政壇：睇社論學英文：升中派位多歡顏 弱勢學校獨自愁

今年小六學生升中派位放榜，高達七成六學生獲派首志願中學，如果計及首三個志願，滿意率更接近九成，學生與家長高興的多，失望的少，當然是件好事。然而，有人歡喜有人愁，中一適齡學童人口大跌，超額教師不斷增加，今天不知明天事，長遠而言中學殺校潮恐難避免。

今年參加升中派位學童減少逾五千人，在競爭相對沒有往年激烈之下，出現「上移錯配」現象，部分地區的第一組別中學，也要收取第二組別學生，是首三個志願滿意率提高的原因。子女獲派心儀學校，家長當然喜出望外，可惜「貧者愈貧，富者愈富」，連名校也要搶學生，其他年年為收生不足發愁的弱勢學校，處境更加困難，這是對當局多年來拉近學校質素差距一事無成的最大諷刺。

由於港府叫停雙非政策，在可見未來，弱勢學校將進入「吊鹽水」期，為保住老師飯碗，當局不斷推出措施如縮班、減人，將超額教師保留期延長至三年。然而這些都是緩兵之計，始終解決不了適齡升中人數減少的危機，如何有效利用教育資源，是個大問題。

The release of Secondary School Place Allocation (SSPA) result this year reveals that as high as 76% of primary 6 students have been allocated to their schools of first choice. In terms of schools of first 3 choices, almost 90% of the students are satisfied with the allocation result. It is of course good news that most of the students and parents are happy, with the disappointed only a small minority. However, while many people are elated, some schools are in a plight. With the significant drop in the population of secondary 1 students and the increasing teacher redundancy, forced closure of certain secondary schools seems unavoidable in the long run.

This year's SSPA has 5,000 fewer students taking part than last year's. In a relatively less competitive environment, some students have been “upwardly mismatched”: Band 1 schools in certain districts have to take in Band 2 students. That is why the satisfaction rate concerning the first 3 choices is much higher and parents are overjoyed that their children have been allocated to their favourite schools. Unfortunately, the situation is getting polarized -- even famous schools have to fight for students these days, and the vulnerable schools which have perennial enrollment number worries are now bogged down deeper. Although the Government has been trying for years to narrow the gap among schools of different quality, the present condition ironically proves its effort has been in vain.

Since the Government has prohibited Mainland women from giving birth to babies in Hong Kong, the vulnerable schools will find it hard to survive in the foreseeable future. To keep teachers employed, the Government has been launching different measures such as decreasing the number of classes, reducing student number in a class and extending the redundant teachers’ retention period to 3 years. However, all these are just delaying tactics that fail to meet the crisis of dwindling number of secondary-school-age children. The effective use of education resources is a mammoth issue waiting to be resolved.

重要生字

mismatch：錯配

foreseeable future：可見未來

delaying tactic：緩兵之計