Hong Kong Institute of Education
The Hong Kong Institute of Education (Abbreviated: HKIEd, Chinese: 香港教育學院) is one of eight subsidised tertiary institutes under the University Grants Committee of Hong Kong. It is the only one dedicated to teacher education.
The history of Hong Kong Institute of Education can be traced back to 1853. St. Paul’s College introduced the first formalised program of in-service teacher training. This was described in its Annual Report for 1994/95.[1] On 25 April 1994, under the recommendation made by the Education Commission Report No 5, it was formally established by the merger of:
- The Northcote College of Education (羅富國教育學院)
- The Grantham College of Education (葛量洪教育學院)
- The Sir Robert Black College of Education (柏立基教育學院)
- The Hong Kong Technical Teachers’ College (香港工商師範學院)
- The Institute of Language in Education (語文教育學院)
History
Established in 1994 upon the foundation of 70 years of teacher training by the former Colleges of Education, the Hong Kong Institute of Education (HKIEd) is the only University Grants Committee funded institution dedicated professional teacher education in Hong Kong. HKIEd provides doctorate, master and undergraduate degrees, postgraduate diploma, certificates and a range of in-service programs to around 7,000 pre-service students and serving teachers.
In October 1997, the institute moved to its new campus in Tai Po near the Tai Po Industrial Estate. It has a Sports Centre at Pak Shek Kok, Tai Po, as well as a Town Centre campus at Tai Kok Tsui near the Olympic MTR Station.
In 2001, the HKIEd HSBC Early Childhood Learning Centre was established on the campus. The HKIEd Jockey Club Primary School was founded on the campus in the following year.[2]
With effect from 1 May 2004, the government granted the institute self-accrediting status in respect of its own teacher education programs at degree-level and above.
Among the courses offered by the institute, the BEd (Languages) has been recognized as the best course ever. Most of its first batch of students, which graduated in 2005, already had job offers earlier than other BEd graduates at HKIEd or other universities.
Recent developments
In June 2009, the institute won an extra annual funding of HK$22 million from the Hong Kong Government to provide 120 undergraduate degree places for three new undergraduate programs and 30 research postgraduate places for the 2009-2012 triennium.[3]
In January 2010, the University Grants Committee endorsed the HKIEd's plans for Research Postgraduate programmes and undergraduate programs in three disciplines: "Humanities" (mainly Language), "Social Sciences", and "Creative Arts & Culture".[4]
The approval is seen as a step closer for the institute to gaining its university title by becoming a fully-fledged university of education with a range of disciplines and strong research capacity.
HKIEd will launch its first batch of non-education programs, namely the Bachelor of Arts in Language Studies and Bachelor of Social Sciences in Global and Environmental Studies in September 2010. Both programs have already secured the support of the External Validation Panel of the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications.[5]
Preparations for the launching of the third Education-Plus programme, Bachelor of Arts in Creative Arts and Culture, in 2011/2012 are underway.
The Institute actively seeks to enhance its research capacity. Four institute-level research centres[6] had been set up to facilitate the growth of expertise in multi-disciplinary research. They include:
History of each college
The Northcote College of Education
The Northcote College of Education was established in 1939.[1] It was named after Sir Geoffrey Northcote, the former Governor of Hong Kong. No. 21 Sassoon Road, the former site of the Northcote College of Education, is now headquarters of the Li Ka Shing Medical Faculty of HKU.[7]
The Grantham College of Education
The Grantham College of Education was established in 1951.[1] It was named after Sir Alexander Grantham, a former Governor of Hong Kong.
