Government schools to organise "Love Our Home, Treasure Our Country" joint school activities to cultivate students' affection for home and country (with photos)
23.9.2022

The Education Bureau (EDB) today (September 23) held the "Love Our Home, Treasure Our Country" - National Day Celebration cum Government Schools Joint School Activities Kick-off Ceremony. It announced that 65 government schools will be the first to launch a series of joint school activities under the theme of "Love Our Home, Treasure Our Country" in the 2022/23 school year with an aim of deepening students' understanding of Chinese history and culture and cultivating in them a sense of nationhood and national identity. The Secretary for Justice, Mr Paul Lam, SC; the Deputy Secretary for Justice, Mr Cheung Kwok-kwan; the Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin; and the Permanent Secretary for Education, Ms Michelle Li, officiated at the ceremony. About 160 participants, including EDB staff and government school principals and vice-principals, as well as representatives of secondary and primary school councils, school heads associations and school sponsoring bodies, attended the event. At the ceremony, Mr Lam shared his views with the education sector on how to deepen the law-abiding spirit among young people under "one country, two systems". He pointed out that, in addition to learning about the laws that are relevant to them through life experiences, young people need to have a proper understanding of the three most important laws for Hong Kong, namely the Constitution of the People's Republic of China, the Basic Law and the National Security Law. He said that the nurturing and deepening of law-abiding behaviour on the part of teenagers is intertwined with other areas of education, and pointed out that it ought to be done subtly and gradually so that they will learn to respect and obey the law as a matter of course. Mr Lam stressed that the rule of law is one of the most important cornerstones of Hong Kong's success. Article 42 of the Basic Law provides that "Hong Kong residents and other persons in Hong Kong shall have the obligation to abide by the laws in force in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region". Everyone should abide by the law for the benefit of oneself, others, the Hong Kong community and the nation. Citing the important speech delivered by President Xi Jinping on July 1 this year, which stated that "Hong Kong will prosper only when its young people thrive; Hong Kong will develop only when its young people achieve well-rounded development; and Hong Kong will have a bright future only when its young people have good career prospects", Mr Lam highlighted that fostering and strengthening law-abiding awareness of young people is a key element for them to thrive. Its success will have important implications for the stability of Hong Kong's future, and the steadfast and successful implementation of "one country, two systems". Mr Lam said that the Department of Justice will continue its efforts to promote education on the rule of law. He also took the opportunity to encourage all sectors to work together in this regard for the future of Hong Kong. Dr Choi said that Chinese people take great pride in the remarkable achievements and development of the country. Hong Kong has returned to the motherland for 25 years, and the Chinese people share a common origin and are linked by close bonds, she said. In the coming National Day, students can experience the meaning of National Day by participating in various forms of celebration activities, which will enable them to gain a deeper understanding of the country's historical development, look back on its difficult and challenging days and embrace its present achievements and happiness, thereby strengthening their sense of national pride and belonging. She pointed out that educators have the responsibility to lead the younger generation to develop correct and positive values and attitudes, and understand that being law-abiding is the basic responsibility of citizens, so as to help them respect the system of their country and develop a comprehensive concept and awareness of national security. She added that the Curriculum Development Council revised the Values Education Curriculum Framework in 2020. Law-abidingness was added as a priority positive value and attitude to nurture in students, with an emphasis on the importance of self-consciousness and vigilance over oneself. She also pointed out that "Love Our Home, Treasure Our Country" is the vision of talent development and the cornerstone of the successful implementation of "one country, two systems". To create a positive learning atmosphere, all government schools will adopt a whole school approach to systematically plan school-based national education activities and "Love Our Home, Treasure Our Country" joint school activities in the 2022/23 school year in accordance with the National Education - Event Planning Calendar issued by the EDB in August. Apart from strengthening a collaborative culture among government schools, the activities will offer opportunities for sharing good practices with other schools, thereby promoting professional exchanges. The EDB encourages school sponsoring bodies to make reference to the joint school activities of government schools and support their sponsored schools to organise joint school national education activities according to their vision and characteristics. It also appeals to school councils and school heads associations to connect with member schools to organise theme-based national education activities on key dates in order to lead students to understand the history and culture of the country; nurture students to become lifelong learners who are able and virtuous, with a sense of responsibility, vision and love for their home and country; and build a better future for Hong Kong and the country. Ends/Friday, September 23, 2022 Issued at HKT 11:42 NNNN