Maintaining global engagement in the face of national integration in Hong kong

Comparative Education Review

Volumn 42, Issue 1, 1998, Pages 30-44

  Postiglione, Gerard A ^a  

^a NONE

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EID: 0032331020     PISSN: 00104086     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1086/447477     Document Type: Article

References (60)

1. Those seven universities are the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong Baptist University, the City University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and the Open Learning University. Lingnan College will be elevated to university status in due course, and there may be eight universities in Hong Kong by the time this article appears. For figures on the number of academic staff, see data derived from reports of the University Grants Committee of Hong Kong. See also Asiaweek 23, no. 20 (May 23, 1997): 34-44.
2. See Zhongguo jiaoyu tongji nianjian, 1995 (Educational statistics yearbook of China, 1995) (Beijing: People's Education Press, 1996).
3. See Gerard A. Postiglione, "Hong Kong Higher Education within the Global Academy," in Hong Kong's Reunion with China: The Global Dimension, ed. Gerard A. Postiglione and James T. H. Tang (New York: Sharpe, 1997), pp. 239-08.
4. See Ruth Hayhoe, China's Universities and Open Door (New York: Sharpe, 1989).
5. This can be seen in Gerard A. Postiglione, "The Future of Hong Kong's Academic Profession in a Period of Profound Change," in The International Academic Profession: Portraits of Fourteen Countries, ed. Philip Altbach (Princeton, N.J.: Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, 1996), table 5.1.
6. See Weifang Min, "China," in Asian Higher Education: An International Handbook and Reference Guide, ed. Gerard A. Postiglione and Grace C. L. Mak (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 1997), pp. 37-55.
7. China's academic exchanges encompass Africa and South America as well as Eastern Europe and the Middle East, while Hong Kong's academic relations have had little exchange with these regions and largely ignored Eastern Europe, including Russia, until the 1990s.
8. See Ernest L. Boyer, Philip G. Altbach, and Mary Jean Whitelaw, eds., The Academic Profession: An International Perspective (Princeton, N.J.: Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, 1994), fig. 37, p. 53. A higher proportion of the Hong Kong academic staff gave excellent ratings to their computer facilities than academic staff from any of the other 13 countries in this survey.
9. Many universities, including Peking University and Qinghua University in Beijing and Fudan University in Shanghai, have established offices and/or special agreements for academic exchange with universities in Hong Kong and Macau.
10. See University Grants Committee of Hong Kong, Higher Education in Hong Kong (Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1996).
11. See Donald Tsang, Hong Kong Economic Outlook, 1997 (Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1997).
12. The Hong Kong Provisional Legislature, composed of appointed members confirmed by Beijing, reversed civil liberties legislation enacted by Hong Kong's fully elected Legislative Council, which it replaced on July 1, 1997.
13. See Gerard A. Postiglione, "From Capitalism to Socialism: Hong Kong Education within a Transitional Society," Comparative Education Review 35, no. 4 (November 1991): 627-49, and "The Decolonization of Hong Kong Education," in The Hong Kong Reader: Transfer to Chinese Sovereignty, ed. Ming K. Chan and Gerard A. Postiglione (New York: Sharpe, 1997), pp. 98-123.
14. See Gerard A. Postiglione, "From Capitalism to Socialism: Hong Kong Education within a Transitional Society," Comparative Education Review 35, no. 4 (November 1991): 627-49, and "The Decolonization of Hong Kong Education," in The Hong Kong Reader: Transfer to Chinese Sovereignty, ed. Ming K. Chan and Gerard A. Postiglione (New York: Sharpe, 1997), pp. 98-123.
15. See The Basic Law of the Special Admistrative Region of Honkong of the People's Republic of China (Hong Kong: Consultative Committee of the Basic Law, 1990).
16. Todd M. Davis, ed., Open Doors, 1994-1995, Report on International Educational Exchanges (New York: Institute of International Education, 1995).
17. See, e.g., Merle Goldman, with Timothy Creek and Carol Lee Hamrin, eds., China's Intellectuals and the State: In Search of New Relationship, Harvard Contemporary China Series no. 3, Council on East Asian Studies (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1987); Richard Madsen, "The Spiritual Crisis of China's Intellectuals," in Chinese Society on the Eve of Tiananmen: The Impact of Reform, ed. Deborah Davis and Ezra Vogel, Harvard Contemporary China Series no. 7, Council on East Asian Studies (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1990), pp. 243-60; and Merle Goldman, "The Intellectuals in the Deng Xiaoping Era," in State and Society in China: The Consequences of Reform, ed. Arthur Lewis Rosenbaum (Boulder, Colo.: Westview 1992), pp. 193-218.
