Hong Kong and the mainland finally cleared the customs this Sunday (8th), and all primary schools and kindergartens in Hong Kong will resume full-time face-to-face classes on February 15th. However, the inconvenience faced by cross-border students has not yet been resolved.
The eldest son of Mr. Mei, a citizen of Shenzhen, is 10 years old and was born in Hong Kong. He is currently studying in the fourth grade of a primary school in Fanling.
Since the customs was closed in early 2020, Mr. Mei’s son has been taking online classes at his home in Shenzhen. Not only has his eyes become myopic, but he also doesn’t know how to get along with his peers due to the lack of group life.
He hopes that his son can return to Hong Kong to continue his education, and hopes that the government can simplify the customs clearance procedures, replace nucleic acid tests with rapid test results, or exempt cross-border students who have been diagnosed recently from the test requirements to facilitate cross-border students.
Zeng Zhiwen, vice chairman of the Federation of Trade Unions and director-general of the Greater Bay Area Service Agency of the Federation of Trade Unions, pointed out that 70% of the parents contacted by the support services expressed similar concerns. provide support.
▼On January 8, citizens from the north and the mainland poured into the Lok Ma Chau Port▼
+8
Three-year online courses affect children's learning effect
Mr. Mei sighed: "Online classes have had a relatively large impact on his (son's) academic performance. Although his math scores can basically keep up, there is a gap between his Chinese and English scores." Mr. Mei said that Hong Kong Chinese textbooks use Traditional characters, Cantonese is used to teach Chinese in the classroom, which is different from the language environment in Shenzhen, so my son struggles to learn Chinese.
In addition, he pointed out that it was very difficult to get the package for transporting the teaching materials from Hong Kong, and sometimes he had to ask relatives and friends to get the teaching materials, which was often delayed by one to two months.
When the textbooks came late, Mr. Mei’s son could only follow the online courses. During the class, he was inevitably distracted. Coupled with the lack of a language environment for face-to-face communication, his Chinese and English scores declined.
Mr. Mei said that although the teachers are dedicated and regularly transmit the corresponding learning content online, the children are still struggling to learn. In addition, the current learning content is more difficult than before, and the final exam scores have declined.
Mr. Mei, the parent of a cross-border student, said that his son had lost his collective life in the past three years, and also lost the politeness and sense of boundaries when getting along with strange children of the same age.
(Screenshot of video call)
Deepening myopia and losing collective life
Mr. Mei also said that after three years of online classes at home, his son lost his collective life, and also lost the politeness and sense of boundaries when getting along with strange children of the same age.
He gave an example: "At home, I will grab toys or fight with my younger brother, but when playing in the community, I also adopt similar methods when playing games with other children and wanting something. We will tell him to communicate well with other children. If you want something, you should ask politely." In addition, Mr. Mei pointed out that online classes have a great impact on children's health. Because they use electronic products every day, they already have myopia.
Since last semester, Mr. Mei has enrolled his son in a private primary school in Shenzhen in order to immerse himself in a good learning environment and alleviate many problems. However, Mr. Mei agrees with Hong Kong’s educational philosophy. In the long run, he still hopes that his son can return to a school in Hong Kong .
The number of cross-border school children is 27,000, accounting for about 4% of the number of cross-border passengers who frequently travel to and from the port.
(File photo/Photo by Zhang Haowei)
Secondary schools in Hong Kong started full-time classes in February, and primary schools and kindergartens resumed full-time face-to-face classes from February 15. Mr. Mei’s family lives near the Futian Port and is contacting the school bus company in the past.
Mr. Mei told his eldest son that he will be able to return to Hong Kong next semester to attend classes and meet teachers and classmates. However, he needs to carry a heavy schoolbag to pass the test every day. However, his son is very happy and looks forward to returning to school.
Mr. Mei said that the eldest son had been infected with the new crown pneumonia half a month ago, and it is expected that he will not be infected again in the short term.
At present, it is necessary to show a negative nucleic acid test certificate within 48 hours when going to the mainland and returning to Hong Kong. The Chief Secretary for Administration, Chen Guoji, said earlier that it is not ideal to require cross-border students to undergo nucleic acid testing every day. Replaced by rapid tests, the goal is to comply with hygienic conditions and facilitate school children and reduce the burden.
Zeng Zhiwen, director-general of the Greater Bay Area Service Agency of the Federation of Trade Unions, suggested that the government can change the requirement for cross-border nucleic acid testing to rapid testing for cross-border school children.
(Provided by the Federation of Trade Unions)
Federation of Trade Unions: Hope to replace nucleic acid with quick test and provide psychological counseling
Zeng Zhiwen said that at present, 70% of the parents who have received support services from the Greater Bay Area Service Agency of the Federation of Trade Unions have expressed similar concerns, including Mr. Mei.
On the one hand, nucleic acid testing is still required for travel between the mainland and Hong Kong, but the number of testing sites in the mainland has gradually decreased. Schoolchildren have a large demand for testing and it will be inconvenient. Many parents propose to use rapid test results instead of nucleic acid testing.
On the other hand, during the online class, the students' mentality was loose, and when they suddenly returned to school and saw so many classmates and teachers, they were worried about social communication problems and needed psychological and spiritual attention and support. The Education Bureau should send social workers or professional psychological counseling experts to cross Provide counseling work in schools with a large number of children in the environment.
Customs clearance for cross-border students｜The principal of the elementary school called for the rapid test to generate 48 hours of nucleic acid. He hoped that there would be news before the spring break｜Cross-border students expected to return to school after the Lunar New Year. A family who went to school moved to Hong Kong under the epidemic to clear customs｜27,000 cross-border students resumed teaching face-to-face in Hong Kong after the Chinese New Year and will not be counted in the customs clearance quota. Quick test of students｜Primary school principals call for temporary reservations until after the Lunar New Year to make preliminary arrangements for customs clearance｜News: The mainland allows special quotas for Hong Kong students to ensure sufficient quarantine hotels and flights
/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/3I74UEXLYRBBRPGPSGWNN6WXH4.jpg)
