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China education
OpinionComment
David Bishop
David Bishop

Opinion | Hong Kong should join mainland China in embracing education reform, and reject a return to ‘normal’

  • Going back to how things used to be might be a relief but it still leaves unsolved many lingering problems in Hong Kong’s education system
  • With improved policy, a new perspective and integration of education technology, we could usher in an age where free, quality education is available to all

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
David Bishop
Across Hong Kong, classes from primary through to university are back in session. For many parents, administrators and students at all levels, one education goal has been paramount: get back to the way things used to be.

But it is worth taking time to think about whether returning to “normal” is the ideal goal. For all its challenges, Covid-19 has provided an unprecedented opportunity to rethink and reshape our education system, and we should not squander it.

Although education has been called the great equaliser, the pandemic has clearly illuminated the disparity in Hong Kong. The unplanned shift to online learning last year affected students at all levels, but especially many of the more than 181,000 disadvantaged children in the city who had trouble accessing the tools necessary to keep up.

A survey found that more than 200,000 Hong Kong households do not have a personal computer – only 33.9 per cent of households with a monthly income of less than HK$10,000 (US$1,300) have one, for example. Conversely, the figure is 96.5 per cent for households with a monthly income of more than HK$50,000.

But even when access to hardware was not a problem, internet connections were often too unstable to support streaming videos. A staggering 65 per cent of Hong Kong students had to study on their phone last year. Many had to rely on free internet from businesses such as McDonald’s and 7-Eleven, risking infection and having their lessons disrupted when the 30-minute free Wi-fi access ended.

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Covid-19: Hong Kong’s needy pupils sidelined by online learning one year since class suspension

Covid-19: Hong Kong’s needy pupils sidelined by online learning one year since class suspension
If left unmitigated, the technology divide will further exacerbate the wealth gap in Hong Kong, which is the widest in four decades.
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