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Written by: Chen Jiayi
2021-02-22 17:11
The last update date: 2021-02-22 17:12
The Education Bureau website today (22nd) uploaded an article titled "Eliminating Misunderstandings Concerning the Implementation of National Security Education in Hong Kong Schools". The article emphasizes that there is no dispute about safeguarding national security. It is the constitutional responsibility of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and all Hong Kong residents. Common obligations.
The Education Bureau stated that national security should not be taught as a controversial issue.
Schools should clearly point out that safeguarding national security is the responsibility of all citizens, and there is no room for debate or compromise. Students should be cultivated to jointly safeguard national security concepts and sense of responsibility.
The Bureau of Education published an article stating that schools should clearly point out that safeguarding national security is the responsibility of all citizens, and there is no room for debate or compromise. Students should be fostered in the concept and sense of responsibility for safeguarding national security.
(Profile picture / Photo by Liang Pengwei)
The full text of the article "Eliminating Misunderstandings Concerning the Implementation of National Security Education in Hong Kong Schools" posted on the Education Bureau website is as follows:
The Education Bureau issued Circular No. 2/2021 to all schools in Hong Kong on February 4, 2021, making recommendations on the implementation model of national security education in local school curricula and related learning and teaching resources.
Certain media have made baseless accusations against national security education, and there are misunderstandings. The Education Bureau has the responsibility to make clarifications to clarify public doubts.
1. The implementation of national security education by the Hong Kong government is reasonable and legal
Safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests is an obligation that every responsible citizen of all countries and localities must perform.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) is no exception.
As an inseparable part of the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong enjoys a high degree of autonomy within the framework of the principle of "One Country, Two Systems" and the Basic Law, and all residents of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region also have the common responsibility to safeguard national security.
Hong Kong students should have the right to study in a safe and peaceful campus environment and receive high-quality education. Schools are also responsible for implementing national security education.
Whether you are a Chinese citizen or a Hong Kong resident, students must fulfill their civic duty to protect national security and the rule of law, to ensure the long-term stability of Hong Kong, and to maintain the long-term prosperity and stability of the society.
Some people accept the implementation of their national security education in other countries while not accepting the implementation in Hong Kong. This is truly a double standard.
2. National security education is a part of national education and should be cultivated gradually from an early age
National security education and national education are inseparable.
Cultivating students’ national identity has always been an important learning goal of primary and secondary education.
Like many overseas regions, Hong Kong’s school curricula (through individual subjects, cross-curricular moral and civic education topics, life-wide learning activities, etc.) provide students with the opportunity to gradually learn about the country’s history, culture and development, as well as the Constitution and The Basic Law has some understanding.
The above-mentioned learning content can be linked to the learning of students of different ages, but the depth and breadth of the content can be adjusted according to the cognitive development of students at different stages.
Some media exaggerated the view that six-year-old children should be educated in the national security law, which is indeed a speculation.
This is indeed a distortion of our curriculum framework, which roughly outlines the learning elements of the four key learning stages (ie junior primary school, senior primary school, junior high school and high school).
For example, for students in the lower grades of elementary school (usually six to nine years old), the framework outlines some topics related to national education, such as the national flag, national anthem, law enforcement agencies, law-abiding concepts, and crimes under the National Security Act to help Students gradually understand and cultivate a sense of national identity, a sense of law-abiding, and the rights and responsibilities stipulated in the Constitution and the Basic Law.
We emphasize that national security education is not limited to the provisions of laws and regulations related to educating students.
Teachers are professional, and they know how to adapt to the age of their students, using simple and interesting teaching methods to simplify or transform relatively complex concepts such as science, values education or the Basic Law.
The use of storybooks, animations, movies, games, analogies, and examples in daily life are all commonly used teaching methods to help young students learn.
We believe that there is no reason not to use the interesting activities and daily life examples that elementary school students are familiar with, and most importantly, teachers lead by example to conduct national security education.
Some topics such as the national flag, national anthem, giant panda, the Great Wall; and the use of interesting calligraphy, art, writing, traditional festivals, and ancient magnificent architectural relics (such as the Forbidden City) to cultivate students' appreciation of traditional Chinese culture and history, are all included in the current school In the course, it is also a common teaching subject.
We never agree with malicious labeling of national security education as brainwashing or indoctrinating education for young children.
In order to cater for the learning needs of young students, the Education Bureau has recently produced a teaching resource called "National Security You and I Need to Know" audio picture books, allowing elementary students to understand through animated stories without having to understand the details of the National Security Law The basic concept of national security.
We will make more interesting resources for young students.
3. The learning elements of national security education are embedded in the school curriculum
Comprehensive national security education covers different areas of national security, from political and military security to cyber security, financial security, and cultural security.
Therefore, Hong Kong's national security education should not only focus on the "Hong Kong National Security Law", but should also include other different areas.
Related learning elements such as sovereignty, homeland security, network security, etc., are contained in subjects such as Chinese history, geography, information and communication technology.
Students can study holistically inside and outside the classroom to master the above learning elements.
Following the current model of implementing the Constitution and the Basic Law in schools, the curriculum framework of the subject shows that the learning elements of national security education can be naturally linked to related courses to strengthen the cohesion of learning and allow schools to implement the state through a whole-school participation model. Safety education promotes students' learning from different dimensions.
4. Cultivation of critical thinking ability is now found in school curricula and is also related to maintaining national security
Discriminative thinking (or discriminative thinking) refers to finding meaning from certain data or claims, exploring and verifying its accuracy and credibility, so as to establish personal opinions and develop evidence-based appraisal capabilities.
Since the curriculum reform in 2001, the ability to discern and think has been one of the nine generic abilities advocated by the Curriculum Development Council.
Through the learning and teaching of different learning areas/subjects, students can analyze complex issues.
Since fake news, hearsay, or false accusations can endanger national security, we really have an urgent task to provide students with more opportunities and tools to improve their ability to discern and think. The focus is on enhancing students' information literacy.
5. Maintaining national security is the constitutional responsibility of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
There is no dispute about maintaining national security.
This is the constitutional responsibility of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the common obligation of all Hong Kong residents.
The National Security Law is also part of the laws of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
Similar to teaching students to comply with laws and regulations, distinguish between right and wrong, and respect others, teachers should lead students to explain objective facts and concepts from different perspectives, such as historical background, moral standards and legal principles, to help students understand the importance of national security .
National security should not be taught as a controversial issue.
Schools should make it clear that maintaining national security is the responsibility of all citizens, and there is no room for debate or compromise; at the same time, students should be cultivated in the concept and sense of responsibility to jointly maintain national security.
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