In the past, Hong Kong education was closely modeled on the UK

system. This is hardly surprising since Hong Kong was administered by

Britain from 1841 to 1997, when the former UK colony was handed back to
China. However, since 1997, the education system taught in local schools has
undergone a series of changes. While some of these changes have reflected
different language of instruction policies, there have also been changes to the
senior secondary curriculum. The new model, brought in at the beginning of
the 2009/10 academic year, is now more in line with those found in China and
even the USA.
While there are nine years of compulsory schooling in Hong Kong, six in primary school
and three in junior secondary school, the Hong Kong government has made it easier,
and therefore more likely, that the majority of students will receive 12 years of
education. The removal of fees and one series of public exams in senior secondary
school is a move which will make a full twelve years’ of education a much more
accessible option for a great number of students.
There has always been schooling beyond the years of
compulsory education. The majority of students attend
3 years of kindergarten (K1 – K3) before attending
primary school. Under the new secondary system, the
three years of junior secondary is followed by three
years of senior secondary. This leads to the HKDSE
(Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education) exams.
Students gain entry to a range of post-secondary,
vocational and tertiary courses offered by a variety of
institutions based on the results of the HKDSE. The
majority of courses offered by Hong Kong universities
have undergone a change in structure for students
graduating with the HKDSE. Courses are now 4 year
programmes in response to the change from four
years to three years in senior secondary school.

The schools provided by the Hong Kong Education Department (EDB – Education
Bureau) can be divided into three main groups: government schools; subsidized
schools, which are usually administered by charitable bodies; and private schools run
by different organizations where admission is more often decided by academic merit
(schools such as DBC and DGS are example of these types of schools).

Aside from the government system, there are private independent schools. The style of
education, the language(s) of instruction and the international curricula offered by these
schools appeal to both expatriate and local parents.  Many of these schools have
waiting lists and all charge higher (and in many cases, much higher) tuition fees than
local schools.

In the past, the local education system has been very exam-orientated. However, in
recent years there have been some moves towards fewer exams ad more continuous
and formative assessment.  Schools usually have a strict discipline code and virtually all
students wear school uniform.

Primary schools used to be separated into morning (AM) and afternoon (PM) schools as
a method of dealing with the problems of a lack of space and the large student
numbers. However, with changing demographics and a falling birth rate, most primary
schools have moved to become whole-day schools.

While most schools are co-ed, there are a number of well-known schools with good
reputations which are single-sex.

Kindergartens
Since 1997, there have been changes to a lot of kindergartens as a way of
professionalizing them.  Most of the changes have involved minimum teaching
qualifications for both kindergarten teaching staff and principals. As the government has
also placed more emphasis on the importance of early childhood education, the
curriculum in kindergarten has now been designed to provide a sound foundation for
students. 

Primary Education
The majority of local Primary schools in Hong Kong are Chinese medium of instruction
and the primary curriculum covers a wide range of subjects including Social Studies,
Science, Chinese, English, Mathematics, Music, Arts and Physical Education.

Students are allocated to Secondary schools through their performance in three

examinations taken in Primary 5 and Primary 6. Schools are extremely competitive and
parents naturally have a strong preference for their child to be allocated to a top or
higher band school.

Recently, primary school numbers have been shrinking, causing the closure of some
schools and resulting in the need for some teacher redundancies.

Class numbers are traditionally much higher in Hong Kong than they are in Western
countries.  An average class, in both primary and secondary school could have over 35
students and it can be as many as 45. The shrinking enrollments have seen a lot of
debate about smaller class sizes but so far the numbers of students in a class have not
been greatly reduced.

Secondary Education
The first year of secondary school, known as Form or Secondary One, follows six years
of primary education.  Forms 1 – 3 have compulsory attendance and in junior
secondary, the learning is broader, without students choosing specific study areas.
The majority of local secondary schools became Chinese medium of instruction (CMI)
after the Handover in 1997. However, since then many have gone back to an English
medium of instruction (EMI). In 2013, 112 out of 400 secondary schools were EMI.

Students in Forms 4-6 now prepare for the HKDSE, the examinations for which are held
at the end of Form 6. There are four core subjects – English, Mathematics, Chinese and
Liberal Studies. Students then choose two or three elective subjects from a choice of
20.  There are also some applied learning subjects, modeled on the idea of
the BTEC and six other modern foreign languages which can also form part of the
students’ choices.

International school students do not take local public examinations. Once, the
UK GCSE/A-levels were popular among many of Hong Kong’s international schools but
now the International Baccalaureate (IB) is a much more common programme. Some
schools mix the two programmes, retaining IGCSE for 16 year olds, while using the IB
Diploma at the higher secondary level. Many country-specific international schools
teach a syllabus from their own country. Students also might take the SAT or IELTS in
order to gain entry to an overseas university.

Several direct-subsidy ‘local’ schools with a good reputation now also offer the IB or the
UK GCSE/A-levels. One of the reasons for this might be the government’s new 3+3+4
curriculum, as parents are concerned how the HKDSE will be viewed if students want to
use it to gain tertiary entrance abroad.

Tertiary Education
Tertiary education is important in Hong Kong. There are eight universities and several
other tertiary institutions without university status. All the tertiary institutions offer a
range of programmes including undergraduate and post-graduate degrees, as well as
Associate degrees and Higher Diplomas. 

The number of places available for undergraduate degrees is substantially less than the
number of students who actually fulfill the entry requirements for general admission to
university. From the beginning of the academic year 2012, most courses were extended
to four years, in line with the government’s policy of 3 + 3 + 4 (three years of junior
secondary, followed by three years of senior secondary then 4 years of university). For
students who fail to gain entrance to a degree programme, studying an Associate
degree or a Higher diploma, which may articulate with a degree course later on, is a
popular option. It is also sometimes possible to gain a course transfer form a
successfully completed Higher diploma or Associate degree into an overseas degree
programme with some credit transfer.

Of the Hong Kong universities, The University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University
of Hong Kong have the best reputations. The Hong Kong University of Science and
Technology has been developing a strong name in the areas of Technology and
Business.

In terms of post-graduate study, the trend for local Hong Kong people is to complete a
post-graduate qualification abroad. In terms of post-graduate students at local
universities, a significant number of them come from Mainland China.

Adult Education
Life-long learning has become a popular catch cry from the government and certainly
taking a course seems to be a common activity among the adult population. The
majority of the universities have schools which offer non-degree, adult learning courses
and there are a range of other institutions as well, offering professional, general
education and interest courses. Language courses, especially English, Mandarin and
Japanese are common, and many adults study as a means of improving their prospects
in the employment market. The government has even established a scheme which
enables adult learners to apply for course fee reimbursement for approved courses.
There is also the Open University of Hong Kong, run along similar lines to the UK one,
which gives many people opportunities to study for a degree.