18. See, e.g., Merle Goldman, with Timothy Creek and Carol Lee Hamrin, eds., China's Intellectuals and the State: In Search of New Relationship, Harvard Contemporary China Series no. 3, Council on East Asian Studies (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1987); Richard Madsen, "The Spiritual Crisis of China's Intellectuals," in Chinese Society on the Eve of Tiananmen: The Impact of Reform, ed. Deborah Davis and Ezra Vogel, Harvard Contemporary China Series no. 7, Council on East Asian Studies (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1990), pp. 243-60; and Merle Goldman, "The Intellectuals in the Deng Xiaoping Era," in State and Society in China: The Consequences of Reform, ed. Arthur Lewis Rosenbaum (Boulder, Colo.: Westview 1992), pp. 193-218.
19. See, e.g., Merle Goldman, with Timothy Creek and Carol Lee Hamrin, eds., China's Intellectuals and the State: In Search of New Relationship, Harvard Contemporary China Series no. 3, Council on East Asian Studies (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1987); Richard Madsen, "The Spiritual Crisis of China's Intellectuals," in Chinese Society on the Eve of Tiananmen: The Impact of Reform, ed. Deborah Davis and Ezra Vogel, Harvard Contemporary China Series no. 7, Council on East Asian Studies (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1990), pp. 243-60; and Merle Goldman, "The Intellectuals in the Deng Xiaoping Era," in State and Society in China: The Consequences of Reform, ed. Arthur Lewis Rosenbaum (Boulder, Colo.: Westview 1992), pp. 193-218.
20. In 1971, an Education Department ordinance stated, "No instruction, education, entertainment, recreation or propaganda or activity of any kind which, in the opinion of the Director, is in any way of a political or partly political nature and prejudicial to the public interest or the welfare of the pupils or of education generally or contrary to the approved syllabus. shall be permitted upon die occasion of any school activity" (see Education Department, Education Regulations [Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1971], chap. 279, sec. 84). The italicized text was deleted in 1990. See also " Call to End Ban on Politics in Schools," South China Morning Post (June 7, 1989).
21. In 1971, an Education Department ordinance stated, "No instruction, education, entertainment, recreation or propaganda or activity of any kind which, in the opinion of the Director, is in any way of a political or partly political nature and prejudicial to the public interest or the welfare of the pupils or of education generally or contrary to the approved syllabus. shall be permitted upon die occasion of any school activity" (see Education Department, Education Regulations [Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1971], chap. 279, sec. 84). The italicized text was deleted in 1990. See also " Call to End Ban on Politics in Schools," South China Morning Post (June 7, 1989).
22. See letter of December 7, 1993, from the Dean, Faculty of Law, Registry of the University of Hong Kong, Annex N, University Senate Minutes, item no. 24, March 1, 1994.
23. This was made clear by the director of the Hong Kong and Macau office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China.
24. See the reprint of the annual address by Governor David Wilson to the Legislative Council, October 11, 1989, in Hong Kong, 1990: A Review of 1989, ed. David Roberts (Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1990), pp. 4-22. See also University Grants Committee Secretariat, University Grants Committee of Hong Kong, Facts and Figures, 1994 (Hong Kong: University Grants Committee Secretariat, April 1995). The figure of 58,000 refers only to the number of students in the seven institutions of higher education under the University Grants Committee and includes undergraduate and graduate, as well as subdegree students.
25. See the reprint of the annual address by Governor David Wilson to the Legislative Council, October 11, 1989, in Hong Kong, 1990: A Review of 1989, ed. David Roberts (Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1990), pp. 4-22. See also University Grants Committee Secretariat, University Grants Committee of Hong Kong, Facts and Figures, 1994 (Hong Kong: University Grants Committee Secretariat, April 1995). The figure of 58,000 refers only to the number of students in the seven institutions of higher education under the University Grants Committee and includes undergraduate and graduate, as well as subdegree students.
26. "Academic Hits Out at Crisis Intervention,quot; South China Morning Post (November 5, 1989).
27. University Grants Committee of Hong Kong, Getting Ready for Tertiary Education, abridged version, 4th ed. (May 1996), p. VIII-5. This is a study commissioned by the University Grants Committee.
