院長的話

港大附屬學院創校於2000年。首任校長為港大理學院前院長鄭建輝教授。第二任校長則是港大醫學院生理系前系主任黃德明教授。兩任校長都十分敬業，非常用心辦學，致力延攬優秀教師，又極為重視教學質量和學生福祉，任內建樹良多，因此深受師生們的愛戴。今年（2014年）秋季新學期伊始，陳龍生教授將接掌附屬學院，成為第三任校長。陳教授是港大地球科學系教授、理學院前副院長，是著名的地質學家，經常帶領同學們進行田野考察，又曾獲港大頒授傑出教師奬。

港大附屬學院是一所教學型的專上學府。老師們的精神和時間，全放在學生身上，無需要分神去做研究工作或發表論文。師生關係因此亦較緊密，類似美國的一些教學型大學或學院的情況。同學們非常專心唸書，因此升讀政府資助的大學的比例較高，大學畢業時的成績亦相當優秀。

港大專業進修學院的董事會，一貫重視附屬學院的發展。董事會主席陳坤耀教授期望能把附屬學院辦成一所一流的學院。在未來的日子裡，學院會盡力去優化校舍及教學設施，進一步提高教學質素，並為同學們提供更多好的升學途徑，包括各種專業課程。

對部份香港市民來說，副學位課程仍然是較新鮮的事物，因此不一定很了解。但事實是：現時香港每年升讀副學位課程的高中畢業生，比升讀政府資助的學士課程的高中畢業生還要多。以2012年為例，應屆高中畢業生繼續升學的約有四萬八千人，其中約三份之一升讀本地的學士課程，另有四千多人選擇到外地升學（包括英國、美加、澳洲、大陸、台灣等地），其餘有逾二萬人入讀副學位課程。在可見的將來，副學位課程仍會是本地一些高中畢業生不可或缺的一項選擇。因此，我們如能辦好這些課程，做好質量保證，將會令更多的年青人受益，因而感到有前景、有希望；這未嘗不是社會之福。

李焯芬
2014年6月

Director's Column

The HKU SPACE Community College was established in 2000, with Professor K. F. Cheng (former Dean of Science, HKU) as its inaugural Principal. He was succeeded by Professor T. M. Wong, a former Head of the Department of Physiology, HKU. Both are highly dedicated academic leaders, putting strong emphasis on recruitment of high-calibre teachers, delivering high-quality academic programmes and caring for the well being of our students. They contributed enormously to the development of the Community College, and were highly respected by students and teachers alike. In September, 2014, Professor L. S. Chan will become the third Principal of the Community College. A prominent geoscientist with the Department of Earth Science, and a former Associate Dean of Science at HKU, Professor Chan is widely recognised for his dedication to the teaching and nurturing of students. A recipient of the Outstanding Teacher's Award at HKU, he has taken numerous groups of students on extensive field trips over the years.

The prime focus of our Community College is teaching and learning. Hence, our teachers devote practically all of their working hours and energy to the students. Scholarly research and the publication of journal papers would not normally constitute a major part of their duties. As a result, the relationship between students and teachers tend to be close and cordial. This is analogous to some of the teaching universities and colleges in the United States. As well, our students tend to be very focused on their studies. Their success rate for articulating into UGC-funded universities is known to be high; so is their academic standing upon graduation.

The Board of Directors of HKU SPACE has strongly supported the development of the Community College over the years. Professor Edward K. Y. Chen, Chairman of the Board, encourages the HKU SPACE management team to further develop the Community College into a top-ranked institution of its kind. In the years ahead, the College would strive to upgrade its facilities and teaching quality, seeking additional and attractive articulation routes for its students, including the acquisition of professional qualifications.

Compared to degree programmes, sub-degree programmes are relatively new to the Hong Kong community. Hence, there are those in our community who do not fully understand the scope and role of our sub-degree programmes. The reality is that we currently have more secondary school leavers admitted to sub-degree programmes than to degree programmes annually. In 2012, for example, about 48,000 graduates from our secondary schools in Hong Kong chose to pursue further education. About a third of them were admitted to local degree programmes. Around four thousand went overseas for further studies, including the U.K., North America, Australia, Taiwan and the Mainland. Over 20,000 of our secondary school leavers were actually admitted to sub-degree programmes. For the foreseeable future, sub-degree programmes will still be an important option for some of our secondary school leavers. Thus, if we can upgrade the quality of such programmes, more young people would benefit from them. They would find hope and a future for themselves, instead of joining the generation of angry and despaired youngsters. This would be in the interest of our community at large.