Back-to-school culture shock for mainland Chinese students resuming face-to-face classes in Hong Kong after 3 years
- Children who attended online lessons during the pandemic face adjustment problems, parents and teachers say
- Most of the 21,000 cross-border students did not see their classmates, teachers in person during pandemic
Thousands of children who live in mainland China and attend Hong Kong schools will return to their campuses for the first time in three years, and this is making parents and teachers worry.
After disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Hong Kong government has said these students could resume face-to-face lessons next month, with secondary pupils starting on February 1 and primary and kindergarten children on February 15.
Parents and teachers have called for a range of support services for children who may face adjustment problems, now that pandemic travel restrictions have been removed and they can return to their schools.
There are almost 21,000 cross-border students and they comprise 7,000 secondary, 13,000 primary and 900 kindergarten students. They are mostly from Shenzhen, in neighbouring Guangdong province, and attend schools mainly in North district, Tai Po and Yuen Long in the New Territories.
Only a quarter stayed in Hong Kong during the pandemic, while the majority remained with their families on the mainland and attended classes online since 2020.
Fung Hang-ling, a teacher responsible for the 100 cross-border students at CCC Fung Leung Kit Memorial Secondary School in Tai Po, expected them to face difficulties adapting to campus life.
She said online lessons had left many struggling to keep up with their studies, and more than a dozen repeated their grade last year, including some who had asked to repeat the year themselves.