The Sir Robert Black College of Education
The Sir Robert Black College of Education was established in 1960.[1] It was named after Sir Robert Brown Black, a former Governor of Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong Technical Teachers’ College
The Hong Kong Technical Teachers’ College was established in 1974.[1]
The Institute of Language in Education
The Institute of Language in Education was established in 1982. It was previously under the supervision of the then Education Department.[1]
Sports Centre
The 5.3 hectare Sports Centre is located at 55 Yau King Lane, Tai Po, facing the Tolo Harbour. It houses a range of outdoor and indoor sports and recreational facilities including:
- grandstand with undercover seating for 1,200 spectators
- 400-meter all-weather track with facilities for field events
- natural grass soccer pitch
- artificial turf soccer / hockey pitch
- five tennis courts
- jogging path with six fitness stations
- fitness room
- parking spaces.[8]
Controversy
In January 2007, a public row broke out between the management and the government over the future of the institute. Battle lines were drawn between the Vice-Chancellor Paul Morris and former Secretary for Education and Manpower, Prof. Arthur Li. The dispute had apparently been brewing for some time, as far back as June 2002, when the new Education Secretary Arthur Li was appointed. Apparently, Li favored a merger of the institute with another higher education institution, namely the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK).[9] Morris opposed the merger, and had for some time been campaigning to establish the institute as a university in its own right.[10] Morris maintained he had been warned by the Chairman of the Council, Dr. Thomas Leung Kwok-fai, as far back as June 2006, that his tenure would end unless he agreed to the amalgamation of the institute with the CUHK.[10]
Time-line
- 24 June 2002 - Shortly after Li's appointment as Education Secretary, Li had apparently invited Morris to dinner and proposed a merger of the institute with the Chinese University. Li also apparently offered Morris to head the "super education center".[9]
- 19 July 2002 - Morris was allegedly told by Simon Ip Sik-on, a former chairman of the institute's council, during a lunch he shared with Li and two other senior institute officials that Li threatened to render the institute unviable if a merger could not be achieved.[9]
- 14 October 2002 - Fanny Law had met with Arthur Li, Dr. Leung and its former vice chairman Alfred Chan Wing-kin. She issued an "internal email" to staff, stating the institute's wish for an early indication of a possible merger with the education faculty of the CUHK.[11]
- 25 January 2007 - The governing council of the institute decided in a vote of 10 to 3, with three abstentions, not to renew Vice Chancellor Morris' contract. Leung denied Morris' assertion about the threats to the security of his tenure, instead accusing Morris of misinterpreting him. Leung insisted that there was no connection between the two.[12][13] This led to speculation that the Education and Manpower Bureau (EMB) was trying to force an amalgamation of the institute with the CUHK.[14]
- 26 January 2007 - Deputy Vice Chancellor Professor Bernard Luk Hung-kay (陸鴻基) alleged on RTHK Radio 1's Openline Openview phone-in program that during the summer of 2003, after results of the Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers were released, the media reported (falsely) that most of 330 teachers who had failed in the test were from the Hong Kong Institute of Education. Professor Luk accused Law for not having set the record straight[11] and alleged that this publicity resulted in a sharp fall in the number of applications for the next year, though the numbers had since recovered through hard work of the staff.
Prof Luk also corroborated Vice Chancellor Morris' version of events by revealing a secret breakfast meeting that took place between Dr. Leung and the Vice Chancellor in June 2006.[15]
- 5 February 2007 - Luk alleged both in his open letter[16] and on RTHK Radio 1's Openline Openview program that Li had made veiled threats both against him and Morris in the past. For their refusal to make a news release denouncing those teachers who exceeded the placement quota for their profession and who were about to lose their current jobs, Arthur Li was quoted by Luk to have said on 26/27 June 2004, "I'll remember this. You will pay." (The quote was said in English).[17] Luk suggests in his letter that the time is up for his "pound of flesh."
