Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (LPAT) Summary Details
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EDUCATION AND MANPOWER BUREAU CIRCULAR MEMORANDUM NO. 278/2004 From : Secretary for Education and Manpower To : Heads of Secondary and Primary Schools (except ESF schools and international Ref. : EMB/LPA/PRO/8 schools) Date : 1 December 2004 - for necessary action Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (LPAT) (Note: This circular should be read by all heads and teachers of secondary and primary schools.) Summary This circular memorandum informs school heads and teachers of the arrangements of entry for the LPAT to be held in March 2005. This is the second LPAT in the 2004/05 school year. Details Entry for the LPAT in March 2005 2. The Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA) and the Education and Manpower Bureau (EMB) jointly conduct the LPAT twice a year, one in September and one in March. The following categories of teachers and potential teachers are now invited to enter for the forthcoming LPAT to be held in March 2005: (a) English/Putonghua (PTH) teachers holding permanent posts English/PTH teachers holding permanent posts in a public sector school or a local private primary/secondary day school offering the full curriculum should meet the Language Proficiency Requirement (LPR) by specific deadlines. For details, please refer to Appendix 1. It should be noted that English/PTH teachers joining or re-joining the teaching profession and holding permanent posts from the 2001/02 to 2003/04 school years have to meet the LPR within the first two years of teaching English/PTH through either exemption or assessment. It follows that those who joined or re-joined the teaching profession in the 2003/04 school year have to meet the LPR by the end of August 2005. Teachers of this category are strongly advised to enter for the coming LPAT if they have not yet fulfilled the requirement. School heads are also urged to monitor the LPR status of English/PTH teachers holding permanent posts in their schools. (b) Other Teachers and Members of the Public (i) From the 2004/05 school year onwards, English/PTH teachers newly appointed to hold a permanent post and teachers not included in Paragraph 2(a) but are newly deployed to teach English/PTH should meet the LPR in all the core language skills (i.e. Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking for English teachers, and Listening and Recognition, Pinyin, and Speaking for PTH teachers) except for Classroom Language Assessment (CLA) before taking up the respective subject. They will have to meet the LPR in CLA within one year of their taking up the duties. Teachers holding a permanent post and newly appointed or deployed to teach English / PTH in the 2004/05 school year are also strongly advised to enter for this LPAT if they have not fulfilled the requirement. (ii) Any teacher (not teaching English or PTH) or member of the public who meets the entry requirement for the LPAT can also enter for all papers, with the exception of CLA. Teachers Employed under the Native-speaking English Teachers (NET) Scheme 3. The LPR and all its related arrangements are not applicable to teachers employed under the NET Scheme. Arrangements for the 2005 March LPAT 4. The CLA will be conducted by the EMB, and all other papers by the HKEAA. Details of the Assessment are as follows: Events Dates Registration for the LPAT Postal Registration 1 – 14 December 2004 Counter Registration (in person or by an authorized representative) 1 – 21 December 2004 LPAT (PTH) Listening & Recognition 5 March 2005 Pinyin LPAT (English Language) Reading 6 March 2005 Listening Writing LPAT (English Language & PTH) Starting from 7 March 2005 Speaking LPAT (English Language & PTH) Starting from late January 2005 Classroom Language Assessment Release of Assessment Results end of May 2005 (For Speaking and CLA, candidates will be informed individually of the assessment dates by the HKEAA and EMB.) 5. The Entry Form (including Notes for Persons Entering for the Assessment) is enclosed (Appendix 2). This Form can be downloaded from the EMB website (http://www.emb.gov.hk/) and the HKEAA website (http://www.hkeaa.edu.hk/), or obtained - 2 - from the HKEAA Southorn Centre Office (at 12/F, Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong) and San Po Kong Sub-office (at 17 Tseuk Luk Street, San Po Kong, Kowloon) during office hours from 1 to 21 December 2004. Teachers may also make photocopies of the Entry Form for use. 6. Please note that English/PTH teachers holding permanent posts or temporary posts on at least a half-yearly basis in public-sector schools or local private primary/secondary day schools offering the full curriculum may enter for the CLA. Teachers who taught English/PTH in the 2001/02 and 2002/03 school years and did not meet the respective LPR by their due dates may also enter for CLA if their schools would allow them access to two lessons for assessment purposes. Any applicant entering for the CLA should provide, together with the Entry Form to be submitted to the HKEAA, a copy of the school calendar and his/her own full teaching timetable