SKH Bishop Mok Sau Tseng Secondary School School Language Policy

 

S1 – S3	English Language, Mathematics, History, Geography, Computer Literacy, Music, Home Economics, Science, Business Fundamentals (S.3)
S4 – S6	English Language, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Geography, History, Economics, “Business, Accounting and Financial Studies”, Information and Communication Technology, Music

S1 – S3	Chinese Language, Chinese History, Putonghua, Life & Society, Religious Education, Physical Education, Visual Arts, Library Period (S.1)
S4 – S6	Chinese Language, Citizenship and Social Development, Chinese History, Chinese Literature, Visual Arts, Religious Education, Physical Education

• Small group teachings in English Language and Chinese Language will be arranged in junior forms to cater for students with different language abilities.
• Putonghua is introduced at junior secondary levels to ensure that our students achieve basic proficiency in Putonghua.
• Morning Reading Programme (Chinese and English) and Chinese and English Extensive Reading Schemes are held to promote reading habits.
• Cross-curricular activities are an integral part of the school’s curriculum. Thus, various activities such as speech festivals, debate competitions, essay-writing competitions, drama, and morning broadcast (including the spoken form of Putonghua and English) are held to develop and improve students’ language skills.

• The English Department is to provide language support to the EMI subjects through the teaching of classroom language.
• The English Department is also mainly responsible for organizing the summer bridging course for New Secondary One students to adapt to the new learning environment. The main purpose is to help them switch from the Chinese medium of instruction in primary school to the English one in secondary school.

• The English Enhancement Team is to help promote an English-rich school environment and host English broadcasts. It is also responsible for monitoring the use of English in different extra-curricular activities and school events.
• The English Enhancement Day is an annual school function which aims at enhancing students’ English proficiency through different activities.
• Some special assemblies, such as Prefects and SU Executive Members Inauguration, Term Beginning and End-of-term Service, are conducted in English.
• Committees and ECA groups are encouraged to organise various English activities to create a language-rich environment.
• Announcements in assemblies or through the PA system are mostly conducted in English.
• Posters, notices, and activity leaflets are mainly written in English.
• Teachers are encouraged to talk with students in English outside class time.
• In order to provide a more extensive English environment and enhance the students’ exposure to the language, the progressive provision of more EMI subjects is always one of the concerns of the school.

• Reading to learn is developed among various subjects to arouse students’ interest in reading across curriculum and to enhance language proficiency.
• The school library, which includes a variety of Chinese and English books, audio-visual records, newspapers, and magazines, is the resource centre for extending students’ language learning during and after class.

• All teachers teaching EMI subjects satisfy the “teacher capability” criterion set by the Education Bureau.
• They are encouraged to attend refresher courses to better equip themselves for the use of English in teaching.

• The choice is beneficial to the student’s learning and further studies.
• The application must be made by parents in writing, with detailed explanation.
• Under general circumstances, the student can only make the application before September of the S6 school year.
• On receiving the application, the Academic Master will consult the teachers concerned. The issue will also be discussed at an Academic committee meeting before a decision is made.
• If the application is approved, the student can answer internal examination/test papers in English, but the examination/test papers will not be translated into English. Besides this, subject teachers have no obligation to provide the student with notes and learning materials in English.