2021-11-09
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng
Yuet-ngor will deliver a live-streamed lecture on the chief executive’s
constitutional role to 1,500 secondary school teachers later this month, though
some educators have said the talk clashes with their afternoon classes.
The Education Bureau’s Curriculum Development
Institute on Tuesday said enrolment for the talk was already open, and would
run until November 19. Each school can nominate up to eight teachers to attend,
with priority given to those at the top of every list in the event of
overbooking.
The webinar is scheduled to last from
2.45pm to 4.15pm on November 25, with 15 minutes set aside for registration, 45
for Lam’s speech, and 30 for a question and answer session.
Lam first revealed her willingness to
school local teachers on the constitutional status, powers and functions of her
office during her policy address last month, positioning it as part
of a wider plan to strengthen instruction relating to the Basic Law.
But two teachers told the Post they
would not be signing up for the talk as it clashed with their schedules. One,
who only gave her surname as Chan, questioned why the event was arranged at a
time when most teachers were in the middle of class, and expressed scepticism
about the educational value of the subject matter.
“It is useless to attend such a lesson, and
I will not get anything that can benefit students,” she said. “The time of the
talk also clashes with my teaching lessons. I would need approval if I joined.”
The Curriculum Development Institute, which
regularly organises seminars and courses for educators, arranged Lam’s lecture
to boost teachers’ knowledge in the new citizenship and social development
subject, which was introduced in September to replace liberal studies.
The Education Bureau revamped the
controversial liberal studies subject after pro-Beijing heavyweights blamed it
for radicalising young people during the 2019 protests, and argued that some
teaching materials were biased.
The new subject focuses instead on national
security and identity, as well as lawfulness and patriotism. Its three key
themes are Hong Kong under “one country, two systems”, China’s reform and
opening-up, and the interconnectedness and interdependence of the contemporary
world.
Dr Wong Ching-yung, principal of Scientia
Secondary School, welcomed the coming lecture, saying it would give Lam an
opportunity to clarify to teachers that there was no separation of powers under
an executive-led system.
“This seminar shows how the government
attaches great importance to the new subject of citizenship and social
development,” he said.
