Language/Reading Curriculum in the Fourth Grade

Reading Policy

The main goal of the overall reading policy in Hong Kong (and especially for Grade 4) is to enable all children to read with comprehension for learning, information, and pleasure. A principal objective of education reforms in recent years has been for all students to develop proficiency in reading independently in both official languages, Chinese and English. The Curriculum Development Council updated the curriculum in 2014, drawing together and reiterating the overall aims of the school curriculum and its framework. In the updated version of the basic education curriculum guide, the objective of “Reading to Learn” was summarized as “students are not only expected to have considerable experiences in and a passion for reading but also to master ‘Reading to Learn’ skills, which enhance one’s overall learning capacity leading to lifelong learning and whole-person development.”²⁰ Through extensive and broad reading, students hopefully will link their experience and knowledge and achieve the following objectives:²¹

Acquiring, constructing, and applying flexibly different areas of knowledge
Enhancing the language abilities essential for communication, academic studies, and intellectual development
Unlocking potential and nurturing thinking and generic skills
Cultivating a broad spectrum of interests, lifting the quality of life and enhancing their taste
Cultivating their temperament and moral and affective qualities to strengthen their sense of responsibility toward self, family, society, the nation, and the world
Fostering open-mindedness to accommodate different opinions, views, values, and cultures
Extending students’ understanding of life and preparing them to positively rise to the challenges in life

Various strategies have been suggested by the Education Bureau for promoting the Reading to Learn objective. The bureau suggests that schools:

Help students progress from “Learning to Read” to “Reading to Learn”
Promote a whole school reading ambience and atmosphere
Foster students’ reading interests and habits
Implement “Reading Across the Curriculum” by providing opportunities for students to engage in reading across various knowledge domains and in eight key learning areas: Chinese Language Education; English Language Education; Mathematics Education; Personal, Social, and Humanities Education; Science Education; Technology Education; Arts Education; and Physical Education

Lower primary school students are expected to master the basic skills of reading and writing and to develop an interest in and a habit of reading. Upper primary school students are expected to be able to apply their reading and writing skills with increasing fluency, communicate effectively orally and in writing, and to use their reading skillfully as a vehicle of learning. The promotion of a reading culture has been identified as one of the key components of lifelong learning in curriculum reform.²² Reading to Learn is one of the four key components of curriculum programs in kindergarten and in primary and secondary schools. Reading Across the Curriculum, in the sense of teaching students to use and apply their reading competence in all lessons on the timetable, is promoted by the Education Bureau. Resources including seminars and special training courses, lists of reading materials, and the dissemination of local initiatives are available for schools and teachers.^23,24 These resources enhance teachers’ professional subject knowledge and pedagogy and help them develop strategies for helping students cope with various types of texts and literacy demands associated with all subjects across the curriculum. In addition to specially focused seminars and courses for teachers, schools are encouraged to develop systematic programs for inculcating reading skills in students in lessons such as drama, to organize reading clubs in the various year groups, and to liaise with parents about promoting students’ reading at home and in the social environment.

Summary of the National Curriculum

Although schools are permitted to modify the school curriculum and timetable to meet the needs of their school intake and locality, the Education Bureau offers clear and central guidance to all schools. Official guidance decrees that all students in Hong Kong will be taught reading in primary school starting at age 6. Many students begin learning to read in kindergarten, and some children are already able to read to varying degrees when they start school. Schools are encouraged to draw upon the support of parents and the community in promoting good reading habits in students and encouraging a culture of leisure reading at home for every child. Innovative teaching strategies may be introduced when and where appropriate in order to motivate students and to hone their reading comprehension. The effective use of reading programs helps to sustain students’ interest, efforts, and reading stamina. At the same time, the availability of quality reading materials both in schools and in public libraries is crucial for attracting students to read avidly in school and at home.

In terms of central guidance, the Curriculum Development Council drew up and established clear reading goals for schools in 2010. The whole school staff and community are expected to be involved in the promotion of reading and in helping to build a vibrant culture of reading within the school. Language teachers are expected to focus specifically on the teaching of reading strategies and skills, while other teachers are expected to broaden and strengthen students’ reading abilities by having them read both for information and for learning in their own subject area and across the curriculum. The school librarian also plays a crucial role in developing students’ information seeking skills and strategies, and in encouraging independent reading prowess. In Primary 1 through 3, students should:²⁵

Acquire basic reading abilities
Read different types of reading materials
Acquire vocabulary and sentence structures
Have a basic knowledge of language
Understand and become knowledgeable of Chinese culture
Develop positive habits and attitudes toward reading

In Primary 4 through 6, students should:

Develop their basic reading abilities
Read different types of reading materials
Develop independent reading ability
Acquire vocabulary and sentence structures
Improve basic knowledge of language
Improve understanding and knowledge of Chinese culture
Develop positive habits and attitudes toward reading

The Curriculum Development Council recommends that reading strategies be addressed from the start. Students should be able to:^26,27

Use appropriate language knowledge and experiences to understand reading materials
Identify and use key words, sentences, and paragraphs in specific language situations
Raise expectations and ask appropriate questions to guide reading
Use inference and verification skills
Select different reading strategies to facilitate different reading objectives
Develop an interest in reading, a positive attitude toward it, and the habit of reading for pleasure
Read independently for information and for pleasure
Use reading skill techniques to access a range of reading materials

Hong Kong SAR