Thanks
to Partners |
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HKFYG
and The Dragon Foundation - Joint Flag Day
A Joint Flay Day was held on
Wednesday 19 July on Hong Kong Island. Special thanks to
both the Hang Seng Bank and HSBC
for helping with collection centres and to Uni-President
International (Hong
Kong) Co., Ltd and DKSH Hong Kong Ltd for
donating refreshments. We must also thank over 2,000
youth volunteers, children
and their parents for selling flags. Net proceeds will go
to support HKFYG's headquarters redevelopment project and
The Dragon Foundation's leadership training programmes. |
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Careers
Expo
A big thank you to JobMarket for
its media support and to the many
local employers (click here for a list) who offered
on-site interviews for young people at the Expo in Olympian
City II, Tai Kok Tsui on 18-19 July. We were honoured to
have The Hon Chan Yuen-han, JP, Legislative Councilor as
our Guest of Honour. More than 90 organizations offered 5,000
vacancies in tourism, catering and retailing and six training/internship
projects. Warm thanks are due to all participating partners.
Call YEN: 3113 7999 for
more information. |
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KCRC
Educational Tour to the Hong Kong Wetland Park
The Kowloon-Canton Railway
Corporation (KCRC) and the Federation arranged
free travel on the KCRC for 20 primary school students
who had just arrived from
China as part of the KCRC's "Educational Tour" programme.
They had a free visit to the Hong Kong Wetland Park on 6
July, accompanied by the KCRC Corporate Volunteer Team. The
tour
provided a valuable opportunity for students to experience
life in Hong Kong and learn more about the ecological environment. |
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Young
Entrepreneur Expo 2006
Sponsored by DLA Piper
Rudnick Gray Cary (DLA Piper), the Federation's
Youth Business Hong Kong (YBHK) will organize this Expo
on Saturday 22 July from
2:30-5:30p.m. at Cafe Musical, Austin Plaza. Business partners
will be invited to attend the event in support of young business
start-ups. Members of YBHK will share their business project
plans with potential partners. YBHK has its roots in Youth
Business International, a project operating in 26 countries
which helps young people set up successful businesses. It
was launched in Hong Kong in 2005 since when we have received
198 applications, 19 of which have been approved for loans
to date. Over 2,000 young people have been involved
in training so far and over 1,700 have registered their
interest
online.
Participants benefit from empowerment through expert mentorship
and seed funding, gaining both in self-confidence and business
acumen. Visit
http://www.yen.org.hk/ybhk/
new/index.htm
or call us at 3113 7999 for more info. |
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"Balance
of Life" Exchange Trip
This is sponsored by BRAND'S
Health Education Fund and organized by Mingpao. The the Federation's
Jockey Club Tseung Kwan O Youth S.P.O.T. was invited to help
train secondary school students in leadership skills and
to assist in the programme which took place in Singapore
from 13-15 July. Students with outstanding performance were
selected to participate in exchange with young people from
the Singapore's People's Association Youth Movement and the
Singapore Sport School. The programme facilitated cultural
exchange, helped them develop leadership skills and promoted
healthy activities such as the HK-Singapore Sports Diplomacy
programmes and community service.
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Symposium
for HKCEE students
The Vocational Training
Council and the Federation
will be co-organizing this Symposium entitled 「知．專．升學路」研討會暨放榜工作坊
on Wednesday 26 July at the Hong Kong
Convention and Exhibition Centre. Mr Wong Yuen-fai, Director
and Deputy General Manager of the Industrial and Commercial
Bank of China (Asia) will join us as guest speaker and talk
to Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examinations (HKCEE)
students about the keys to success and the ways in which
they can equip themselves for further challenge. Canto-pop
singers such as Yen Ng and kellyjackie have been invited
to share their personal HKCEE experience as well. Workshops
for F.5 students on planning ahead of the release of the
HKCEE results, IVE/ SBI subject selection strategies and
interview skills for F.6 admission will be provided. The
activities are free of charge and all this year's HKCEE students
and their parents are welcome to join in. Click here for
more info: http://www.vtc.edu.hk/symposium/ or
simply call 2788 3433.
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Education‧Training‧Career
Expo 2006
The Expo is being organized by
Langton Network International Ltd and the Federation's u21
Youthnet is invited as a supporting organization with the
San Hilton Education Association and the International
Studies Service Centre. Scheduled for 28-30 July, the Expo will be
at the Hong Kong Exhibition Centre and will offer tertiary
and post-graduate information on prestigious overseas institutions.
They include the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, UCL,
University of London, the National University of Singapore
and the University of Sydney. Local education institutions
including tutorial centres, colleges, universities, evening
schools, private schools and professional institutions (eg
accountancy and beauty care) will also offer information
on their programmes. Various private companies and professional
associations will provide career-related information and
training programmes to fresh graduates.
