Playtimes HK Magazine September 2018 Issue | Page 45

features
Conclusion
In order to learn Mandarin, practice
appears the only effective way to learn
the language. The kind of practice
that is needed and the amount of
time it should take, in and out of the
classroom, is being examined.
The status of Hong Kong
Students in Hong Kong do achieve
high academic success and homework
is a strong contributor. A recent
survey by EDB revealed that daily
homework time for some primary
aged students exceed more than three
hours, surpassing most guidelines.
Secondary students in Hong Kong
average about 17.7 hours of after-
school work weekly according to PISA.
The Legislative Council of Hong Kong
worries that the long study hours may
affect students’ health and wellbeing.
Most recently, the government has
been asked to review its current
homework policy and begin looking at
ways to alleviate the study pressures.
Concerns for wellbeing are
warranted. In terms of self-reported
life-satisfaction, Hong Kong
places at 48th out of 50 countries
according to the latest PISA report.
Although a heavy workload is not
the sole contributor to this, it bears
a responsibility. Schools need to
find a way to balance homework
while focusing on their students’
overall wellbeing.
Positive Education is taking steps
in the right direction. While regularly
reviewing best teaching practices,
it also looks at the wellbeing and
happiness of its students. This method,
which links positive psychology to
schools, may lead the way in creating
a flourishing community within Hong
Kong that unearths successful and
content individuals. Dr Cooper leaves
us with a final thought, “A good way
to think about homework is the way
you think about medications or dietary
supplements. If you take too little,
they’ll have no effect. If you take too
much, they can kill you. If you take the
right amount, you’ll get better.”
What is positive education?
Positive Education is an approach
to education that combines best
practice teaching with the study
of happiness and wellbeing. By
incorporating the science of positive
psychology to schools, students
are aided in recognising their
character strengths and virtues
while developing life skills such as
resilience, grit, optimism, a growth
mindset, and mindfulness. Ultimately,
its goal is to allow individuals and
communities to flourish. According to
the founder of positive psychology, Dr
Martin Seligman, “Positive Education
is the intersection of traditional
education with the building of 
well-being.”
Recommended homework
guidelines
As studies have proven no benefits
to homework at the primary level, Dr
Harris Cooper believes that ten minutes
of homework a day should suffice at
the primary level to begin creating
good study habits. However, there is a
strong correlation between homework
and success at the secondary level.
He confirms, “The average student
doing homework performs better than
73 per cent of the students doing no
homework.” Dr Cooper recommends
that secondary students should average
between one to two and a half hours of
homework daily, with the increased time
represented in honours classes and at
higher grade levels.
Why Finland’s success
is difficult to replicate
Finland is often seen as the country
to emulate for academic success.
They consistently rank in the top 10
of the PISA test results while having
the fewest hours of instruction and
boast the highest self-reported life
satisfaction score. However, their
system is quite different than those
found in other countries. As there
are no private schools, everyone
is invested in the success of their
schools, something that can’t be
mimicked in Hong Kong where public
and private schools co-exist. They also
have a relatively small population, a low
child poverty rate, and a homogenous
culture with most people of Finish
descent. The cultural and economic
differences of Finland to most countries
make it a difficult place to model as
they don’t face the challenges that
other countries do.
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