Press Release

(Hong Kong - 7 February 2015) A group of nearly 700 primary students today gathered at the Academic Community Hall of Hong Kong Baptist University to attend the Primary Student Orientation 2015 of The Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education (“HKAGE”), celebrating their obtainment of admission and opportunities to learn at the Academy, which is committed to providing learning opportunities and support for gifted students in Hong Kong beyond the ordinary school curriculum.

The HKAGE always seeks for opportunities to let more gifted learners be nurtured with appropriate courses which can help them further develop their potential and talents. This year, the Academy extended the invitation of its primary student nomination to all primary schools in Hong Kong, 591 in total, for the first time, and an enthusiastic response was received as proven by the fact that the numbers of both participant schools and nominated students reached record highs at 229 and 1,133 respectively. Additionally, the upper limit of nomination for each school was raised from four to six students this year with the objective of encouraging schools to enlist more gifted students to have access to off-site gifted education.

The Academy currently categorises its primary members by two domains, namely Languages and Humanities, and Mathematics and Sciences. This year, a total of 84 student members are nominated to Double Domains, representing a noticeable increase of 87% when compared with last year. The amount of students nominated from each study level between primary 4 and primary 6 (“P6”) also set a record high. On P6 alone, the number of nominations received this year totaled 423, up 70% from the previous year. This reflects that P6 students would like to extend their learning scope to the secondary education levels through their studies at the HKAGE.

Professor NG Tai Kai, Executive Director of the HKAGE, welcomed the new student members at the orientation and hoped that the event could help them, as well as their parents, know more about the HKAGE’s expectations and its programmes, services and learning opportunities to be available to them. In order to help the newcomers get prepared for studying at the Academy, sharing sessions were arranged with the current HKAGE student members to talk about their experience:

•    WONG Yuk Nam (P5, Mathematics and Sciences Domain) found that the HKAGE courses could satisfy his curiosity about mathematics and science and his eagerness for the relevant knowledge, given that the courses provided more freedom and interactive sessions to facilitate learning, which was totally different from the lessons in school;

•    LAU Woon Sing (secondary 1 (“S1”), Languages and Humanities Domain) said the Academy’s courses offered the HKAGE students very good opportunities to practise by themselves. Apart from providing subject content and knowledge beyond the secondary education curriculum, the classes allowed him to interact more with others, helping in training his communication abilities;

•    LO Ching Kit (P5, Mathematics and Sciences Domain) believed that the HKAGE provided higher-level courses which allowed him to have in-depth learning in his favourite subjects, including chemistry and astronomy. He thought that it was convenient for primary students to study at the Academy as its courses and activities mostly took place on weekends;

•    YEUNG Tsz Mei (S1, Languages and Humanities Domain) said the HKAGE had a portfolio of diversified courses for selection. She enjoyed the lively and interactive learning environment because it could inspire her to think and solve problems by herself. Besides, the Academy provided a nice atmosphere for gifted learners to make friends with their like-minded peers. She also appreciated this off-site learning opportunity as it helped her learn to better manage her time and improve her learning strategies.

For more details of the Primary School Nomination 2014-15, please refer to Appendix.

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Nearly seven hundred newly-admitted primary student members join the HKAGE Student Orientation 2015.
Professor NG Tai Kai, Executive Director of the HKAGE gives the opening speech at the Orientation.	Student members of the HKAGE, LO Ching Kit (2nd from the left) and LAU Woon Sing (2nd from the right) talk about their learning experiences in the sharing sessions.

Appendix

Key Facts about the HKAGE Primary School Nomination Programme 2014-15

1.    The HKAGE enrols new student members by phases. In year 2014-15, it enters Phase III of its primary school nomination programme. The total numbers of schools invited, schools participating in the nomination and students nominated and admitted from Phase I to III are shown below:

2.    Breakdown of newly admitted students by study level

3.    Breakdown of newly admitted students by learning domains

4.    Gender ratio of newly admitted students

5.    Timeline for Primary School Nomination 2014-15