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The Education Bureau (EDB) announced today (May 27) an extension of the tenure of the Eleventh Term Council on Professional Conduct in Education (CPC) to April 30, 2017. During the transitional period, the EDB will prepare for the formation of the Twelfth Term CPC in accordance with the recommendations set out in the Report on Review of the Present Framework and Mechanism for Promoting and Upholding Teachers' Professional Conduct (Report) submitted by the Education Commission (EC). The CPC for the new term, with greater representativeness, impartiality and credibility, will be formed as early as possible.
Set up in April 1994 on the recommendation of the EC in its Report No. 5, the CPC has the following terms of reference: (1) to advise the Government on measures to promote professional conduct in education; (2) to draft operational criteria defining the conduct expected of an educator and to gain widespread acceptance of these criteria among all sectors of the education community through consultation; and (3) to advise the Permanent Secretary for Education on cases of disputes or alleged professional misconduct involving educators.
A Government spokesman said, "The EDB has all along attached importance to the professional conduct of teachers. To keep up with changes in society and the continuous development of education, the EC established a working group in 2013 to review the present framework and mechanism and make recommendations to refine the CPC's composition, with a view to addressing public demand and expectations in respect of teachers' conduct by enhancing the representativeness, impartiality and credibility of the CPC. To enable the CPC to move with the times, the EDB accepted the EC's Report and will appropriately increase the participation of relevant stakeholders and lay members in the work of the CPC, which is also in line with the trend among international and local professional bodies.
As recommended in the Report, the new CPC to be formed will still have a total of 28 seats, most of which will be held by elected or nominated members. The new CPC will remain a professional-led body with a total of 21 seats for teachers and representatives from the education sector (a majority of 75 per cent). The remaining seven seats (25 per cent) will comprise three seats for parent representatives, three seats for lay members appointed by the EDB and one seat for an EDB representative.
The spokesman said, "The normal tenure of CPC members is two years. Fourteen members serving on the Eleventh Term Council have accepted the EDB's invitation to extend their tenure for one year to carry on with the work of the CPC. Meanwhile, the EDB will implement the recommendations put forward in the Report during the transitional period and prepare for the election of the Twelfth Term Council to ensure an early and smooth transition. Extending the tenure of the existing CPC members is a reasonable and pragmatic arrangement."
The EDB extended its gratitude to the Chairman of the Eleventh Term Council, Mr Chow Ping-yan, and all the members for their valuable contribution to the CPC over the past two years. The EDB counts on their continued support and professional collaboration in completing the major tasks of the current term Council during the transitional period so as to enhance the professional conduct of teachers through concerted efforts.
Serving CPC members whose term will be extended to April 30, 2017, are as follows:
Mr Chow Ping-yan (Chairman)
Dr Chan Wai-kai
Mr Choi Sung-ki
Ms Pauline Chow Lo-sai
Mr Fong Yiu-fai
Dr Ko Po-yuk
Mr Godwin Lai Kam-tong
Ms Yvonne Lam Yuen-kwan
Ms Ng Lai-fun
Ms Grace Tsui Wai-chuen
Mr Addy Wong Wai-hung
Mr Yeung Sai-man
Mr Yu Kai-chun
Ms Eva Yu Yee-wah
Ends/Friday, May 27, 2016
Issued at HKT 18:05
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