Principal’s Report at the 39th Annual Speech Day

Date: 19/11/2021

Guest of Honour Mr. Bernard Chan, Supervisor Ms. Lam, school managers, distinguished guests, parents, teachers and students, good afternoon.

 

It is our great honour to have Mr. Chan officiate here at our ceremony today.

 

I’m glad to meet you all today to celebrate the graduation of 122 S.6 graduates and to share in the happiness of the scholarship awardees in each form. They are worth of our appreciation, not only because they are handsome and pretty, but because they have demonstrated the spirit of the school motto “Knowledge and Perseverance” and strived for excellence in hard times.

 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only half-day face-to-face lessons could be arranged in the last school year. However, our students did very well in the 2021 HKDSE Examination. Of the 13 subjects taken, the average subject pass rate was 99.9%.  The average percentage of Level 4 or above was 75.4% and 93.4% of our graduates attained the minimum university admission requirement, i.e. Levels “33222”. The best students got four Level 5** and three Level 5*. Our graduates also obtained very promising JUPAS offers this year. 95% of our graduates received a JUPAS offer. 93.4% of graduates obtained Bachelor Degree offers, and nearly half of these offers were made by HKU, CUHK and HKUST. All these achievements were the results of the efforts of all our teachers and the endless hard work of our S.6 graduates.

 

School was at times suspended last year. But it didn’t reduce our determination in providing an all-round education and nurturing within our students a strong sense of responsibility towards the community. In 2020-2021, the school held more than 60 educational activities, in line with the year’s theme “Soaring high with love, passion and integrity”. For more detailed information you may refer to the Education Schedule printed in the Speech Day Bulletin.

 

In 2020-2021, our students further extended their learning opportunities through joining different competitions. With their hard work and talent, they obtained pleasing results in both academic and non-academic pursuits. Our S.6 students CHEUNG Ka Hei and SUEN Wai Cheung were awarded the Sir Edward Youde Memorial Prize for their all-round development.  NG Kai Ling from S.6 and LI Choi Ho from S.3 were honoured with the 2021 Hong Kong Island Outstanding Students Award. Our students have exceptional abilities in Mathematics and were well trained by our Mathematics teachers and alumni to take part in various Mathematics competitions. In 2020-2021, they won a lot of team and individual prizes in many competitions, clinching the Regional Team Winner and the 

 

First Runner-up Team Award in the 38th Hong Kong Mathematics Olympiad, Team Champion in the Hong Kong International Mathematical Olympiad Heat Round 2021 (Hong Kong Region), Overall Champions in MathConceptition 2021, and the Bronze Team Award in the 2021 American Regions Mathematics League Local Competition. Our students also performed excellently and won many prizes in various inter-school competitions relating to STEM, art and commercial subjects. If you’d like to learn more about the achievements of our students, please refer to the Annual Report and the Speech Day Bulletin.

 

The school worked closely with consultants, the Education Bureau and the Architectural Services Department last year in its efforts towards the realisation of its redevelopment project. Final pre-construction arrangements were completed and construction will commence in late 2021. A brand new education building is expected to be in use in 2025. Once again, I must express my sincere thanks to the school sponsoring body - Hong Kong Chinese Women’s Club, the Incorporated Management Committee of the school, all teaching and non-teaching staff, parents and students for their endless support to the school.

 

2020-2021 was another unforgettable school year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as Sir Winston Churchill said, “We should never let a good crisis go to waste”. The pandemic has taught us a lot and brought us many new opportunities in these two years. It has shown us how the “Work-from-home” concept may increase the efficiency of work. Online lessons and webinars can introduce a new mode of learning. The blooming of food delivery businesses during the pandemic has reminded us that the world is changing all the time. So are the opportunities. When dining is not allowed in restaurants, our needs change and new opportunities come along. Students, please leave your comfort zone and get prepared to step out into the trails that have not yet been blazed by others. The one who succeeds in the future will probably be the one who is not afraid of change, but the one who is able to adapt to and make use of it. Graduates, I’m proud of you because you did strive to do your very best under the influence of the pandemic in these two years. I’m confident that you will leap over every hurdle and realise your dreams in the future. I wish you all the best.

 

Thank you.