Is textbook expenditure under the new Senior Secondary 1 (SS1) sharply increased, much to the woes of parents?
The annual textbook expenditure survey of the Consumer Council has shown an increase of 3.1%.
The average textbook expenditure for the first year's Senior Secondary Class (SS1) student was $2,453, slightly up from $2,380 for last year's Form 4 textbook expenditure.
The highest expenditure in this year's SS1 Class sampled was $4,040 consisting of 32 volumes of textbooks for 9 subjects.
The lowest expenditure, on the other hand, was $1,037. The survey found that of the 9 subjects to be taught in this Class, 7 subjects will use materials provided by the school, resulting in significant savings for parents and students.
The school concerned charged from $0 to $100 for a set of materials for each of the 7 subjects, requiring students to purchase only a total of 4 volumes of textbooks for the 2 remaining subjects.
This is much to be commended, and schools intent on alleviating the burden of parents, and providing suitable tailor-made materials for their students are urged to follow the same practice.
The survey also noted that textbook expenditure under the new SS1 may rise further than the 3.1% increase as reflected in the survey.
This is because certain schools will determine textbooks for new subjects such as Liberal Studies, the extended parts of Mathematics and elective modules for Chinese Language only after the new academic year has begun.
Since the survey was concluded in August, it did not take into account the textbooks to be ordered for purchase afterwards.
The survey was based on data supplied by 90 primary (49) and secondary (41) schools.
Overall, the average textbook expenditure for primary schools was $2,032 representing a 0.6% decrease over last year.
The highest average expenditure was recorded in Primary 6 at $2,125, while the lowest in Primary 1 at $1,865.
In the secondary school sector, the average textbook expenditure was $1,796, a 0.5% decrease over last year.
The highest average expenditure was recorded in Form 1 at $2,474 while the lowest in Form 7 at $459.
For more details, consumers can refer to the survey report in CHOICE.
The Consumer Council reserves all its right (including copyright) in respect of CHOICE Magazine and Online CHOICE ( https://echoice.consumer.org.hk/ ).