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Reforming Secondary Education Challenges to Paradigms

Reforming Secondary Education Challenges to Paradigms. Kai-ming Cheng Chair Professor of Education & Senior Advisor to the Vice-Chancellor University of Hong Kong Seminar on “Growth Strategies for Secondary Education in Asia” World Bank Malaysia, September 19, 2005.

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Reforming Secondary Education Challenges to Paradigms

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  1. Reforming Secondary EducationChallenges to Paradigms Kai-ming Cheng Chair Professor of Education & Senior Advisor to the Vice-Chancellor University of Hong Kong Seminar on “Growth Strategies for Secondary Education in Asia” World Bank Malaysia, September 19, 2005

  2. The literature: the missing part • Basic Education • Secondary Education • Vocational Education • Higher Education

  3. Secondary education: Why now? The Contexts • Society: new workplace • Education: new developments • Learning: new understanding

  4. Change in society & workplace

  5. Industrial Society: the Pyramid

  6. The Organisational Structure

  7. The Manpower Structure

  8. The Knowledge Structure

  9. Assumptions … • Large organizations • Parallel departments • Layers and ranks • Detailed division of labour • Tight structures • Rules and regulations • Credential-based recruitment • ……..

  10. Assumptions … • Lifelong career • Long-term employment • Presumed loyalty • Upward mobility • Escalating incomes • Foreseeable future • Retirement aspirations • ……..

  11. People in Workplace: Industrial • People for specific jobs • People are specialised • People are ranked • People implement pre-set designs • People follow prescribed procedures • People abide by rules and regulations • People recruited by qualifications • ……

  12. Post-industrial: SMEs

  13. Post-industrial: Large Organisations Project Groups Task Forces Production Teams Client Groups “Accounts” Deal Team

  14. Task Force

  15. Post-industrial: Free-lancers

  16. Post-industrial: Workplace Project Groups/Task Forces Small Enterprises Free-lancers The Civil Service

  17. Post-industrial: Workplace • Small organisation • Flat organisations • Loose organisations • Constant teamwork • Ill-defined labour division • Blurred specilization • …..

  18. Post-industrial: Individuals • Many free-lancers • Many unemployed • Frequent change of jobs • Frequent change of careers • Ever-changing networks • Frequent change of partners • ……..

  19. Post-industrial: Expectations • Communication • Learning on-demand, just-in-time • Team-work • Personal responsibilities • Solving problems • Integrating expertise • Self-disciplined & Self-management • Capacity to query, challenge, innovate • …….

  20. Then Large & Pyramidal Procedures, rules & regulations Lifelong careers Lifelong qualifications Now Small & flat Communications & relations Multiple careers On-demand, just-in-time learning Workplace & Society

  21. Implications for education • Drastic decrease of manual workers • Expanded need for higher education • Challenge to occupational identity • Intensified human interactions • Demand for more flexible learning modes and paths

  22. Development of Education System

  23. Then For the selected Leading to certification Urban Now For the majority Facing lifelong learning Spreading to rural Secondary Education:

  24. Then Preparation for the next stage Higher education Jobs Now Preparation for life Change in nature

  25. Challenges to Paradigms

  26. Paradigm of “Screening”

  27. “Screening” Chellenges • Rapid expansion of higher education • Unemployment among less-educated • Middle-age unemployment

  28. Net entry rate into tertiary education (Type A) for selected countries, 2000 Starting 1999 • Europe: + 25% • China: +100% • Taiwan: oversupply • Korea: oversupply • Japan: near oversupply • Hong Kong: 66% • Singapore: 75%

  29. The question: If every child should be given the opportunity to learn more, what is the point of screening at secondary level?

  30. Challenges to “Screening” Challenge to paradigms • Belief in innate ability • “There are smart kids and dumb kids” • Belief in using knowledge for screening • versus lifelong & multi-source learning • Belief in using single indicators (IQ) • versus multiple intelligence

  31. Paradigm of “Specialisation”

  32. “Specialisation” Challenges • Division of labour blurred • Frequent change of jobs & occupations • Job-study mismatch • Demand for generic competence • Diluted & delayed specialisation in higher education • ……

  33. Specialization in HE: Evolution Generic Capacity Building Common Core

  34. Specialization: Evolution in HE • Engineering: Washington Accord (30%) • Business Schools (50%) • Journalism schools (70%) • Europe: Bologna Process (3 + 2 + 2) • UK: Foundations Degree (2 + 3 + 3) • China: Fudan, Xian Jiaoda Generic Capacity Building Common Core

  35. Specialization: Bologna

  36. The question: If higher education has delayed specialisation, what is the point of specialisation at secondary level?

  37. “Specialisation” Challenges to Paradigms • Belief that education is for classifying people • Belief in people’s occupational identity • Belief that education is more specialised at higher levels • ……

  38. Paradigm of “teaching”

  39. “Teaching” Challenges • Students also learn what are not taught • Students also learn from alternative sources • Technology has made acquisition of knowledge much easier

  40. The question: If teacher is no longer the only source of knowledge, what is the new role for teachers?

  41. “Teaching” Challenges to paradigms • Belief that learning is transmission of knowledge from those who know to those who don’t know • Belief that learning is about the known and not the unknown

  42. Paradigm of “Study”

  43. “Study” Challenges • The expectation for good characters and personalities • The demand for human relational and social competence • The renewed importance for values, attitudes, emotions, ethics, principles, … • ………..

  44. The question If society expects graduates to engage in more intensive human relations, why is such not formally reflected in designed school-lives?

  45. “Study” Challenges to Paradigms • Belief in academic study as proxy for learning • Belief in classroom learning as the only reliable learning • Belief in examination scores as the only trustworthy measure of human capacity • …..

  46. Paradigm of “Schooling”

  47. “Schooling” Challenges • Call for flexible curriculum • Learning is recognised beyond institutions • Credit-unit Bank in Korea • Lifelong Learning Passport in Taiwan • Administrative considerations have taken over learning needs

  48. The question If all organisations are becoming smaller and more flexible, are schools also prepared to explore alternative ways of organisation?

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