*Free admission. All students and parents are welcome.
Click http://www.langtonnet.com/etcexpo/ for more information
or contact u21 Youthnet at 2831 9183.
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| Stress
counselling at exam result time |
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The HKCEE exam results will be out on Wednesday
9 August and the Federation is gearing up for a surge in demand
for counselling. We will have a hundred Form Five Broadband
counsellors standing by 24 hours a day during the peak period which we call
the 100 Hours. This year it will be from 8 to 12 August. Hotline
counsellors will take calls on 27771112 from students who cannot
cope alone with all their fears and doubts. |
They keep in email, chatroom and
icq contact with thousands of others, giving advice, information
and comfort. The public exams are a huge hurdle for many Hong
Kong students and we do everything we can to make the waiting
easier to bear and the news, whatever tidings it brings, easier
to deal with.
We help parents cope with the anxiety as well as the students.
There are always dozens of questions to answer, not only about
the next step in education but about vocational training and
employment options. Less than half of the Form 5 students will
get good enough marks for Form 6 entry and usually less than
two-thirds of those will be lucky enough to get a place. Fortunately,
there is far more available for school-leavers now than just
10 years ago. We keep track of developments, help callers make
decisions and spread the news on demand.
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| For an interview with 2 past Form
5 students who have been helped to solve their problems, see
this
week's
Feature Story. |
| For more information about
the counselling service contact : Siu Man, tel 27883433
or 27883444, email yc@hkfyg.org.hk. |
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Feature
Story
HKCEE students under immense
pressure
The HKCEE results come out on 9 August.
It's a nerve-wracking time for all those who sat the
exams. We talked to two who found help last year through
the Federation's counsellors.
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Kairos, now 20 years
old, is studying for an Advanced Business Diploma at Aston
Institute. She took the HKCEE last year and told us about
being highly stressed months before the exams took place. |
"I have a phobia about exams. I always worried
that I didn't have enough time to study everything on the
syllabus and wouldn't get a place in Form 6. Worse than that,
the exams didn't exist when my parents were at school and
they thought it would be easy to get good marks. The pressure
built every day…. I lost my appetite, became quite emotionally
unstable and suffered from nightmares."
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Luckily for Kairos, Yrainse -
a Federation school social worker - was at her side during
this critical period. Yrainse first taught Kairos some relaxation
exercises and used music therapy to ease her tension. Later,
when she talked over her problems, she was able to help Kairos
stay calm and avoid negative thoughts. Weeks before the exams,
panic-stricken Kairos learned from Yrainse the useful skills
of ‘mind-mapping' which helped to generate, visualize and
classify concepts in economics and other HKCEE subjects.
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"Her constant encouragement
made me feel more confident about myself," said Kairos, "and she
taught me the importance of time management. That really
helped me to study more efficiently."
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Chris, an 18
year-old now working as a clerk, felt just as stressed as
Kairos when he did the HKCEE last year. He said the stress
stemmed from his own expectations and his uncertain feelings
about the future.
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| "The pressure on me to study
made me irritable, especially when exam time was approaching.
Luckily
my parents were very supportive and really showed how much
they appreciated my efforts. Then Shandi, a school social worker
with the Federation, eased my worries about the future by providing
useful, up-to-date information on the options available to
Form 5 students. She told me about the alternatives to mainstream
A-levels, including the Youth Pre-employment Training Programme
(YPTP), pre-associate degree programmes and various diplomas
and higher diplomas. The Federation's Form 5 Broadband scheme
was another good online source of information on study and work." |
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| After the years of hard work at
school, every HKCEE students hopes for a reward. But Kairos
learned that she wouldn't get a place in Form 6. When she got
home she broke down in despair but then remembered Yrainse.
On the phone, Yrainse advised her to make a frank assessment
of her own ability and her study interests, talk it over with
her parents and consider the options for alternative forms
of study. That's how she became an Advanced Diploma student. |
| "I felt so depressed when I saw
the exam results but Yrainse kept on encouraging me and told
me not to see it as the end of the world since so many alternatives
are available." |
| Chris went through a similar turning
point, feeling lost and bewildered when he realized he wouldn't
get into Form 6. He turned to his school social worker, Shandi. |
| "Shandi told me all about the YPTP
and courses provided by The Hong Kong Institute of Vocational
Education (IVE). She analyzed my strengths and the courses
available in detail. With her expert professional advice, I
decided on the YPTP and studied four really useful training
modules on Leadership, Discipline and Team Building, Job Search
and Interpersonal Skills, Computer Applications and Job-specific
Skills. YPTP gave me the skills to develop a future career." |
| He went on to say, "I'm also grateful
to my parents and my sister for showing their support. They
gave me the freedom to choose what I would like to study. I
think family support is very important if Form 5 students are
to overcome the pressure." |
| Young people need advice at turning
points in their lives, just as they need their parents' help.
