When Cheng Kai-ming was helping the Education Commission draft reforms to Hong Kong's education system in 2000, he believed changing how public exams were structured would ease the obsession with grades, which was becoming a hurdle to fostering future talent.

Hong Kong students showed "limited ability, despite their high scores", the then-Education Commission chairman Antony Leung Kam-chung noted at the time. The restructuring was intended to give young people the versatility and creativity to succeed in the rapidly changing work environments of the future.

Writes Linda Yeung for South China Morning Post.

Commentry from Steven Corry, Brtish Council

While the new secondary curriculum has been the main Education news story in Hong Kong over the past couple of years, the elephant in the room has been the underlying culture that prioritises exam grades above all else. While the curriculum may have changed, there is little evidence to suggest that the ‘study to you drop’ culture has. On the contrary, the after-hours tutoring business still seems to be thriving, a sure sign that parents are continuing to drive students to achieve the best grades possible, and don’t buy into the new curriculum’s aim of producing well rounded graduates. UK universities can therefore still expect to be receiving Hong Kong students who are hard-working, but it remains to be seen whether any change will be noticed in the students creativity and interpersonal skills.

If any UK institutions receiving Hong Kong students have any observations, we would love to hear them. Please contact Steven Corry by e-mail steven.corry@britishcouncil.org.hk.