The New Senior Secondary Curriculum & Assessment Guides for the four core subjects - Chinese, English, mathematics and liberal studies - and 20 elective subjects have been published.

The Education & Manpower Bureau said today the guides will help schools prepare for the implementation of the NSS academic structure in the 2009-10 school year. The guides are developed on the basis of how best to benefit students.

Feedback collected over the past two years from different sectors of the community, particularly principals and teachers, through a series of interactive consultation seminars, forums and meetings, school visits and surveys, has been taken into account in their development.

Apart from describing the learning objectives, contents, methodologies and assessment, the guides help teachers with their different responsibilities. With the references recommended in the guides, teachers can keep abreast of the latest developments of their subject and strengthen professional capacity. They provide a basis for the production of textbooks and learning resources, and facilitate the development of the four-year undergraduate programmes for higher education, which will ensure a smooth interface between senior secondary and higher education.