EDB holds Experience Day on Other Languages (with photos)
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The Education Bureau (EDB) today (July 11) held the “Other Languages Experience Day: Learn. Showcase. Connect.”, enabling students participating in the Pilot Scheme on Other Languages for Junior Secondary Students, funded by the Quality Education Fund, to showcase their learning achievements from the past school year through a variety of interactive booth games. The event also provided an opportunity for participants to engage with different languages in a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere, and experience together the joy of language learning.
Addressing the opening ceremony, the Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, said that the Experience Day offers a platform for peer learning and mutual enrichment. Through diversified activities, it allows participants to experience the characteristics and appeal of various languages, thereby fostering respect and appreciation for cultural diversity.
Dr Choi said that the EDB remains committed to providing all-round support for schools to cultivate a rich language learning environment for students. She hopes that students can build on their strong foundation in biliterate and trilingual abilities to actively pursue opportunities for learning different languages. By equipping themselves well, they will become a new generation with a global vision who are rooted in Hong Kong and possess a deep sense of national identity.
Following the announcement by the Chief Executive in his Policy Address 2024, the EDB launched the Pilot Scheme on Other Languages for Junior Secondary Students in January last year, inviting all publicly-funded secondary schools (including special schools) offering the local junior secondary curriculum to apply for funding to provide junior secondary students with opportunities to learn other languages, with a view to cultivating an interest in learning, developing multilingual capabilities and thereby enhancing Hong Kong’s international competitiveness.
The languages covered by the pilot scheme include Arabic, French, German, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Spanish, and Urdu. In the 2025/26 school year, over 170 schools participated in the pilot scheme, with each school receiving a one-off funding of $250,000 to provide designated courses in other languages for their junior secondary students.