Over 60 percent of teachers have given Secretary for Education Eddie Ng Hak-kim a mark of zero on a survey by the Hong Kong Professional Teachers’ Union (HKPTU).
Results from the email survey conducted showed that 65 percent of educators gave Ng the lowest mark on a scale of zero to five. If three out of five is the passing score, 95 percent of teachers gave Ng a failing grade.
Ng achieved an overall average score of 0.56, down from his score of 0.79 in 2014. Kindergarten teachers are the most dissatisfied with the minister, giving him the lowest average of 0.38. Teachers at tertiary institutions gave him highest average score, 0.62.
The survey was conducted from December 3 to 15 last year. “Actually, this period of time was not yet the peak period regarding the Territory-wide System Assessment (TSA) controversies,” said HKPTU Vice-President and education sector lawmaker Ip Kin-yuen. “I believe if [the survey] was postponed, the scores may even be lower.”
A press release issued by the HKPTU read: “The Secretary for Education’s performance in the past year was always disappointing, even exasperating.” It went on to say that Ng received a low score because he did not listen carefully to teachers’ opinions or respond to society’s needs.
Ng was questioned in the Legislative Council on Wednesday over HK$433,700 spent on overseas duty trips this financial year.
HKPTU also released Hong Kong’s top ten education news in 2015. Topping the was the dispute over scrapping the TSA, followed by the appointment of HKU’s pro-vice-chancellor and controversies regarding schools’ emergency guidelines after the fatal fall of a primary school student.