Luk also alleged that during January 2004, Li had phoned Morris to once again urge Morris to take the lead in amalgamating with CUHK. He threatened to reduce future student intake quotas of HKIEd otherwise.[18]
Luk pointed out that there had been numerous newspaper articles written by IEd staff members in the past few years criticizing the EMB education reform and policies. Luk maintained this resulted in a number of phone calls from a certain high-ranking official in the EMB, demanding the immediate dismissals of those four staff members, which they refused to entertain.[19][20]
- 6 February 2007 - Staff members Leung Yan-wing (梁恩榮) and Yip Kin-yuen (葉建源) asked Legco to investigate further or set up an open hearing into the allegations. Legco member Cheung Man Kwong told RTHK Radio 1's Openline Openview phone-in program that he along with eight other Democratic camp members had already written to Legco's Education Committee chairman Tsang Yok-sing, urging him to convene an emergency meeting to investigate these allegations of government interference in the running of IEd.[21][22] Students overwhelmingly passed vote of no-confidence in Governing Board Chairman Thomas Leung Kwok-fai: of 680 the voters, only 36 students backed Leung. There were 65 abstentions and eight voided ballot papers.[21]
- 7 February 2007 - It was announced that Legco's Education Committee would convene on 12 February 2007 to discuss any further action and that it would invite both IEd representatives and Arthur Li himself if necessary.[23]
- 9 March 2007 - Pro-government legislators blocked an attempt to set up a Legco inquiry to investigate allegations over meddling with the academic freedom and autonomy of educational institutions. The vote failed by 30:21 with one abstention.[24]
- Chief Executive Donald Tsang set up a commission headed by Justice Woo Kwok-hing.
- 16 March 2007 - Justice Woo Kwok-hing resigned to avoid potential accusations of lack of impartiality.[25]
- 22 March 2007 - Commission hearings commenced.
- 20 June 2007 - The commission dismissed allegations that Li had interfered with the institutional autonomy, but pinned the blame on Fanny Law. Law resigned immediately from her post of Commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption.[26]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f Hong Kong Higher Education Integration Matters:A Report of the Institutional Integration Working Party of the University Grants Committee
- ^ HKIEd - About HKIEd
- ^ HKIEd – Press Release (24 June 2009)
- ^ HKIEd – Press Release (20 January 2010)
- ^ HKIEd – Press Release (22 February 2010)
- ^ HKIEd – Research and Development
- ^ http://www.hku.hk/daao/newsletter/web_0103/p24-27.pdf
- ^ http://www.ied.edu.hk/campus/html/sport.html
- ^ a b c Chong, Winnie (30 March 2007). "Li threatened to `rape' institute, inquiry told". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=41274&sid=12904743&con_type=3&d_str=20070330&sear_year=2007. Retrieved 3 April 2007.
- ^ a b Chong, Winnie (26 January 2007). "Institute merger fears as council votes out head". The Standard. http://www.hkstandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?we_cat=4&art_id=36934&sid=11908525&con_type=1&d_str=20070126. Retrieved 3 April 2007.
- ^ a b Chong, Winnie (3 April 2007). "Institute `sought advice on merger'". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=41516&sid=12985272&con_type=1&d_str=20070403&sear_year=2007. Retrieved 3 April 2007.
- ^ RTHK news article (Chinese)
- ^ RTHK audio news summary
- ^ Mingpao article (Chinese),
- ^ Radio 1's Openline Openview phone-in audio
- ^ Bernard Luk's article in MingPao(Chinese)
- ^ Chong, Winnie (9 February 2007). "College chief hopes for inquiry on row". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=37956&sid=12135870&con_type=1&d_str=20070209&sear_year=2007. Retrieved 3 April 2007.
- ^ RTHK Radio 1's Openline Openview phone-in audio
- ^ HK2000 morning phone-in audio, RTHK Radio 1
- ^ Prof. Luk's open letter (Chinese)
- ^ a b Chong, Winnie (7 February 2007). "Panel seeks probe into claim Li interfered with freedom of institute". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=37778&sid=12094176&con_type=1&d_str=20070207&sear_year=2007. Retrieved 3 April 2007.
- ^ RTHK Radio 1's Openline Openview phone-in audio
- ^ RTHK (Chinese)
- ^ Chong, Winnie (10 March 2007). "HKIEd probe fails in Legco vote". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=39837&sid=12597093&con_type=1&d_str=20070310&sear_year=2007. Retrieved 3 April 2007.
- ^ Chong, Winnie (17 March 2007). "HKIEd inquiry chief resigns over impartiality questions". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=40357&sid=12706767&con_type=1&d_str=20070317&sear_year=2007. Retrieved 3 April 2007.
- ^ Scarlet Chiang (21 June 2007). "Li cleared of wrongdoing by HKIEd commission". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=47373&sid=14151427&con_type=1&d_str=20070621&sear_year=2007. Retrieved 31 July 2008.
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