The Quality Education Fund Steering Committee has approved grants totalling $100 million for 361 projects out of 784 in the seventh call for applications.

Announcing the results, QEF Steering Committee Chairman Tai Hay-lap said he was pleased that the majority of applications had fallen under the priority themes of "Learning & Teaching Effectiveness" and "School-based Management".

This reflects the education sector's support of the Government's priorities in education reform, he said.

Quite a number of the other applications are related to moral and civic education, which help promote students' national identity or instill positive values and attitudes in life, Mr Tai said.

Video game learning project aims to boost creativity

The tertiary education sector initiated innovative projects including one on promoting cultural exchange with schools in China through video conferencing facilities. Another aims to enhance teachers' and students' creativity by providing training on topics such as digital comic creation, video game design, future city design/planning and computer 3D spaceship modelling.

The school sector initiated such projects as developing an e-book learning platform for the teaching of English at Primary Four level and another on developing a game-based learning platform to enhance students' motivation and to cater for diversity of students at Secondary One level. The platform would target three core subjects: Chinese, English and mathematics. 

Student holistic development is also a focus of some approved projects.

Peace ambassadors to help resolve conflicts

A non-school organisation has proposed to undertake a project encouraging students to resolve disputes with a positive and rational attitude so as to create a harmonious school culture. It would also train a group of students as peace ambassadors to help resolve conflicts and combat violence in schools.

About 43 approved projects target school-based management. Some aim to develop effective school-based management systems or models for school improvement, and enhancement of principals and teachers in administration and instructional leadership.

17 applicants to get air-conditioning

To honour the goodwill of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust in providing a matching sponsorship for air-conditioning installation, all 17 applications for the scheme from public sector schools were approved in the seventh call, Mr Tai said.

"Having benefited the vast majority of schools in need, the scheme will come to an end after this call.  But we are exploring with HKJC the possibility of other collaboration," he said. 

From the 4th to the 7th calls, a total of 426 applications were received under the scheme. Of these, 394 were approved. The QEF and HKJC each spent $100.8 million on the scheme.

The QEF was established in early 1998 with a capital fund of $5 billion to support self-initiated projects that promote quality education and disseminate good practices of successful projects to the wider education community.