ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the debates about the reforms of the allocation of secondary school places in Hong Kong, which started in the mid-1970s and spanned the entirety of the 1980s. Initially, the reforms were aimed at minimizing the undesirable consequences of selection. But whenever allocation is involved, the issue of egalitarianism and its antonym, elitism, inevitably come to the forefront of public contentions. The ideological strife became more intensified as Hong Kong began its transition from a British colony to a Special Administrative Zone of the People’s Republic of China. More specifically, the intensification of elitism and egalitarianism as the contending ideologies in the debates may be related to the political and economic situation of the transition period. Politically, the Hong Kong government has been explicit in initiating a top-down democratization process so that a viable and highly autonomous government can function and the British can withdraw with honor in 1997. Direct and indirect elections to a number of local and central governmental bodies are the clearest examples of democratization reforms. One concomitant phenomenon of a more politicized society is the emergence of a variety of interest groups. Some of these organizations are issues oriented, focusing specifically on housing, education, the environment, labor, etc. Others are quasi-political organizations that voice opinions on a plethora of public issues. Many of these 150champion the interests of the grass roots, whose support becomes increasingly important in view of the expansion of popular elections in the transition period. The call for more egalitarianism in educational issues can be understood as one manifestation of the democratizing political landscape of Hong Kong.