28. Hugh Witt, ed., Hong Kong Yearbook, 1993: A Review of 1992 (Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1993). The seven universities and tertiary college are funded through the University Grants Committee as well as the Hong Kong Institute of Education, while the Academy of Performing Arts is funded through the recreation and culture branch of die government. Hong Kong has a postsecondary institution, Shue Yan College, which is privately funded.
29. See the University Grants Committee of Hong Kong's "Appendix L," in their Report for July 1991 to June 1995 (Hong Kong: Government Printer, May 1996), pp. 69-72.
30. See the University Grants Committee website, http://www.ugc.edu.hk.
31. Basic Law of the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong. Also, see the speech by the chief executive, the Honorable Tung Chee Hwa, at the July 1. 1997, ceremony to celebrate the establishment of the Hong Kong SAR of the PRC, where he stated: "Education is the key to the future of Hong Kong. . . . It should encourage diversification and combine the strength of the east and west. We shall draw up a comprehensive plan to improve the quality of education and inject sufficient resources to achieve this goal" (http://www.info.gov.HK.HK1997.handover.ecele.html).
32. Education Commission Report Number 3 (Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1988).
33. University Grants Committee of Hong Kong, Higher Education in Hong Kong, chap. 43, par. 3 (n. 10 above).
34. Min (n. 6 above); also see Ka-ho Mok, Chinese Intellectuals and the State in Post-Mao China (London: Macmillan, in press); and Feng Wei, Zhonggou zhishijie: Dazhendang - Shanghai chenfuzhongde Zhongguo zhishi fenzi saomiao (The great tremors in Chinese intellectual circles: An overview of intellectuals floundering in the sea of commercialism) (Beijing: Zhongguo shehui chubanshe, 1993).
35. Min (n. 6 above); also see Ka-ho Mok, Chinese Intellectuals and the State in Post-Mao China (London: Macmillan, in press); and Feng Wei, Zhonggou zhishijie: Dazhendang - Shanghai chenfuzhongde Zhongguo zhishi fenzi saomiao (The great tremors in Chinese intellectual circles: An overview of intellectuals floundering in the sea of commercialism) (Beijing: Zhongguo shehui chubanshe, 1993).
36. Zhongguo jiaoyu tongji nianjian, 1995 (Educational statistics yearbook of China, 1995 [n. 2 above]) lists 1,054 institutions of higher education. See also Gerard A. Postiglione and Liu Fang, eds., "Higher Education in 1994: Selections from China Education News," Chinese Education and Society 28, no. 6 (November-December 1995): 1-91.
37. Zhongguo jiaoyu tongji nianjian, 1995 (Educational statistics yearbook of China, 1995 [n. 2 above]) lists 1,054 institutions of higher education. See also Gerard A. Postiglione and Liu Fang, eds., "Higher Education in 1994: Selections from China Education News," Chinese Education and Society 28, no. 6 (November-December 1995): 1-91.
38. See Min.
39. Zhongguo jiaoyu tongji nianjian, 1995 (Educational statistics yearbook of China, 1995), p. 16. The majority of institutions in China have small numbers of students: 68 have 4,001-5,000 students; 120 have 3,001-4,000 students; 193 have 2,001-3,000 students; 167 have 1,500-2,000 students; 184 have 1,001-1,499 students; 142 have 501-1,000 students; 24 have 300-999 students; and 10 have fewer than 300 students.
40. Ibid.
41. University Grants Committee of Hong Kong, Higher Education in Hong Kong (n. 10 above).
42. See Boyer et al., fig. 2, p. 35 (n. 8 above).
43. Zhongguo Jiaoyu tongji nianjian, 1995 (Educational statistics yearbook of China, 1995), p. 28.
44. Ibid.
45. Calculations are from K. W. Ng's "Staff Ranks" (University of Hong Kong, Statistics Department, February 2, 1996), fig. 1: "Comparison of Academic Staff between the University of Hong Kong and North American Universities."
46. Zhongguo jiaoyu tongji nianjian, 1995 (Educational statistics yearbook of China, 1995), p. 28.
47. See Ingmar Fagerlind and Lawrence J. Saha, "Education and Development under Capitalism and Socialism," in their Education and National Development: A Comparative Perspective (Oxford: Pergamon, 1983), pp. 195-233; see also Burton Clark, The Higher Education System: Academic Organization in Cross National Perspective (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1983).
48. See Ingmar Fagerlind and Lawrence J. Saha, "Education and Development under Capitalism and Socialism," in their Education and National Development: A Comparative Perspective (Oxford: Pergamon, 1983), pp. 195-233; see also Burton Clark, The Higher Education System: Academic Organization in Cross National Perspective (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1983).
49. Academics coming directly from China to Hong Kong must apply for a visa, a process that averages 3 to 4 months, more time than it takes to acquire a visa to visit the United States.
