School-Based Management Policy
Encyclopedia
The School-Based Management Policy is an education policy within the Education Ordinance of the Education Bureau in Hong Kong
. The policy was made law when The "Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2004" bill was passed by Legco
in July 2004. Under the amended Education Ordinance, all Hong Kong primary and secondary schools are required to set up incorporated management committees, or IMCs, by the year 2010. In addition, the proportion of board members representing the school-sponsoring body will be reduced to 60% within the IMC, allowing teachers, parents, alumni and community members to make up the rest of the 40%. The bill also stipulates that all authorities and responsibilities of the IMC must be clearly defined by each school.
and gazette
d. On 8 July 2004, the "Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2002" bill was approved by Legco, and after government gazetting, it became the "Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2004" bill. The School-Based Management Policy in the amended Education Ordinance came into force in January 2005. In July 2005, Legco approved a HK$350 million government funding for the setting up of IMCs at all government-aided schools.
Around 400 church schools belonging to the Catholic and other major Christian organisations are still refusing to set up IMCs.
The Education Bureau promised a policy review in 2008.
Since school boards of around 70 others had existed prior to the establishment of the education ordinance, with some even enjoying the legal status of a statutory organisation, they are not affected in any way.
, dilute its power
and even compromise the educational philosophy
and moral
and religious
guidance of their schools. The setting up of IMCs, they say, would increase the risks of lawsuits and escalate the cost of insurance
for the schools, ultimately bankrupting
the churches.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. The policy was made law when The "Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2004" bill was passed by Legco
Legislative Council of Hong Kong
The Legislative Council is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong.-History:The Legislative Council of Hong Kong was set up in 1843 as a colonial legislature under British rule...
in July 2004. Under the amended Education Ordinance, all Hong Kong primary and secondary schools are required to set up incorporated management committees, or IMCs, by the year 2010. In addition, the proportion of board members representing the school-sponsoring body will be reduced to 60% within the IMC, allowing teachers, parents, alumni and community members to make up the rest of the 40%. The bill also stipulates that all authorities and responsibilities of the IMC must be clearly defined by each school.
Term
It is interesting to note that perhaps of different perceptions on life, there exists two different ways of referring to the School-Based Management Policy in both the Chinese and the English media. While all English-language media refer to the School-Based Management Policy as a "policy" within the ordinance (or simply referring to the bill), all Chinese-language media have collectively decided to refer to it as an "ordinance" rather than a "policy". The differences in the terms is self-evident in the made-up Chinese term 校本條例, literally meaning "School-Based Ordinance".Background
The Education and Manpower Bureau introduced the draft school-based management policy back in 2001. In November 2002, the draft "Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2002" bill was passed by LegcoLegislative Council of Hong Kong
The Legislative Council is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong.-History:The Legislative Council of Hong Kong was set up in 1843 as a colonial legislature under British rule...
and gazette
Gazette
A gazette is a public journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper.In English- and French-speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name Gazette since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers bear the name The Gazette.Gazette is a loanword from the...
d. On 8 July 2004, the "Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2002" bill was approved by Legco, and after government gazetting, it became the "Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2004" bill. The School-Based Management Policy in the amended Education Ordinance came into force in January 2005. In July 2005, Legco approved a HK$350 million government funding for the setting up of IMCs at all government-aided schools.
Overall
Generally speaking, as of November 2006, 160 schools have set up IMCs, 50 are waiting for government approval, and around 100 have promised incorporation within the year.Around 400 church schools belonging to the Catholic and other major Christian organisations are still refusing to set up IMCs.
The Education Bureau promised a policy review in 2008.
Exceptions
The Hong Kong Anglican Church operates around 150 schools. The school boards of approximately 80 of those, operate under the education ordinance and as such, are affected by the school-based management policy and cannot avoid the setting up of IMCs.Since school boards of around 70 others had existed prior to the establishment of the education ordinance, with some even enjoying the legal status of a statutory organisation, they are not affected in any way.
