The first English Festival organised by the Standing Committee on Language Education & Research has recorded an encouraging 20,000 participants in its various activities, and over 1.6 million viewers of its TV programme on English usage.

Committee chairman Michael Tien said he was proud of the results. "What impressed us the most is not the participant figures. Rather, it is the degree of involvement of our participants. With the support of the Education & Manpower Bureau and the Legislative Council, we are now actively devising different measures to strengthen our support for language teachers and students in the pre-primary and primary levels through the use of the Language Fund," he said.

"We would wish to focus more resources on teachers' professional development and to address other imminent needs of primary schools and kindergartens. SCOLAR will also examine ways to recruit more quality young men and ladies to join the profession."

English Festival 2005 has seven activities to give students and public members of different ages and education background to learn and use English in ways that they would enjoy the most.

Mr Tien said there are thousands of ways to improve English outside the classroom and it is open for each individual to explore and seize the opportunities.