Principals in Hong Kong have criticised education authorities for failing to consult the sector regarding a new measure that permits popular schools to apply to operate an additional Form One class in the next academic year, raising concerns that the move will intensify competition among institutions.

The Hong Kong Association of the Heads of Secondary Schools also questioned the timeliness and necessity of implementing the policy change amid the city’s declining student population.

The Education Bureau briefed representatives from secondary schools at a meeting on May 20 about new class-size regulations, which are expected to jeopardise the survival of disadvantaged schools.

The new regulations have increased the minimum number of students required for operating a class, while also permitting schools with four Form One classes to apply to run an additional class in the coming academic year.

A maximum of five school applications will be approved.

“There is no consultation at all with such an important policy change,” Lin Chun-pong, chairman of the Hong Kong Association of the Heads of Secondary Schools, told the Post last Thursday.

“We principals are concerned about the criteria for vetting and approving such applications and whether the quota will be increased in the future.”

Other significant measures include raising the minimum number of students required for secondary schools to operate a Form One class from 25 to 27, commencing in the new term in September. This threshold will be further increased to 29 in the 2026-27 academic year.

With these changes, a school will need to enrol at least 28 students to run the minimum of two classes required under the regulations and 30 pupils in 2026-27. Schools that fail to secure two Form One classes must submit a survival plan and have it approved by the government.

Principal Lin recalled that in 2010, the Education Bureau launched a months-long consultation on a scheme called “voluntary optimisation of class structure scheme”.

This scheme allowed schools operating five Form One classes to apply to operate four classes to alleviate the problem of the sharp decline in student numbers.

“At the time, the Education Bureau conducted a comprehensive consultation and negotiation with the school sector before announcing such a scheme, as the policy change was huge,” he said, adding that more than 200 schools joined the scheme at the time.

Last week, the bureau explained in a circular that the new policy change aimed to offer quality education and address parents’ needs.

“[It is] to work along with Hong Kong’s aim of developing high-quality education, better addressing parents’ preferences and taking into consideration the enrolment situation of schools,” the circular said.

But Lin said principals were puzzled by the necessity and timing of the new policy change amid the shrinking student population. He described them as having “reacted strongly” after learning of the new measures.

“Especially when the sector is now facing the structural decline in student population, the bureau allows schools with four classes to operate one more class. Is the new policy change timely and necessary, and why should the new policy be implemented shortly?” he said.

He noted that most schools felt 24 classes – four classes in each of the six grades – were optimal for offering good education and learning space for students.

“Some principals asked, is this new policy a step moving backward?” he said, adding the bureau should have talked to affected schools before making its final decision.

“The education authorities should now know how worried the school sector is. With so many opposition voices, will the government withdraw such changes? Should they conduct some consultation and consider the views from the sector even if they insist?”

The Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, an association regarded as a pro-establishment group, also stated in a strongly worded press release last Friday that allowing popular schools to have more classes caused panic in the education sector.

“We are concerned about the new arrangement, fearing that it will intensify competition among schools for admissions, which will have an impact on disadvantaged schools,” it said.

It added that enrolment figures should not be the sole factor in deciding whether a school could continue to operate, as some less popular ones had made great efforts to cater to the diversity of students’ learning.

Lee Yi-ying, chairwoman of the Subsidised Secondary Schools Council, said the arrangement of four classes in a year group allowed for better care for students, which was conducive to improving the quality of education.

“The government has set a quota of five schools [to run five classes] in 2026; it shows the government does not encourage most schools to change the current class structure,” she said.

Schools should carefully consider their characteristics and the future student number changes when weighing expansion, she added.

A bureau spokeswoman said it would maintain a “high threshold and strict control” when assessing applications for operating one more Form One class, adding that it “totally understood” their concern and therefore set a quota of five schools in the new arrangement.

She added that it would take into account a number of factors, including community demand and school facilities.  -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST