Koko News | Global | 3 days ago

Hong Kong Tightens Requirements for Schools as Student Numbers Drop

HongKongeducationauthoritieswilltightentherequirementsforpublicsecondaryschoolstocontinueoperatingasthestudentpopulationdeclines.

隨著學生人數下降，香港教育當局將收緊對公立中學繼續運作的要求。

Plansincluderaisingtheminimumenrolmentnumberandcuttingsomealternativeoptionsthatallowedschoolstosurvive, startinginSeptember.

該計劃包括從九月開始提高最低入學人數並削減一些讓學校得以生存的替代方案。

Membersofthesectorsaidtheyexpectedthenewmeasureswouldspeeduptheclosureoflesspopularschools, whilestudentswithpooracademicperformancemightevenbeaskedtorepeatthesamegradetomeettheenrolmentthreshold.

業內人士表示，預計新措施將加速關閉不太受歡迎的學校，而學業成績較差的學生甚至可能被要求留級以達到入學門檻。

TheEducationBureau, whichannouncedthemeasuresinacirculartosecondaryschools, saidthemoveaimedtoprotectstudents’interests.

教育局向中學發出通告，宣布了這些措施，並表示此舉旨在保障學生的利益。

TheEducationBureauestimatesthatthenumberofFormOnestudentsaged12willdropfrom 58,800 in 2025to 49,800 in 2031, asstatedbyIdaLeeBik-sai, deputysecretaryforeducation.

教育局副秘書長李碧霞表示，預計12歲中一學生人數將由2025年的58,800人，下降至2031年的49,800人。

ThemeasuresincludedraisingtheminimumnumberofstudentsrequiredforsecondaryschooltooperateaFormOneclassfrom25to27startinginthenewterminSeptember.

這些措施包括從9月新學期開始，將中學開辦中一班的最低學生人數從25人提高到27人。

Thethresholdwillbefurtherraisedto29in2026-27.

2026-27 年度，門檻將進一步提高至 29 歲。

Underthecurrentpolicy, secondaryschoolsmustsecureatleasttwoFormOneclassestosurvive, oratotalof26studentstocontinueoperating.

根據現行政策，中學必須確保至少有兩班一年級學生才能生存，或總共有 26 名學生才能繼續運作。

Withthechanges, aschoolwillneedtoenrolatleast28 students to runtwoclassestosurvivethecomingacademicyear. Theywillneed30pupilsinthe2026-27academicyear.

根據這些變化，一所學校將需要招收至少 28 名學生來開設兩個班級才能度過即將到來的學年。 2026-27 學年他們將需要 30 名學生。

InHongKong, publicsecondaryschoolsreceiveresourcesbasedonthenumberofclassestheyhave, withaheadcountexerciseconductedeverySeptemberforFormOneandFormFour.

在香港，公立中學根據班級數量獲得資源，每年九月都會對中一和中四的學生人數進行統計。

ButfromSeptember 2027, theheadcountexercisewillbeconductedinthetwootherlowergrades, astheminimumtwo-classrequirementforFormOnewouldalsobeextendedtoFormsTwoandThree.

但從 2027 年 9 月起，人數統計工作將在其他兩個較低年級進行，因為中一最低兩班的要求也將擴展到中二和中三。

Schoolsthatfailedtohaveasufficientnumberofclasseswouldneedtosubmitsurvivalplanstothebureau.

未能提供足夠班級數量的學校需要向教育局提交生存計劃。

Buttwoofthesurvivaloptionsforschoolwillbescrapped, namely“specialreview”byeducationofficialsand“collaboratingwithotherschoolstooffermoresubjectchoices”.

但學校的兩項生存方案將被取消，即教育官員的「特別審查」和「與其他學校合作提供更多科目選擇」。

Thebureauhaskeptsurvivaloptionssuchasmergingwithotherschools, switchingtoaprivatelyrunmodeandinjectingresourcestoofferabroadercurriculum.

該局保留了生存的選擇，例如與其他學校合併、轉為民辦模式以及注入資源提供更廣泛的課程。

Anewoptionistocollaboratewithtertiaryorvocationaltraininginstitutionstoprovidediverseeducationalcourses.

