INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION Spotlight on Hong Kong


Hong Kong’s exam system used to mirror that of the UK


until a recent move to raise the participation age and test later. Ann Puntis takes a look


U


K reflections on A levels and their role in equipping students for university show just how complex the relationship is between an end-of-school qualification and its many stakeholders. Discussions raise questions of


purpose – do A levels exist to enable student selection, to prepare for employment, or to provide the essential skills for university study? And if we are talking about the needs of universities, do we mean the universities that make up the Russell Group or others? And what role should employers play in the reform of A levels? Do students have a voice in determining the shape of the courses they take? If all of that sounds complex, it is worth remembering


that what’s at stake is simply a revision, a repositioning of an established and successful qualification. Hong Kong, on the other hand, has for almost a


decade been going through such a massive system change that any UK A level review pales in comparison. Students in Hong Kong will, for the first time this


June, sit the new Hong Kong Diploma in Secondary Education and mark the culmination of a long and complex educational change. So what’s different? Well, pretty much everything. The new Diploma


represents a complete redesign of the interface between school and university. Hong Kong’s qualification system used to be


similar to the UK’s with an examination linked to IGCSE (the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination – HKCEE) taken after five years of secondary education, and an AS and A level structure taken after two more years. The HKCEE has been discontinued entirely and the


Hong Kong A level examination was offered for the last time earlier this year. Both qualifications have been replaced by a single, new examination taken at 17. Degree courses in Hong Kong universities have


been extended by one year in consequence – and the school leaving age has been raised by an additional year, from 16 to 17, so that all students will be entered for the new examination. That is almost a doubling of candidates when compared with the former A level examination. In part, the new system aligns Hong Kong more


closely with the structures of mainland China but the development should not be seen as a formulaic adoption of an existing model. The educational changes introduced in the new examination go much further than that.


Don’t ban unhealthy food Psycho babble


SO, ACADEMIES are breaking the rules by selling unhealthy foods that are currently banned from the mainstream sector. What horrors are on sale? Fruit juice drinks, crisps, chocolate and cereal bars that contain too much sugar. Nine out of 10 academies are apparently guilty of this sin, and there is uproar. I am a Jamie groupie; I love what he’s done to


educate our students about healthy eating. On a recent school trip with my son’s primary school, I was genuinely distressed to see what some parents considered to be a healthy lunch for a seven-year-old (a bot- tle of Ribena and two packets of crisps comprised one child’s lunch; another had two pieces of white bread and a packet of Jammie Dodgers). It goes without saying that children


need good quality fuel to learn, con- centrate and even get through the day without a meltdown. It’s also obvi- ous that schools are forced to fill gaps where parents have proved inadequate, hence ensuring that good stuff is on offer, when none might be available at home. In the primary system, this is essential. Secondary school is, however,


quite another matter. Our job is not to “ban” foods that are readily avail- able 10 metres from the gate. Kids need to learn to make healthy choices (which involves making decisions), not operate in a rarefied world that simply doesn’t exist elsewhere. We need to find methods to teach them the benefits of healthy food in a way that appeals and inspires, and encourage them to understand the differences between healthy and unhealthy food. A good starting point is teaching the 80:20 rule. If


80 per cent of what they eat is healthy, the rest can be less so. This is an achievable goal, and actually reflects the fact that kids and adults alike do eat a bit of junk from time to time. How many adults never eat a bar of chocolate or sip a sweet drink? There is absolutely no point in creating a false environment where the rules cannot be applied to real life. Consider, too, how “bad” these foods are. A muesli


bar may be high in sugar, but it also dried fruit, nuts and oats. Chocolate – particularly dark chocolate


– contains a host of minerals that are conducive to healthy growth and learning, and a host of studies have found that a little chocolate can raise endorphins (happy hormones), thus lifting mood. No primary school child needs a bottle of Ribena for lunch, but, sugar aside, this drink contains proportionately more vitamin C than just about any other drink available, including fresh fruit juices. Having a variety of different foods


available encourages students to make choices; truth be told, if they can’t buy them at school, they are more than likely to pick them up en route or after- wards. Making something “ille-


gal” also tends to make it that much more attrac- tive. We need to edu- cate and then put faith in our students; trust and positive expecta- tions go much further


than stripping them of rights to make their own choices and decisions. Asking kids to come


up with their own eating plans, geared to their life- styles and interests, is one way to address it. Providing them with details of studies that actually prove how food can help fitness, health and every- thing else, works well, too – such as research showing that sipping water during exams can boost grades.


Obesity is definitely a growing problem here and


internationally, but removing foods completely from our diets has been proved to create cravings and even obsessions. No diet will ever be perfect, and the key to healthy eating involves finding and establishing a bal- ance. Secondary schools should trust their students to make the right choices. Students must learn to operate in the world that exists beyond the school gates and that, ultimately, is what education is all about.


• Karen Sullivan is a best-selling author, psychologist and childcare expert. She returns in June.


Hong Kong – the Education Bureau and the


Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA), working with educational consultants from all over the world – has sought to ensure that the new examination represents education and assessment best practice. It has been designed to encourage greater


authenticity of assessment with more opportunities for school-based assessment, applied learning options, an emphasis on cross-curriculum thinking and the development of skills. There is a lot that is impressive. The Diploma rewards a broad curriculum – most candidates will take four core subjects plus two or three elective subjects. Criteria-reference reporting has been introduced providing a detailed transcript of a student’s achievement. Performance at the top is finely differentiated – with a 5** and 5* reporting structure where a Grade 5 is the Grade A equivalent. The curriculum itself has been redesigned. There


is an assessment framework of 24 new subjects, including a cross-curriculum liberal studies curriculum and assessment which is compulsory within the four core subjects. The nearest equivalent to liberal studies in the UK


might be A level general studies, critical-thinking or the Cambridge Pre-U global perspectives suite. Liberal studies reflects “an issue-enquiry approach in curriculum development” and has “taken into account overseas experiences in cross-disciplinary studies, pertaining in particular to critical-thinking, life education, values education and civic education, with due consideration given to their relevance in the Hong Kong content”. The time given to liberal studies is significant –


approximately 10 per cent of total lesson time in the senior secondary curriculum, slightly less if schools combine its teaching with language learning, for example, or with moral and civic education. There are Applied Learning Subjects which


recognise that students taking the new Diploma require a wider range of subjects than was previously available at A level. And yes, there are media studies options, creative studies (including a catchily titled option “Taking a chance on dance”), service sector options, and a range of industry-approved engineering courses. It is hard not to be impressed by the design coherence


of the HK Diploma of Secondary Education. Its developers have taken every opportunity to introduce a new and exciting curriculum. The sheer wave of initiatives that the development


embodies is breath-taking when seen from a UK perspective. There is every indication that the HKEAA is determined to remain responsive to feedback from those engaged in teaching and learning. For example, the inclusion of school-based


assessment scores in the final Diploma grading has caused teachers some anxiety and HKEAA has been quick to defer its introduction for a couple of years rather than to push through against teacher concerns. Hong Kong will watch with great interest as


the first Diploma students take their examinations this June. There is a lot at stake. As an exam board colleague I wish them well in this auspicious Dragon year. I am not sure whether to envy the breadth of their educational vision or sympathise with the extent of system change required to make it work!


SecEd


• Ann Puntis is chief executive of University of Cambridge International Examinations.


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SecEd • May 24 2012 7


Photo: www.sxc.hu (Dieter Vander Velpen)


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