Sponsoring Bodies with a Supporting Stance
- Po Leung KukPo Leung KukThe Po Leung Kuk is a charitable organisation in Hong Kong that provides support for orphaned children, education and other services.-Founding of Po Leung Kuk:...
operates 43 primary and secondary schools. Their IMCs shall be set up in stages. - The Hong Kong Buddhist Association operates 51 schools.
- Sik Sik Yuen operates 10 schools.
Sponsoring Bodies with a Neutral Stance
- Tung Wah Group of HospitalsTung Wah Group of HospitalsThe Tung Wah Group of Hospitals , with a long history from 1870, is the oldest and the largest charitable organisation in Hong Kong. Their education Services and Community Services to the community with a total of 194 service centres spreading over the territory of Hong Kong.Although it appears a...
operates over 30 schools.
Reasons for Opposition
After passage at Legco, the school-based management policy ran into fierce oppositions from the Catholic, Anglican, Methodist and other major church organisations whose schools make up to one quarter of all schools in Hong Kong. They feared the amended ordinance would reduce the churches' autonomyAutonomy
Autonomy is a concept found in moral, political and bioethical philosophy. Within these contexts, it is the capacity of a rational individual to make an informed, un-coerced decision...
, dilute its power
Political power
Political power is a type of power held by a group in a society which allows administration of some or all of public resources, including labour, and wealth. There are many ways to obtain possession of such power. At the nation-state level political legitimacy for political power is held by the...
and even compromise the educational philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and moral
Morality
Morality is the differentiation among intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good and bad . A moral code is a system of morality and a moral is any one practice or teaching within a moral code...
and religious
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
guidance of their schools. The setting up of IMCs, they say, would increase the risks of lawsuits and escalate the cost of insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
for the schools, ultimately bankrupting
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
the churches.
Timeline of Opposition
- On 17 December 2003, the Education and Manpower Bureau raised the prospect of a cut in the 2004 education funding.
- After passage of the amended bill, around 80 Anglican schools incorporated their boards as limited liability companies. The authorities of these 80 schools were then transferred to 2 limited liability companies set up by the Hong Kong Anglican Church. They are: Anglican (Hong Kong) Primary Schools Council Limited and Anglican (Hong Kong) Secondary Schools Council Limited.
- On 24 May 2004, the Education and Manpower Bureau alleged that the Anglican Church had remained silent during the whole 18 months after the gazetting of the bill. Their silence, EMB said, was very puzzling.
- On 6 June 2004, the Anglican Church's Education Secretary Timothy HaTimothy HaTimothy Ha Wing-ho MBE, JP , born in 1937, is the former Supervisor and Principal of St. Paul's College, Hong Kong, as well as Education Secretary of the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui and Chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Sponsoring Bodies of Schools...
fired back in a rebuttal, saying the EMB's statement on 24 May was totally incorrect. Ha stated that the Anglican Church had clearly expressed their stance on two separate occasions, in Sponsoring Bodies Association letters sent to the Education (Amendment) Ordinance 2002 committee at Legco on 10 March and 10 October 2003 respectively. Ha further stated that the Anglican Church had also attended several Legco hearingsLegislative Council of Hong KongThe Legislative Council is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong.-History:The Legislative Council of Hong Kong was set up in 1843 as a colonial legislature under British rule...
in which the church had unmistakably stated its legal worries associated with the bill, in full attendance of EMB officials. There was no way the EMB could deny knowledge of all these facts.