一個新的選擇是與高等院校或職業培訓機構合作，提供多樣化的教育課程。

Theschoolcancarryonifitssurvivalplanisapprovedbythebureau.

如果學校的生存計畫得到教育局批准，學校就可以繼續辦學。

HongKonghas385publicsecondaryschools.

香港有385所公立中學。

ThebureaualsoallowedsomepopularschoolswithfourFormOneclassestoapplytooperatefiveFormOneclasses, providedthenumberofapplicationswasthesameorgreaterthanthenumberofplacesitwouldofferatthediscretionarystageinthecitywideadmissionsystem.

教育局亦容許部分設有四個中一班的熱門學校申請開辦五個中一班，惟申請人數須等於或多於全市招生製度自由擇優錄取階段的學位數目。

ButonlyfiveschoolswillbeallowedtoexpandthenumberofFormOneclassestheyoffertothemaximumoffive.

但只有五所學校被允許將其提供的中一班數量擴大到最多五個。

LeeYi-ying, chairwomanoftheSubsidisedSecondarySchoolsCouncil, saidthenewmeasureswouldputadditionalpressureonschoolsthatenrolledacademicallyweakstudents.

津貼中學議會主席李懿英表示，新措施將給招收學業較差學生的學校帶來額外壓力。

Thesurvivalriskforthoseschoolswillgetlargerasthestudentpopulationisnowdeclining, withthenumberofFromOnestudentsfallingto 30,000 inthefutureintheworstsituation, asperLeeYi-ying.

李懿英表示，隨著學生人數不斷減少，這些學校的生存風險將越來越大，最糟的情況是，未來From One的學生人數將降至3萬人。

Hong Kong education authorities will tighten the requirements for public secondary schools to continue operating as the student population declines.

Plans include raising the minimum enrolment number and cutting some alternative options that allowed schools to survive, starting in September.

Members of the sector said they expected the new measures would speed up the closure of less popular schools, while students with poor academic performance might even be asked to repeat the same grade to meet the enrolment threshold.

The Education Bureau, which announced the measures in a circular to secondary schools, said the move aimed to protect students’ interests.

The Education Bureau estimates that the number of Form One students aged 12 will drop from 58,800 in 2025 to 49,800 in 2031, as stated by Ida Lee Bik-sai, deputy secretary for education.

The measures included raising the minimum number of students required for secondary school to operate a Form One class from 25 to 27 starting in the new term in September.

The threshold will be further raised to 29 in 2026-27.

Under the current policy, secondary schools must secure at least two Form One classes to survive, or a total of 26 students to continue operating.

With the changes, a school will need to enrol at least 28 students to run two classes to survive the coming academic year. They will need 30 pupils in the 2026-27 academic year.

In Hong Kong, public secondary schools receive resources based on the number of classes they have, with a headcount exercise conducted every September for Form One and Form Four.

But from September 2027, the headcount exercise will be conducted in the two other lower grades, as the minimum two-class requirement for Form One would also be extended to Forms Two and Three.

Schools that failed to have a sufficient number of classes would need to submit survival plans to the bureau.

But two of the survival options for school will be scrapped, namely “special review” by education officials and “collaborating with other schools to offer more subject choices”.

The bureau has kept survival options such as merging with other schools, switching to a privately run mode and injecting resources to offer a broader curriculum.

A new option is to collaborate with tertiary or vocational training institutions to provide diverse educational courses.

The school can carry on if its survival plan is approved by the bureau.

Hong Kong has 385 public secondary schools.

The bureau also allowed some popular schools with four Form One classes to apply to operate five Form One classes, provided the number of applications was the same or greater than the number of places it would offer at the discretionary stage in the citywide admission system.

But only five schools will be allowed to expand the number of Form One classes they offer to the maximum of five.

Lee Yi-ying, chairwoman of the Subsidised Secondary Schools Council, said the new measures would put additional pressure on schools that enrolled academically weak students.

The survival risk for those schools will get larger as the student population is now declining, with the number of From One students falling to 30,000 in the future in the worst situation, as per Lee Yi-ying.