50. In Hong Kong, 222 academic staff from the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (collectively identified here as HKTU) were questioned in May 1993 as part of a survey of academic staff across all seven University Grants Committee institutions. The surveys sampled across academic ranks within all departments and similar academic units. A staff list from each institution was used. After selection of a random number, every third person was sampled across departmental listing arranged by rank. The University and Polytechnic Grams Committee figure for total academic staff across institutions in 1993-94 was 3,562. The sampling process using staff lists yielded 1,247 names, approximately 35 percent of the population. After selection of a random number, every third person was selected across departmental listings arranged by rank. There were 472 respondents for an approximately 37 percent response rate, which accounts for about 13 percent of the total population. Completed surveys were returned either to the General Post Office or to one of the institutional monitors. In China, 278 academic staff from CTU were surveyed in fall 1994. A total of 1,040 questionnaires were sent to CTU, which accounts for one-third of the total faculty. There was an approximately 27 percent response rate, which accounts for 11 percent of the total population. After selection of a random number, every third person on the staff list arranged by department by age was chosen. Questionnaires were mailed individualy with a stamped preaddressed envelope.
51. See "Mission Statement of the University of Hong Kong," available from http://www.hku.hk.
52. Of the CTU respondents, 7.2 percent did not answer this question, and 11.5 percent indicated that they did not know.
53. Of the CTU respondents, 5.8 percent did not answer the question, and 2.9 percent indicated that they did not know.
54. Represented as the proportion of staff that indicated an issue should be the highest priority.
55. Overseas appointees may remain in Hong Kong for less time than it takes to earn tenure. Overseas terms usually include better housing accommodations and travel allowances, along with other benefits in some cases. Eligibility is based on overseas residency, however, because Hong Kong is an emigrant, as well as an immigrant, society, and there are many Chinese (including those originating from Hong Kong, Taiwan, other pans of Southeast Asia, and Western countries and mainland Chinese who come via long periods of study in the United States and other places) as well as non-Chinese employed on overseas terms. Moreover, local appointees are not solely composed of those who are ethnic Chinese; there are also a few individuals, usually long-term residents of Hong Kong who are "Westerners," included in this category. The differences between local and overseas terms gradually disappear with promotion to higher rank. Nevertheless, the appointment itself is still classified as local or overseas. Since the survey was completed, universities have taken measures to dismantle differences between local and overseas terms.
56. Interviews were conducted with the director of personnel of one HKTU institution and the vice director of personnel at another HKTU institution in early 1996. The former stated that no mass exodus of staff was expected, that resignation levels remained normal, and that if resignation levels increased, these individuals would probably be locals without foreign passports rather than overseas appointees. The latter stated that the turnover rate for tenured staff that year was 5.19 percent.
57. See Hyaeweol Choi, An International Scientific Community: Asian Scholars in the United (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 1995).
58. On August 4, 1997, two universities in Hong Kong defended freedom of expression after a legislator from the Beijing-appointed Hong Kong Provisional Legislature wrote to the senior administration of two universities saying that two faculty members were unfit to receive public funding because they criticized his views on patriotic education. On July 17, 1997, new regulations on outside practice were issued at another university requiring staff to seek approval before giving interviews and preparing manuscripts for books and journals. See May Sin-Mi Hon, "Academic Freedom Roar over Clamp," and Shirley Kwok, "Colleges Defend Right to Criticize," both in South China Morning Post (August 5, 1997), p. 3.
59. On August 4, 1997, two universities in Hong Kong defended freedom of expression after a legislator from the Beijing-appointed Hong Kong Provisional Legislature wrote to the senior administration of two universities saying that two faculty members were unfit to receive public funding because they criticized his views on patriotic education. On July 17, 1997, new regulations on outside practice were issued at another university requiring staff to seek approval before giving interviews and preparing manuscripts for books and journals. See May Sin-Mi Hon, "Academic Freedom Roar over Clamp," and Shirley Kwok, "Colleges Defend Right to Criticize," both in South China Morning Post (August 5, 1997), p. 3.
60. B. Sung, "Put 'Restrictive' New Rules in Writing, Staff Tells University," Hong Kong Standard (August 7, 1997), p. 1. On June 5, 1997, another university in Hong Kong permitted students to display a sculpture for 2 months that commemorates the Tiananmen tragedy of June 4, 1989.