Perspective

It was my privilege to serve as Secretary General of the HKEAA between 2004 and 2008. These were critical years for the Authority in which two major developments took place.

The first was detailed planning and decision-making regarding curriculum and assessment arrangements for the new ‘334’ scheme. This involved what were typically weekly meetings of a small group of HKEAA and Education Bureau officers known as the Curriculum and Assessment Core Group. Over 100 meetings took place, huge progress was made and most importantly a relationship of trust and mutual respect was developed.

All of this work paved the way for a smooth transition from the HKCEE and HKALE examinations to the new Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE). In addition to opening up educational opportunities for all Hong Kong young people, the new assessment arrangements achieved two specific achievements which have since attracted world-wide attention.

The first was to devise reliable and valid ways of conducting school-based assessment in those subjects with important outcomes that could not be assessed through pen and paper examinations. The second was to develop sophisticated approaches to monitoring and maintaining standards from year to year through the equating of successive examinations.

The second major development was the replacement of error-prone manual examination processes with automated routines that saved time and gave greater assurance of correct results. The ancient VAX computer was replaced with modern computers and assessment centres were established to enable online marking of scripts that had been scanned immediately after each examination, thus reducing dramatically the risk of missing scripts.

Throughout this period, Council members provided guidance and support and staff exhibited total dedication, professionalism and sheer hard work as they strived to maintain both the current arrangements and plan for the new. They knew that what they were doing was for the benefit of the young people of Hong Kong. HKEAA, I salute you!
Dr Peter W Hill
Secretary General (2004 – 2007)
Dr Peter W Hill
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