Jan 10, 2025, My News: Support for special education needs has improved in Hong Kong schools, but more has to be done
As demand for special education support grows, schools, parents and professionals are calling for more resources and support
All students require some level of support to maximise their potential and this is no less true for students with special educational needs (SEN). However, the type and amount of assistance SEN students require can differ substantially, which is why schools offering specialised and personalised services are essential.
A recent survey by the Hong Kong Christian Service found that there are nearly 60,000 SEN students in the city, a figure that has doubled in the last 10 years. The Education Bureau reports that in the 2023/2024 school year there were 63 government-backed special needs schools serving 8,818 students, in addition to nine mainstream private schools with dedicated classes. These figures don’t include private and international schools offering varying levels of SEN assistance. . . .
Mainstream schools are also becoming more inclusive of students with SEN, incorporating strategies like differentiated instruction and adapted lessons, catering to different learning styles and offering multisensory learning and diverse materials. At The Harbour School, for example, there are dedicated in-class support and intensive study programmes for students struggling with certain subjects; the school also partners with The Children’s Institute to offer one-to-one classroom assistance or targeted instruction outside class for those requiring more significant help.
However, these may be insufficient for some students, who may do better at dedicated schools where staff are trained to work with different SEN. One example in Hong Kong is the Link School, which has a background in educational inclusion, uses a flexible adaptation of the National Curriculum and focuses on creating individual learning plans.
There are also numerous organisations that assist in preparing students with SEN to succeed in mainstream schools. For example, Watchdog offers dedicated plans for children with global development delay, autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and works closely with parents to develop individual educational strategies to suit their children.
Moving forward
Although there has been some improvement, more must be done to help SEN students excel. “It’s important to recognise that just providing a space for a child with special needs doesn’t really address those needs,” Blurton emphasises. . . .
Increased government resources would also help. Becher notes that Hong Kong currently offers early intervention services for children up to six years old, but there are no government-funded special needs schools for non-Cantonese speakers. This leaves some families struggling to look after children with high needs when they cannot afford private school fees. . . .
“The issue is complicated because there simply aren’t enough SEN places in international schools for children with mild to moderate needs,” says Becher. “But that would require a lot more manpower, as well as spatial and monetary resources from the schools.”
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