Affected by the falling birth rate, the epidemic and the immigration wave, kindergartens in Hong Kong are facing operational difficulties.
The Hong Kong Federation of Educators interviewed 235 kindergartens last month. The results showed that each kindergarten interviewed lost an average of 16 half-day students, 9 full-day students and 19 pre-school students, accounting for 13% to 27% of the total school population.
According to the survey, more than 70% of kindergartens reported that they had financial difficulties, 10% of kindergartens said that they may close next year or the year after, and more than 70% of kindergartens said that they would need to lay off teachers in the next school year, with an average of 2 to 3 teachers per school.
The Federation of Education said that it has learned that 20 kindergartens have planned to stop operating in September this year. It also said that a principal once complained that 83 students graduated this year, but only 20 students were recruited; in some schools, 80% of the students dropped out.
The association described it as a cold winter for kindergartens and hoped that the new government could increase support for kindergartens.
According to a survey by the Federation of Churches, 10% of kindergartens are likely to close next year or the year after.
From left: Cai Lifang, Lin Cuiling and Zhu Guoqiang.
(Photo by He Ruifen)
9% of schools plan to cut pay, 73% say they will lay off teachers
In the middle of last month, the Federation of Education conducted a survey on the operational difficulties of kindergartens under the fifth wave of the epidemic, including non-profit-making kindergartens, independent private kindergartens and child care centers.
The results show that in addition to the serious dropout trend, the number of students in kindergartens in Hong Kong has also dropped significantly. About 70% of the surveyed kindergartens indicated that the number of K1 students enrolling in the next school year was lower than that of last year, and 47% of the preschool classes also indicated that there was a decrease.
The unified registration day for kindergartens ended in early January, and 66% of kindergartens also indicated that there was an increase in the number of students who gave up their places, with an average of 25 students per school giving up their places.
The survey also pointed out that kindergartens are facing operational difficulties. One in 10 schools pointed out that the current school reserve can only maintain operation until the end of the school year, 25% said that it was only enough to operate for about half a year, and 34% said that it was only enough to operate for one year or more.
Due to the sharp drop in the birth rate in 2020/21, 10% of the schools surveyed are expected to close the school next year or the year after, and only 33% of kindergartens are confident that they will not need to close within three years.
The operating difficulties of kindergartens have also affected many teaching staff. According to the survey, 33% of kindergartens said that they would freeze teachers' salaries for the whole school, 9% of schools even said that they would reduce salaries, and 73% of schools said that they would lay off teachers. On average, each school needs to reduce 2 to 3 teachers. .
According to a survey by the Federation of Churches, 10% of kindergartens are likely to close next year or the year after.
From left: Cai Lifang, Lin Cuiling and Zhu Guoqiang.
(Photo by He Ruifen)
The principal shouted: 84 schoolchildren only received 20 freshmen after graduation
Lin Cuiling, vice-chairman of the Federation of Education Associations, said that affected by the drop in birth rate, immigration and the epidemic, kindergartens are facing a cold winter. There was a principal who "shouted to shut up" and said that 84 students graduated this year, but only 20 students were recruited. big.
She said that according to the statistics of the Federation of Education, in addition to the survey indicating that 10% of kindergartens may be closed in the next two years, 20 kindergartens have indicated that they will stop operating in September. Among them, there are non-profit-making kindergartens and private kindergartens. Vulnerable schools are the worst affected.
Lin Cuiling pointed out that social events in 2019 had far-reaching impacts, and then there was an epidemic, and cross-border schoolchildren dropped sharply. At the same time, families who decided to emigrate in 2019 may have been approved, which greatly increased the number of dropouts.
Cai Lifang, director of the Federation of Education Associations, added that due to the continuous suspension of classes and online classes during the epidemic, many parents may feel that there are online classes and increase their determination to immigrate. Among them, 2-year-old classes are more likely to drop out of school, and she also said that 80% of students in schools have dropped out. .
The Federation of Education said that it was informed that the Education Bureau had sent a letter to the kindergarten, indicating that it was difficult to approve the application for price increases this year, and the government's support for kindergartens under the epidemic has decreased significantly this year.
This means that the three-year transitional grant under the Kindergarten Scheme will end this year, but due to the epidemic over the past three years, the effectiveness of the scheme has not been properly reviewed.
The association also said that it requires the government to increase the amount of subsidy for each kindergarten student, and adjust the ratio of teachers and students in kindergartens from 1:11 to 1:10, excluding deputy schools and directors.
The new government will take office on July 1. Cai Ruolian, the former vice-chairman of the Federation of Education Federations and the current deputy director of the Education Bureau, will "sit upright" as the director. Lin Cuiling praised her for being easy-going and amiable, and people in the industry like to talk to her. She said that Cai Ruolian is familiar with kindergarten issues and has actual front-line experience. She will be happy for her to be promoted to the director, and she hopes to be able to negotiate and discuss issues in the future, for the well-being of school children.
As for the current Secretary for Education, Yeung Yun-hsiung, who is about to be transferred to the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr. Chu Kwok-keung, member of the Legislative Council of the Education Sector, also praised him for his diligence and concern for the needs of the industry. Although Cai Ruolian is mainly responsible for kindergarten matters, he also knows that the industry is facing dire straits, but the only shortcoming is It is because they have no experience in frontline education and may be less sympathetic. Although the overall expenditure on education in the past five years has been sufficient, it has not been enough for kindergartens.
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