Since 2019, Over 150,000 people from Hong Kong have moved and settled in the UK, a past colony of Britain before 1997.
Hong Kong has aspects quite similar to the UK’s; however, differences still exist, especially in the education system.
Rebecca Ngan, a former headmistress of a high school in Hong Kong, migrated to the UK 2 years ago.
She shares her experiences working in the education sector in both the UK and Hong Kong, as well as some of the differences she has observed.
‘I’m currently working as a school business manager in a junior school, overseeing all the non-teaching areas,’ Ngan shared.
When discussing the differences between her job here and in Hong Kong, she described her role in the past as being more involved with senior management and providing directions for school development.
‘As a leading staff in a high school, I had to promote effective teaching and learning,’ she said, ‘I observed teachers’ lessons and gave feedback to them. I even covered lessons when some teachers were absent, trying to understand students’ needs. These help me think about ideas to improve teaching.’
However, her current job is very different, despite still working in a school context.
The biggest difference is a school business manager does not work directly with children. ‘I don’t have the chance to teach anymore. I never work in a classroom and have nearly zero interactions with students.’
She focuses on non-teaching work now, for example managing the budgeting of the school, and making sure that school operations comply with laws and requirements.
Many Hong Kong people are unable to work in the same field as before after migrating, and Ngan is one of them.
‘The reason I have chosen this job is because I would like to still keep in touch with supporting education,’ Ngan has stated.
She has been able to see the difference between the two education systems through her work as a school staff.
She specifically mentioned the biggest difference between the two education systems being the expectations on students, which she had understood from listening to her head teacher here explaining his views on education.
‘Although I cannot work as a teaching staff anymore here, I am able to experience the differences between the two education systems. It has been really intriguing so far, as I grew up in an environment where Hong Kong was still ruled by Britain, and now I’m experiencing it again in another perspective.’
Ngan also mentioned how much she misses her teaching staff and support staff team back in Hong Kong.
However, she is determined to look ahead and go forward whilst accepting the new challenges her current job is providing her with.
‘As I have migrated to a new country, I still need to move forward and learn to adapt to the unknown.’