Secretary for Education Choi Yuk-lin and participants of the first Mainland study tour of the senior secondary subject of Citizenship & Social Development (CS) to Jiangxi today attended the tour’s kick-off ceremony and visited several spots in Jiangxi.
 
More than 100 students and teachers from Kowloon True Light School participated in the study tour.
 
While addressing those gathered at the ceremony held at Ganzhou Middle School, Ms Choi said that Mainland study tours form an integral part of the CS curriculum that enables students to understand the latest developments and achievements of the country in person.
 
She added that the Education Bureau has received very positive comments from students and teachers after it arranged for over 90,000 students to visit different places on the Mainland since last year. 

To provide students with a more diversified learning experience, the number of routes has increased to 28 in this academic year, with 10 routes outside Guangdong Province for four to five days.
 
The education chief thanked the Fourth Bureau of the State Council Hong Kong & Macao Affairs Office, the Office of Hong Kong, Macao & Taiwan Affairs of the Ministry of Education, the Department of Educational, Scientific & Technological Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and the Department of Education of Jiangxi Province for their care for Hong Kong students, and the Ganzhou Municipal Education Bureau for its thoughtful arrangements, facilitating the smooth implementation of the study tour.
 
She stressed that the Education Bureau will continue leading students to undertake study tours on themes such as history and culture, aerospace technology, rural revitalisation, economic development and environmental conservation to further enrich their learning experience.
 
Ms Choi also said she hopes that students will treasure the opportunities to integrate reading with travelling, delve into the history, culture and national affairs of the country, and strengthen their affection for and sense of belonging to the nation.
 
Following the ceremony, Ms Choi signed a memorandum of understanding on education co-operation between Jiangxi and Hong Kong with a representative from the Department of Education of Jiangxi Province.
 
She also witnessed the pairing up of Kowloon True Light School and Ganzhou Middle School as sister schools.
 
Subsequently, she and the delegation visited the memorial garden for the Long March Starting Point of the Central Red Army and the departure place of the first ferry of the Long March to learn about the Long March Spirit.
 
The four-day study tour began yesterday, in which Ms Choi led members of the tour to visit Sanbai Mountain in Anyuan County where the origin of Dongjiang is located.
 
They attended an activity in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of Dongjiang water supply to Hong Kong to pay tribute to the country for its effort in protecting the source of drinking water.
 
After that, the delegation visited the national education base for Hong Kong youths and the museum on the origin of Dongjiang water to learn about the history of Dongjiang’s water supply to Hong Kong.
 
Ms Choi will depart for Beijing tomorrow to continue her visit, while the delegation will press on with touring locations in Jiangxi to learn about the local history, culture and enterprise development.