Shandi added, "The role of a school social worker is to
help students develop better study skills and cope with exam
pressure.
We advise HKCEE students to relax, be confident and study with
a clear head. We always encourage students to have a chat with
their parents and tell them how they feel. I understand parents
want their children to do well in exams, but I'm sure they
don't want to see them feel stressed out."w |
| Both Chris and Kairos agreed that
the Federation's advice and support from the Federation's professional
school social workers got them through that critical period.
They appreciated all the efforts made by to help them and would
like to encourage other students to make use of the Form Five
Broadband project.* |
| Chris concluded, "Early preparation
for alternatives in further study is essential since you need
time to familiarize yourself with all the courses and programmes
available. Moreover, preparing for the worst can reduce stress
levels." |
| When she graduates from Aston Institute,
Kairos will do a Business and Management degree in Hong Kong
or Australia. Chris is planning to take an engineering course
at IVE and hopes to find a job in railway maintenance. We wish
them both good luck and a bright future. |
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| Federation
News |
| Vocational
Training Council/ Federation Symposium for HKCEE
students |
Date: Wednesday
26 July 2006
Venue: Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition
Centre
Guest speaker: Mr. Wong Yuen-fai, Director
and Deputy General Manager of the Industrial and Commercial
Bank of China (Asia)
Invited singers: Yan Ng & kellykackie
Free of charge for all HKCEE students & parents.
See this week's Partner Thanks for more information or visit
http://www.vtc.edu.hk/symposium/ |
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| Opening
of new HKFYG Lee Shau Kee DSS school |
| The school opens in September. In line with
other HK DSS schools, it will have smaller classes than average
Hong Kong secondary schools. They will be served by extra staff,
resources and support as well as state-of-the-art facilities.
For more information on the school, visit www.u21.org.hk/main/lee_shau_kee |
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| Facts & Figures |
| Women prefer
baby-friendly men |
Scientists at the University of California,
Santa Barbara, believe that women can identify men who like
children just by looking at their faces. They are also more
attracted by masculine appearance in men who like children.
Behavioural scientists agreed for decades that environment
was a more significant factor than biology when it comes
to choosing a mate and research into the significance of
physiognomy was discredited over a hundred years ago. These
studies show that it is enjoying a revival.
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The same research also showed
that women agree on what makes an attractive male and this
confirms other recent studies. Evidence was backed up by
swab-tests on testosterone levels of the men who were found
more appealing. Unfortunately, the researchers were unable
to pinpoint exactly what it was about the baby-friendly men
that women liked. However, for evolutionary purposes it is
good news because it means that the burden of child-raising
is more likely to be shared if women naturally prefer child-friendly
men.*
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| Short-sightedness:
an inherited factor |
An estimated 80% of all young Chinese in
Hong Kong are near-sighted, according to recent research
by Prof Yip Shea-ping at the Polytechnic University. The
study, carried out with 128 families during 2003 and 2004,
was published in the US and attributes the high prevalence
of myopia in Hong Kong to genetic factors. The rate here
is similar to that in Singapore and Taiwan but is three times
highter than in Caucasians.
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An earlier study of 1075 13-15 year-olds
in Hong Kong, revealed that over 87% who were at government
schoold were short-sighted compared to nearly 83% of Chinese
students at international schools. This study found only half
as many myopic western students in the same age group.
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| Core
Service Highlight |
| Youth Counselling |
Pressures of modern life are often hard to
handle whatever your age. They lead to many problems of depression
and sadness, anxiety and fear, substance abuse and even suicide.
The Federation's counselling services keep track of trends
in youth problems and provide timely advice appropriate for
the young people who turn to us. Figures show a rising trend.
This year, counselling for A level students was up by over
20% on last year. We consolidate experience gained and share
it with many professionals in related fields via publications
and workshops. Contact Siu Man, tel 27883433 or 27883444,
email yc@hkfyg.org.hk for more information.
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| Publications |
| Felix Wong Awards: Poor
Life, Rich Life |
20 award winners were selected from 28 contenders
nominated by schools this year. As in previous years, they
all come from underprivileged families and/or have suffered
from a serious illness or disability. A commemorative volume
of award winners' stories has been published, entitled Poor
Life, Rich Life. The stories of two of them,
Lam Tak-kwan and Fung Yun-him, featured in issue 68 of Youth
Matters.
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| Comparative Study Series on Youth Development |
Six research reports were published this
month, four of them on life as a university student and two
on secondary students’
self image and pressures. They were presented by the Federation’s
Youth Research Centre together with Peking University at a
roundtable meeting in Hong Kong on 6 July.
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