as officially issued by the school. Each copy should also bear the name of the applicant, name of the school and the school chop. (Please refer to Appendix 2 for details.) Reference Materials 7. The following documents are published by the Government for candidates’ reference: (a) Syllabus Specifications for the Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (English Language); (b) Syllabus Specifications for the Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (Putonghua); (c) Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (English Language) Guidance Notes for Candidates; (d) Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (Putonghua) Guidance Notes for Candidates; (e) 2004 (March) Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (English Language) Assessment Report; and (f) 2004 (March) Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (Putonghua) Assessment Report. These documents can be downloaded from the EMB or HKEAA website and are available for collection at the Registration Centre. Teachers may also request to have these documents mailed to them by sending a stamped (postage: HK$ 16.40), self-addressed A4 size envelope to the HKEAA (Address: 12/F., Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong). 8. The Language Proficiency Assessment for Teachers (English Language & Putonghua) September 2003 and March 2004 Question Papers (with suggested answers and - 3 - listening test CD) are now available for sale at the HKEAA On-line Bookstore (http://bookstore.esdlife.com) and the following places: (a) Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority, 13/F, Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong; and (b) The HKEAA Publications Unit, 17 Tseuk Luk Street, San Po Kong, Kowloon The September 2004 Question Papers, with suggested answers and listening test CD and Assessment Reports, will also be available for sale in mid-January 2005. Briefing Session 9. A briefing session jointly organized by the EMB and the HKEAA will be held on 15 January 2005 for candidates who have entered for the March administration of LPAT 2005. The purpose of the briefing session is to familiarize candidates with the requirements of individual papers and the assessment procedures. The skills required to achieve success and the major pitfalls to avoid will be highlighted with reference to the Syllabus Specifications and Guidance Notes for Candidates. There will be a Q&A session to address queries that candidates might have on the dos and don’ts in the course of their preparation for the assessments and during the assessment process. 10. Candidates will receive an admission ticket for the event during registration and they are requested to attend the briefing and bring along the ticket and the relevant reference materials. Submission of Applications 11. Teachers who wish to sit for the LPAT in March 2005 may submit their applications to the HKEAA Southorn Centre Office during the registration period as specified in Paragraph 4 by post, in person or by an authorized representative. Late applications for entry will only be accepted under special circumstances and at the discretion of the HKEAA. Late applicants will be required to pay a supplementary fee of HK$250 in addition to the normal assessment fee. Applications received after 31 December 2004 will not be accepted. 12. Appeals candidates of the LPAT 2004 September administration who will receive their appeals results by 13 January 2005 may register for the LPAT 2005 March administration from 13 to 20 January 2005 if they wish to do so. Release of Results 13. Results of the LPAT will be mailed directly to candidates by the HKEAA and copied to the EMB for record purposes. - 4 - Reimbursement 14. English/PTH teachers holding permanent posts as from the 2000/01 school year in a public-sector school or a local private primary/secondary day school offering the full curriculum are eligible for reimbursement for one attempt of each paper of the LPAT. A circular memorandum informing teachers of the details of the application for reimbursement will be issued to schools later this year. Teachers eligible for reimbursement may then apply to have their assessment fees reimbursed on production of the original Demand Note for the assessment fees issued by the HKEAA. Enquiry 15. For enquiries on arrangements for the CLA, please contact the Language Proficiency Assessment Team of this Bureau (tel. no.: 2186 8749; fax no.: 2123 1229). For all other enquiries on the arrangements for the LPAT, please contact the HKEAA (tel. no.: 2239 2771; fax no.: 2591 9139). Ms Susanna CHEUNG for Secretary for Education and Manpower c.c. Heads of Sections – for information - 5 - Appendix 1 Timeframe for English/Putonghua (PTH) Teachers to meet the Language Proficiency Requirement (LPR) Teachers Deadline Means for meeting LPR to meet LPR English/PTH teachers holding a permanent post as By 31 August 2006 from the 2000/01 school year Training, exemption, Teachers of other subjects holding a permanent By 31 August 2006 assessment or a post as from 2000/01 school year and deployed to combination of teach English/PTH from the 2001/02 to 2003/04 these means school years.