Opinion | Don’t blame liberal studies for Hong Kong’s political crisis – taught well, the subject could actually help defuse extremism

The escalation of the extradition protests is a crisis created purely by politicians and leaders. The way forward, for both school curriculum reform and social renewal, is not to suppress controversial political knowledge but to create space for it

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Some secondary school students remained on the streets overnight after the June 17 march to the government headquarters in Tamar, to protest against the extradition bill. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 9:00am, 9 Jul 2019Updated: 9:04am, 9 Jul 2019

Last week, former Hong Kong chief executive Tung Chee-hwa described liberal studies as a failure, even though the reform that paved the way for the compulsory teaching of the subject in secondary schools came during his tenure.

The scapegoating of liberal studies for a political meltdown created by the ruling elite is simply barking up the wrong tree. If liberal studies can indoctrinate students into extremism, should we remove the subject of Chinese history, which covers much more political content, such as the Boxer rebellion and the 1911 revolution, which may inspire revolutionary fervour?

There is no doubt that liberal studies is fraught with challenges for both teachers and students. A recent review of the broader senior curriculum recommends clarifying the content knowledge and making the school-based project optional. If the subject survives, have we thought about what it can offer in the midst of a political crisis?

As a former liberal studies teacher and teacher trainer at university, I would argue that, more than any other subject, liberal studies provides rigorous tools for teachers and students to grapple with thorny political issues, such as the extradition bill protests and the unfortunate storming of the Legislative Council building.

One problem with the current liberal studies syllabus is that very often, the call for “multiple perspectives” is taken for “critical thinking”. In public exams, students may not necessarily be tested on the fundamental concepts or knowledge relevant to the six modules, but are assessed only on their ability to write structured essays.

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