Over 1 400 teachers commended at Teachers’ Day ceremony (with photos)

The following is issued on behalf of the Committee on Respect Our Teachers Campaign:
      
     Around 1 400 teachers were commended at the Salute to Teachers 2019 – Teachers' Day and Commendation Certificate Presentation Ceremony organised by the Committee on Respect Our Teachers Campaign (CROTC) today (September 10).
      
     In his welcome speech at the ceremony, the CROTC Chairman, Dr Fung Wai-wah, expressed appreciation for the Government's increase in the investment in education, providing a wide range of support to front-line teachers in nurturing quality future generations for Hong Kong. He applauded teachers for being persistent and professional in accomplishing the mission of education by transmitting knowledge, providing for study and dispelling confusion while taking care of the well-being of their students, even as Hong Kong has gone through difficult times in recent months.
      
     Also speaking at the ceremony, the Secretary for Education, Mr Kevin Yeung, said that education is founded on dedication and commitment, and through teaching by words and examples, teachers play a vital role in transferring knowledge and nurturing students' character. He thanked all the teachers for always striving for professionalism and putting students' interests first by taking good care of not only students' academic development, but also their emotions and needs.
      
     With "we should treat our teachers nicely" as one of the government policy features in education, Mr Yeung said that the Government has allocated additional resources to support the teaching profession, including increasing the teacher to class ratio as well as implementing the "all-graduate teaching force" and "one executive officer for each school" policies. He said he hoped that the initiatives could help teachers and principals focus more on learning and teaching as well as students' development.
      
     Organised by the CROTC, the Teachers' Commendation Scheme aimed to foster a culture of respect for teachers. Secondary schools, primary schools, kindergartens and special schools may each nominate two teachers who have shown excellence in teaching. The Scheme is in its 24th year, with over 29 000 teachers commended to date.
      
     Other officiating guests at today's ceremony included the Permanent Secretary for Education, Mrs Ingrid Yeung; the Chairman of the Education Commission, Mr Tim Lui; and the Chairperson of the Committee on Professional Development of Teachers and Principals, Dr Carrie Willis.