Junior secondary school pupils in Hong Kong religious education classes will be taught about their responsibilities to the country, how to assess the objectivity of the media and environmental protection as part of an updated curriculum.
The new curriculum has expanded learning objectives and pupils will be expected to be committed to “making the world better” and to aim for “happiness for others with harmony in diversity”.
Teachers are also asked to provide opportunities to foster “priority values” including respect for others, responsibility, national identity, integrity, care for others and abiding by the law, in line with the bureau’s value education framework first released in 2021.
The Education Bureau on Friday released the 217-page guide for studies in Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Islam and Taoism for Form One to Three pupils after consultations with schools last year.
It will replace the previous 72-page document published 25 years ago.
An addition to the studies for all faiths is “learning from religion”, which will use “daily life scenarios” and “draw wisdom from religious teachings” to nurture effective learning to “maintain the vitality of religious education”.
Media literacy is among the four “understanding the world” topics, through which religion studies teachers will guide pupils to examine whether the media is “totally objective”, its roles and “how the media portray values such as success and happiness and the nature of sex”.
The recommended religion classes for Catholic studies on media literacy include the eighth commandment of “not to give false testimony”.
The classics recommended for Muslim classes include a Koran verse about an incident where false accusations were made against Aisha, the wife of the Prophet Muhammad.
Another topic is “caring and justice”, where youngsters are expected to explore questions such as “should everyone enjoy the same rights?” and “what responsibilities do I have for my country and my people?”
The new guide also requires reference to be made to the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, national security legislation and appropriate legal documents if the teaching involves “legal content”.
The curriculum is designed to cover 33 hours a year, a total of about 100 hours over three years.
Reverend Peter Koon Ho-ming, a lawmaker and the Anglican Archbishop’s Adviser of Church Ministries Development of Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, said he was concerned whether teachers could get a firm grasp of the “very detailed” social topics through the lens of religious learning.
“Even in the church, such as in a catechumen class, we rarely go into such specific topics,” Koon said. “It would be better if we focus on personal cultivation and the religious views on broader perspectives.”
A teacher in charge of religious studies at a city Catholic school, who asked not to be named, said he expected the new guide to have a limited impact on the present curriculum of Catholic studies except for some minor changes to teaching materials.
He added the Catholic diocese had in recent years adopted the approach of linking religious studies with the everyday lives of pupils, a departure from the earlier approach of learning only Bible stories about Jesus and Jewish people.
“It can be said that our Catholic studies are already in line with the new requirements of the Education Bureau,” he said.
“Each lesson in our textbook includes some content that combines Catholic learning with traditional Chinese values and Confucianism.”
Dion Chen, the principal of Ying Wa College, a Christian school in Cheung Sha Wan, and also chairman of the Direct Subsidy Scheme Schools Council, said that religion classes at his school had used social problems to interest pupils, particularly those who did not share the Protestant faith.
“People might be surprised when the guide is being picked out as a news story, but since many schools are already using some social issues or moral values to assist teaching, I believe some teachers don’t see it as a major issue,” Chen added.
