The Development of Education in Hong Kong: 1841-1897, As Revealed by the Early Education Reports of the Hong Kong Government, 1848-1896.(Book Review)

By Gillian Bickley. Hong Kong: The Local Printing Press, Ltd., 2002. 632 pp. np.

One hundred and fifty-five years ago, Hong Kong began a transition period as a British colony after the end of the First Opium War. In this volume, Gillian Bickley presents the well-chosen educational documents of the British Hong Kong administration, which reflect the early educational development as a part of Hong Kong's heritage in its transition period from 1841 through 1897. The book demonstrates Bickley's extensive historical knowledge of Hong Kong by incorporating her meticulous notes and ample comments into historical documents. Through Bickley's eyes, education was the most important vehicle to transform Hong Kong to a British administration and involved schools, teachers, infrastructures, parents, bilingual education, religious education, the education of girls, teacher training provision, and educational policies and laws. However, bilingual education was the most important issue, because education merged both British ideas and Chinese traditions during the transition. It would be impossible for the colonial administration to reach a decision without a clear understanding of the local situation (p. 1).

The documents are arranged in four sections written by four notable members of the Hong Kong community: George Smith, first Anglican missionary Bishop of Victoria; James Legge, principal of Anglo-Chinese College; Frederick Stewart, the first head of the Hong Kong Government Education Department; and E.J. Eitel, the first historian of Hong Kong under the British administration. Each section is framed by a brief biographical introduction of the author, which makes the original documents more easily accessible, while still leaving room for readers to examine the educational development of Hong Kong by reinterpreting the texts from their own perspectives. ...