Vice-Chancellor's Report 1978-82

eighties, I will now state a new major objective, which is the restructuring of the University's admissions system. For some time now, the University has been deeply concerned with the number of public examinations Hong Kong's secondary school students have to sit through within a period of two years after completing five years of secondary school education. Such a high frequency of public examinations cannot be good for the physical and intellectual development of the students. Moreover, the University is aware that it has been difficult for certain categories of students to seek entrance into the University under the present system of senior secondary education. To reduce the number of competitive examinations students need to take, and to allow all student groups comparable opportunity to apply for admission, the University initiated a thorough review of its admissions system in 1981. Further deliberations and wide consultations followed throughout the period, which eventually led to the decision to implement a Scheme of Provisional Acceptance by 1984/85. While details of this Scheme have yet to be worked out and its full impact felt, I am confident this is a major step in the right direction, which will have a long lasting, beneficial effect, not only on the University but also on higher education in Hong Kong as a whole. As befits a developing territory and a dynamiccity,highereducation in Hong Kong is evolving all the time in response to society's needs and changing social values. The whole approach to education for a modem, cosmopolitan city of over five million people which must excel to survive was closely studied by a Visiting Panel. Their recommendations, i f accepted, will have far-reaching effects for the whole of Hong Kong not just for a few years but probably for an entire generation. The University is naturally affected by policies on other components in this education system, by how well or how badly they are conceived, and whether they could help meet the aspirations of the people and the needs of the community. Before major and drastic changes to the present education system are made, especially at the tertiary level, it is important to remember that the Universities and the Polytechnic have hitherto served the community quite well. As a matter of fact, it would be difficult to imagine that Hong Kong, with all its financial resources and international connections, can possibly succeed so well as a major financial centre, a leading trading port and a modern industrial metropolis if not for a generation of well-educated graduates which forms the backbone of its work-force. 54