- Cardinal Joseph Zen of the Catholic Church maintained that since Secretary LiArthur LiArthur Li Kwok-cheung GBS JP was a member of the Executive Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and Secretary for Education and Manpower from August 2002 to June 2007....
had repeated the stance of the EMB like a broken record, the churches were forced to repeat their stance of "3 noes and 1 yes". 3 noes stand for, 1) This is not about democratisationDemocratizationDemocratization is the transition to a more democratic political regime. It may be the transition from an authoritarian regime to a full democracy, a transition from an authoritarian political system to a semi-democracy or transition from a semi-authoritarian political system to a democratic...
or school-based management (of our schools); 2) This is not about transparency or accountability (of our schools); 3) The government's stubborn stance is not based on any consultations, discussions or any world educational trends. 1 yes stands for: The core of the matter is, the government wants the introduction of IMCs, that's their bottom line. To put it bluntly, the government wants to control every single school in Hong Kong by delegating authorities from school-sponsoring bodies to individual IMCs.- On 5 July 2004, whilst attending an open forum organised by the Catholic Justice and Peace Committee at the St. Francis of Assisi Church in Shek Kip MeiShek Kip MeiShek Kip Mei, originally known as Kap Shek Mi, is an area in New Kowloon, the North Eastern Kowloon Peninsula of Hong Kong.-History:A major fire on 25 December 1953, destroyed the Shek Kip Mei shantytown of immigrants from Mainland China that had fled to Hong Kong, leaving 53,000 people...
, Cardinal Joseph Zen stated that the church would spend the next few years proving that Catholic schools could implement the spirit of the school-based management policy without the implementation of IMCs. - On 8 July 2004, the amended Education Ordinance was passed by Legco with an 8-vote majority.
- On 11 July 2004, the Methodist Church reiterated its stance on the issue, saying that it would continue operating its schools with an open attitude, allowing teachers, parents and alumni members to be elected into its school boards. The Methodist Church stated that according to article 141 of the Basic Law, religious organisations were allowed to carry on operating schools under previous practices. The Church, it further stated, would firmly retain its current mode of operation which had been successful and effective in coordinating, leading and supporting its schools. It vehemently opposed to the mandatory setting up of IMCs at its schools and requested a Legco review that would ultimately allow different school-based management modes.
- On 10 October 2004, Timothy Ha stated that the bill was forcibly pushed through with a slim margin by the government who had amassed all the support it could muster.
- In May 2005, Cardinal Zen threatened to apply for a judicial review if Legco approved extra funds for schools that set up IMCs before the 2008-09 school year. After which, EMB Secretary Arthur LiArthur LiArthur Li Kwok-cheung GBS JP was a member of the Executive Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and Secretary for Education and Manpower from August 2002 to June 2007....
told the cardinal to "calm down". - On 20 June 2005, Legco members met representatives of various school-sponsoring religious groups which included the Catholic, Anglican, Methodist churches as well as the Hong Kong Taoist Association who blasted the government for rewarding with "treats" schools that joined the programme.
- On 16 October 2005, Principal Tse Chun-keung, the newly-appointed Anglican Primary Schools Council director, stated that it was logically flawed for anyone to assume that transparency, openness and fairness would be achieved just by bringing in teachers, parents and alumni members into a school board.
- On 7 December 2005, the Catholic Diocese filed a writ for a judicial review on the amended Education Ordinance on the basis that it had violated the Basic LawHong Kong Basic LawThe Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, or simply Hong Kong Basic Law, serves as the constitutional document of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China...
. - On 8 December 2005, Cardinal Zen stated that the Catholic Church would close and return a portion of the 97 Catholic schools to the government, if the church ultimately loses its legal battle and hence control of its church principles.
- On 12 June 2006, in the "Letter to Hong Kong" radio programme aired on the RTHKRadio Television Hong KongRadio Television Hong Kong is a public broadcasting organisation in Hong Kong that is operated as an independent department in the government under the Broadcasting Authority. RTHK operates seven radio channels, and produces television programmes that are then broadcast through local television...
, the former Anglican ArchbishopArchbishop of Hong KongThe Archbishop of Hong Kong is the senior bishop, spiritual and moral leader of the Anglican Province of Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui. The archbishop is also Primate of Hong Kong , and both incumbents have, coincidentally, also been Bishop of Hong Kong Island...
Peter KwongPeter KwongPeter Kwong Kong-kit, GBS, was the first Archbishop Primate of Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui and, in 1998, was named as Bishop of the Diocese of Hong Kong Island....
stated that he hoped the school-based ordinance would not turn out to be an infamous piece of legislation because the public at large realised the ordinance contained a lot of loopholes and traps. - From 12 to 13 October 2006, the High Court deliberated for 2 days in the judicial review of the school-based management policy.
