CRI听力:Education in Macau Sees Great Developments After Return

Not only has the special administrative region implemented free education from preschool to high school, it has also managed to build up a higher education system almost from scratch.

Dr. Hao Yufan, Dean of Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities at the University of Macau, as well as author of the annual Macau Economic and Social Development Bluebook, says only 15 years ago, Macau's education system was in a primitive stage.

"Before the turnover in 1999, most of the local people would send their children either to Hong Kong, Taiwan, or the mainland for higher education. Even the education in middle schools and high schools was not in good shape."

Dr. Hao says the local government deserves a lot of the credit for the turnaround in Macau's education system.

"I would say largely because of the need for skilled manpower, the local government was prompted to invest enormously in education. The local government would spend close to 6% of its annual revenue on education in general."

According to Dr. Hao, Macau's overall educational spending ranks the highest compared to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.

But money is not the only thing that stands out in Macau's education system.

Cao Jiacheng, a junior student from Macau Polytechnic Institute, is rehearing a dragon dance for a performance marking the 15th Anniversary of Macau's return to China.

"I feel most students in Macau are pretty happy. When I was in high school, the homework load wasn't heavy either, I guess because we don't have a unified college entrance exam to prepare for."

One characteristic of Macau's education system is that there is no equivalent of the Gaokao, or college entrance exam.

According to Dr. Hao, a diversified curriculum is another characteristic.

"The curriculum, or textbooks used in schools, are quite diverse. Some schools use textbooks from the mainland, but most use textbooks from HK, from Taiwan, or even from European countries. So this diversity in terms of the content teachers can teach provides students with more input that will trigger students' interest."

Dr. Hao says that a diversified curriculum, plus a flexible way of evaluating students, is key to nurturing open and creative minds.

Over the past 15 years, the Macau government has also invested money in teachers to help them advance their knowledge and to go abroad on professional tours to learn from their counterparts.

For CRI, this is Xiaohua reporting from Macau.