Press Release

(Hong Kong – 11 March 2014) Nearly seven hundred newly-admitted primary student members filled the School Hall of Sha Tin Government Secondary School this afternoon for the Primary Student Orientation 2014 of the Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education (HKAGE). According to the Academy’s records, both the number of participating schools and that of nominated students reach new highs this year.

The Primary School Nomination is in three phases, based on schools’ participation in teacher training in gifted education. We launched the first phase last year and invited 196 schools. This year, a total of 364 primary schools were invited to nominate students. They included those we have previously invited and the newly invited schools in the second phase. A total of 704 students were admitted to the Academy. In order to extend our provision of gifted programmes to more students, we plan to expand the nomination to include all primary schools next year. The HKAGE attaches great importance to nurturing gifted students, dedicating itself to better providing them with suitable learning experiences and thereby creating more opportunities for them to realise their potential. By holding this orientation session, we intend to establish good communication with new student members and their parents, to introduce to them a spectrum of learning opportunities that we offer, and hence to prepare students well for future learning and promote interaction among them.

To meet the learning interests and needs of different student members, the HKAGE offers a vast variety of programmes. A number of them are new this year. In Humanities, we have offered Introduction to Philosophy: Love of Wisdom, through which students learn to identify the relevance of philosophical problems with everyday problems concerning beliefs and values, knowledge, personal identity, and the nature of reality. In Sciences, the newly launched Introductory Workshop in Astronomy enables students to explore the universe, and the Intermediate Workshop in Forensic Science - Crime Scene Investigation provides students with a chance to solve crime scene mysteries like a detective, thus enhancing their observing, logical thinking and problem solving skills. The Academy is also highly concerned about students’ leadership development and personal growth, and has therefore introduced Leadership@Teen Project, QLS Workshop: Questioning, Listening and Speaking Skills and Self-understanding Workshop to motivate students to reach their potential in all aspects and encourage whole-person development.

Please refer to Appendix for detailed figures on student admissions.

Two HKAGE student members, Kam Chun Kei (S1, Mathematics and Sciences Domain) and Chau Hui Tung (P6, Languages and Humanities Domain), shared their learning experiences to help the newly-admitted students plan their learning journeys. Kam Chun Kei, who has joined the HKAGE since last summer, has already attended about ten courses and seminars in less than a year’s time. He pointed out that the courses offered by the HKAGE were more flexible and inspiring than his school courses. A chemistry course he took at the Academy provided him with an opportunity for exploration and practice. Using the knowledge acquired from the course, he created a self-heating coffee machine which generated heat by chemical reaction. He said, “The coffee machine enables me to warm coffee anytime and anywhere. That’s real fun.” He added that, thanks to the flexibility of the courses, it was not difficult to strike a balance between learning at school and meeting the course requirements of the Academy.

Chau Hui Tung joined the HKAGE as a student member of the Languages and Humanities domain last year when she was in primary five. She mentioned that it was a fantastic opportunity to be selected to join the Academy. Among the vast variety of courses offered by the HKAGE, her favourites were Writing, Thinking and Conveying, the Art Appreciation in Beautiful Life and To be a Novelist. She also mentioned that she was particularly happy to be able to take courses at the secondary school level. “They have prepared me well for my future studies at secondary school and offered me an opportunity to gain knowledge of different subjects, as well as to interact with other elite students,” she said.

Nearly seven hundred newly-admitted primary student members joined the HKAGE Student Orientation 2014.
Mr LAU Yuen Tan, Acting Executive Director of the HKAGE presented the opening speech at the Orientation.	Sharing sessions by primary student members of the HKAGE, CHAU Hui Tung (2nd from the left) and KAM Chun Kei (2nd from the right) on their learning experiences.

Appendix

Key Facts about the School Nomination Programme 2013-14

1. Number of Inviting Schools, Participating Schools and Number of Students Being Accepted

We launched the first phase last year and invited 196 schools. In the second phase introduced this year, a total of 364 primary schools, including those we have previously invited and the newly invited schools, participated in the nomination and 704 students have been admitted to the Academy.

2.    Distribution of Newly Admitted Students by Level

3.    Distribution of Newly Admitted Students by Learning Domains

4.    Gender Ratio of Newly Admitted Students by Learning Domains

5.    Timeline for School Nomination 2013-14