- On 23 November 2006, the High Court ruled in favour of the Education and Manpower Bureau, saying that the Catholic Church had no absolute right in its authority over the management of its schools and that the ordinance had not violated the Basic Law.
- On 5 July 2004, whilst attending an open forum organised by the Catholic Justice and Peace Committee at the St. Francis of Assisi Church in Shek Kip Mei
- After the High Court win by the Education and Manpower Bureau, Anglican Church Education Secretary Timothy Ha expressed his disappointments at the ruling before saying that the government had damaged the 150-year working partnership with the Anglican Church. Ha expressed Anglican support of the Catholic Church's move to appeal the ruling, saying Anglican schools might be taken over by the government otherwise. Ha said that all that they could do now was to make one move at a time. But he added, "JusticeJusticeJustice is a concept of moral rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural law, religion, or equity, along with the punishment of the breach of said ethics; justice is the act of being just and/or fair.-Concept of justice:...
shall be on our side. - On the same day, the director of education of the Methodist Church, Rev. Yuen Tin-yau stated that although the school-based management policy had been ruled legitimate, yet legitimacy did not necessarily equate to reasonableness. The Methodist Church stated that they fully supported the introduction of parents, teachers and alumni into their school boards, yet they resolutely rejected the setting up of IMCs. The Methodist Church maintained that their school boards would never be incorporated. Chairman of the Aided Primary School Heads Association, Mr Choi Kai-chun stated that if the legal win had been important for the EMB then the winning of the hearts and mind of the general public would be more important.
- On 15 December 2006, the director of education of the Methodist Church, Rev. Yuen Tin-yau declared that the working partnership between the sponsoring bodies and the EMB had been damaged, "Everybody's a loser. It's meaningless as to who wins and who loses." Yuen hoped that there would be a review of the effectiveness of other school-based management methods when the EMB reviewed its policies in 2008. Cardinal Zen stated that "We (the Catholic Church) have been actively helping the government in the areas of education all these years. Yet it is absolutely callous for the government to be treating us in such a way at the moment." Secretary LiArthur LiArthur Li Kwok-cheung GBS JP was a member of the Executive Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and Secretary for Education and Manpower from August 2002 to June 2007....
responded that the Cardinal should calm down and that he remained powerless if the Catholic Church were to resort to further lawsuits before expressing his regrets. The Secretary pointed out that after the establishment of IMCs, "Catholic students still has to pray and read the Bible" and thus would not affect the religious developments of the schools. The Secretary further questioned if it was (politically) correct not to grant a larger degree of democracy to schools in light of current (world) trend of democracy. - In January 2007, the Catholic Diocese applied for an appeal to the judicial review ruling.
- On 30 November 2007, sources revealed that both the Catholic Church and the EMB were willing to resolve their differences through negotiations and perhaps settle the issue out of court, if church schools were allowed exemptions.
- On 14 March 2008, the Catholic Church and the Education Bureau jointly applied for an adjournment at the High CourtHigh Court (Hong Kong)The High Court in Hong Kong consists of the Court of Appeal and the Court of First Instance. It deals with criminal and civil cases which have risen beyond the lower courts. It was named the Supreme Court before 1997.- High Court Building :...
in an attempt to resolve their differences and possibly reach an amicable settlement in the legal battle.
- On 15 December 2006, the director of education of the Methodist Church, Rev. Yuen Tin-yau declared that the working partnership between the sponsoring bodies and the EMB had been damaged, "Everybody's a loser. It's meaningless as to who wins and who loses." Yuen hoped that there would be a review of the effectiveness of other school-based management methods when the EMB reviewed its policies in 2008. Cardinal Zen stated that "We (the Catholic Church) have been actively helping the government in the areas of education all these years. Yet it is absolutely callous for the government to be treating us in such a way at the moment." Secretary Li