Mainstream Hong Kong schools failing special-needs pupils
More than a decade after the government opened up mainstream schools to students with special educational needs through special funding, many parents of such children remain deeply frustrated with the lack of real choices available in those schools.
Having just returned from holiday abroad with his parents, 12-year-old Ah Ching is really looking forward to returning to school.
He enjoys a close relationship with his teachers in a small class environment, plays pranks on fellow classmates at times and, what's more, there is limited homework at the Aoi Pui School, converted from a vacated primary school in Hung Hom, which caters for moderate-to-high-functioning autistic children.
The relaxed school life gives him ample time to enjoy his favourite activity of reading English books.
Ah Ching switched to the school two years ago, after a gruelling time at a mainstream school. An excessive amount of homework and lack of understanding and support from teachers seriously sapped his motivation to learn.
"We battled with the homework every night," says his mother Josephine Cheung. "Unable to catch up with it all, he yelled out loud one night. He asked me, 'What is the reason for my existence?'"
More than a decade after the government implemented the integrated education policy, opening up mainstream schools to students with special educational needs through special funding, many parents of these children remain deeply frustrated with the lack of real choices in the mainstream sector.
