Vice-Chancellor's Report 1978-82

tative textbooks for secondary schools published by a reliable and reputable publisher. It is wi th this in mi nd that The Chinese University Press became a Sponsoring Member of the Anglo- Chinese Textbook Publishers Organization in 1982. F. Extramural Studies Headquartered i n the Oriental Centre in the Tsim Sha Tsui area, the Extramural Studies Department (EMSD) of the University made very substantial progress i n the four years from 1978 to 1982. Not only did overall enrolment increase f rom 24,144 to 32,326, the number of courses and their variety also provided an increasingly sophisticated choice to anyone who was interested i n pursuing extramural studies i n his spare time. For a territory of over five million people whose appetite for learning seemed insatiable, the additional courses provided by the EMSD which were made possible through the acquisition of more teaching and working space were greeted wi th enthusiasm and appreciation. Aside from holding courses on its own premises, the EMSD also conducted classes and lectures at some 16 to 22 institutions and schools al l ove r Hon g Kong . Th e provisio n o f s o many loca l centres where extramura l course s coul d b e hel d ha d stimulate d enrolments i n EMSD courses i n areas like Nor th Kowloon, Kwun Tong, Tsue n Wan , Sh a T in an d Quarr y Bay . Th e Universit y wa s particularly please d t o not e tha t enrolmen t increase d t o som e 5,300 students in these areas which, because of their distance f rom Tsim Sha Tsui, had not previously bee n covered by the EMSD network. Partly a s a result o f thi s welcome d development , th e tota l number of teaching hours increased from 13,567 i n 1978/79 to 18,588 in 1981/82. It is worth noting that during this four-year period, the EMSD courses that registered the most increase were those in economics, management, accounting and law. This development seems fully in keeping wi th Hong Kong's emergence as a major business, service and financial centre i n this part of the world. Apart f rom these, art and design courses also showed a marked increase i n enrolment from 2,879 students i n 1978/79 to 3,950 students i n 1981/82, while foreign languages such as English and Japanese had become perennial favourites wi t h a steady stream of enrollees every year. French, German and Spanish classes were also offered, but the language course which had shown the most impressive gain in enrolment was Mandarin. 41