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Club collaborates with academia to strengthen support for gifted students

03/02/2017

Students have diverse needs in the classroom, which means they have to be catered for in different ways. To help bring out the best in every student and enhance their strengths and capabilities, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust has funded the Jockey Club "Giftedness Into Flourishing Talents" Project, underwhich a local school-based talent search model with an enriched curriculum will be developed.

The programme will be implemented at 20 pilot schools (15 primary and 5 secondary) by an academic consortium led by The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and also involving City University of Hong Kong, the Education University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and the University of Hong Kong, .

Officiating at the launch ceremony of the Jockey Club "Giftedness Into Flourishing Talents" Project on 23 February were the Club's Executive Director, Charities and Community, Leong Cheung; Secretary for Education Eddie Ng; Deputy Secretary for Education Dr Catherine Chan; Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK Professor Joseph Sung; Pro-Vice-Chancellor of CUHK Professor Isabella Poon; Dean of the Faculty of Education at CUHK Professor Alvin Leung; Co-Chief Principal Investigators of the project Professor Alan Cheung and Professor Daniel Shek; and Founder of Polar Museum Foundation Dr Rebecca Lee.

"The Club started to explore funding opportunities to support pilot programmes on curriculum development around 10 years ago, aligning with the Education Bureau's efforts. Examples include the 'PATH to Adulthood' project which is a scientific and holistic development programme designed in the Chinese communities for adolescents; 'READ & WRITE', the first-known programme designed for dyslexic children to boost their reading and writing abilities. This project for our gifted children takes our efforts a step further," Mr Cheung told the guests, noting that gifted students also had special education needs, although people often thought they were always at an advantage.

Funded with a Trust donation of over HK$48 million,the three-year programme will strengthen support at Levels 1 and 2 in the three-tier gifted education framework established by the Education Bureau. The project has a number of unique features, including:

  • Enrichment programmes and differentiated curriculum at Level 1 for all students
  • Talent search and accelerated programmes at Level 2 for gifted students
  • Professional on-site support to schools for development of student portfolio, lesson planning and design of school-based gifted education policy
  • Training for professional development of educators to build their capacity
  • Parent education programme
  • Evidence-based evaluation to measure the overall project impacts, the effectiveness of school-based implementation, and the benefits of the teaching and learning processes in building teachers' and students' capacity
  • The project is expected to benefit around 2,000 educators, while 12,000 students in the pilot schools and 1,000 parents of those identified as gifted learners will benefit.

    The Hong Kong Jockey Club
    The Hong Kong Jockey Club is a not-for-profit enterprise dedicated to community betterment. Through its integrated business model of world-class racing, responsible sports wagering and lottery, and charity and community contribution, the Club generates substantial economic and social value and assists the Government in combatting illegal gambling. In 2015/16 the Club donated a record HK$3.9 billion to charity and paid a record HK$20.9 billion in tax. It is Hong Kong's largest single tax payer and one of the world's largest charity donors. Committed to global excellence and giving back to society, the Club is always "riding high together for a better future" with the people of Hong Kong.

    The Hong Kong Jockey Club's Executive Director, Charities and Community, Leong Cheung notes that gifted students also have special education needs, hence the Club's support to the Jockey Club ''Giftedness Into Flourishing Talents'' Project.
    The Hong Kong Jockey Club's Executive Director, Charities and Community, Leong Cheung notes that gifted students also have special education needs, hence the Club's support to the Jockey Club ''Giftedness Into Flourishing Talents'' Project.

    Officiating at the launch ceremony of the Jockey Club ''Giftedness Into Flourishing Talents'' Project are the Club's Executive Director, Charities and Community, Leong Cheung (4th right); Secretary for Education Eddie Ng (centre); Deputy Secretary for Education Dr Catherine Chan (3rd right); Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK Professor Joseph Sung (4th left);Pro-Vice-Chancellor of CUHK Professor Isabella Poon (3rd left); Dean of the Faculty of Education at CUHK Professor Alvin Leung (2nd left); a Co-Chief Principal Investigators of the project Professor Alan Cheung (1st right) and Professor Daniel Shek (1st left); and Founder of Polar Museum Foundation Dr Rebecca Lee (2nd right).
    Officiating at the launch ceremony of the Jockey Club ''Giftedness Into Flourishing Talents'' Project are the Club's Executive Director, Charities and Community, Leong Cheung (4th right); Secretary for Education Eddie Ng (centre); Deputy Secretary for Education Dr Catherine Chan (3rd right); Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK Professor Joseph Sung (4th left);Pro-Vice-Chancellor of CUHK Professor Isabella Poon (3rd left); Dean of the Faculty of Education at CUHK Professor Alvin Leung (2nd left); a Co-Chief Principal Investigators of the project Professor Alan Cheung (1st right) and Professor Daniel Shek (1st left); and Founder of Polar Museum Foundation Dr Rebecca Lee (2nd right).

    Photos 3/ 4: Students from pilot schools of the programme perform at the launch ceremony.
    Photos 3/ 4: Students from pilot schools of the programme perform at the launch ceremony.


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