres (CCCs) will no longer be in place
The Kindergarten Subsidy Scheme should be expanded to cover CCCs
