The report recognised CLAP-TECH as Hong Kong's first through-train Vocational and Professional Education and Training (VPET) pathway in mainstream senior secondary and post-secondary education, noting its remarkable success in providing students with unique and effective learning experiences. Students have shown comprehensive improvement in both soft and hard skills, gained a clearer understanding of their opportunities and abilities, and are able to make informed decisions about their future pathways. Graduates have pursued a variety of pathways — including further studies, employment, and entrepreneurship — demonstrating that the programme effectively supports students' career development and creates diverse learning and employment opportunities for students from different backgrounds.
Furthermore, the report chronicled CLAP-TECH's five-year journey, underscoring the viability of regularising VPET within the senior secondary curriculum, and urged the Hong Kong government to enable students to concurrently pursue VPET qualifications within the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) framework.
Piloted Model Promoted Diverse Pathways, Equipping Students for Their Future
According to the report, 90% of the programme graduates indicated that they had made informed decisions about their future and were able to pursue diverse options like employment or further studies based on their interests and aptitudes. This stands in stark contrast to the 69% of their non-participating peers, underscoring the significant advantage of early vocational and professional exposure in preparing senior secondary students for successful transitions into their future endeavours. In addition, CLAP-TECH's holistic curriculum, which seamlessly weaves classroom learning, career and life development activities, internships and workplace experiences, effectively equips students with essential hard and soft skills for the professional world.
Nearly half (46%) of students who took the Applied Learning (ApL) Course in Tech Basics under the programme, and a third (33%) of those who took the Applied Learning Course in Multimedia Storytelling, chose industries related to information technology or engineering, and media, communication, content creation, arts, and design, respectively. Taking the first cohort of students who completed the full "Through-Train Pathway" (graduated in 2024) as an example, some opted for further studies, while others secured employment with CLAP-TECH's industry partners, and some even started their own businesses, fully demonstrating diverse career pathways.
VPET Delivered Significant Advantages, Especially for Underprivileged Students
The report revealed that CLAP-TECH graduates with comparatively lower HKDSE results (achieving Level 2 or below in five subjects) found the programme more helpful in making informed decisions (90.8%) compared to other students who met bachelor's degree entry requirements (80%).
Furthermore, CLAP-TECH graduates residing in public or temporary housing reported a higher average self-assessment score in soft skills (86.3%) than students living in private housing or Home Ownership Scheme flats (76.6%). In terms of making informed choices, the proportion of underprivileged students was also higher than that of other students (89.7% versus 81%). This indicates that the pilot programme particularly enhances the practical skills and industry knowledge of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, enabling them to make informed decisions based on their abilities and interests through experiential learning early in their senior secondary curriculum.
Integrating VPET into Senior Secondary Curriculum Cultivates Students' Essential Skills and Values
The CLAP-TECH curriculum integrates vocational and career development skills with theoretical knowledge, aiming to enhance students' industry knowledge and interest in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and Creative Media. Within the ICT field, 82.8% of graduates affirmed that the programme deepened their industry knowledge, while 88.3% of students reported a surge in industry interest — figures markedly surpassing those of their non-participating schoolmates.
More pronounced results were observed in the Creative Media track, where 93.8% of graduates credited the programme with expanding their industry knowledge and 95.3% reported heightened interest, a proportion far exceeding that of non-participating students from the same schools (industry knowledge: 45.5%, interest: 54.6%). Moreover, the programme yielded substantial improvements in students' career and life planning capabilities, cultivating essential soft skills, fostering positive values and character traits (See Appendix 1 for detailed results).
Strategic Expansion of Senior Secondary VPET Curriculum to Alleviate Workforce Mismatch
The report also identified the implementation of a tripartite partnership among secondary schools, industry partners and HKBU as a contributing factor to the programme's success. Over 90 participating schools and 1,400 students have been involved in the programme, resulting in more than 4,300 instances of activity participation. Additionally, the programme benefited from strong support from over 40 industry partners, with more than 360 industry mentors from various fields consistently interacting with students through the Career Mentorship Programme.
The report posited that CLAP-TECH's VPET model exhibits a high level of replication and sustainability, offering considerable advantages for students and society as a whole.
Andrew Ho, Director of Jockey Club Multiple Pathways Initiative - CLAP-TECH Centre, said: "Based on the CLAP-TECH experience, incorporating VPET into the senior secondary curriculum yields multiple educational and societal benefits. The report suggested the government strengthen senior secondary career planning by allowing concurrent vocational studies within the mainstream HKDSE framework or by adding vocational elements to existing courses. This would help students make informed decisions about life and career exploration, and also facilitate progression through the VPET curriculum for those who wish to pursue higher education. It serves as compelling evidence that CLAP-TECH's pilot model equips students with vital workforce skills and empowers informed career decisions, effectively reducing manpower mismatches and bolstering Hong Kong's long-term productivity and economic engagement, thus strengthening its future."
Appendix 1
- Data: Integrating VPET into Senior Secondary Curriculum Cultivates Students' Essential Skills and Values
| | Information and Communication Technology | Creative Media |
| Industry Knowledge and Interests | Over 80% of graduates reported that CLAP-TECH's programme enhanced their industry knowledge (82.8%) and interest (88.3%), significantly higher than those reported by non-participating students from the same schools (54.6% and 70.2%, respectively). | Over 90% of graduates agreed that CLAP-TECH's programme boosted their industry knowledge (93.8%) and interest (95.3%), considerably higher than those of non-participating students from the same schools (45.5% and 54.6%, respectively). |
| Career and Life Planning | 84.1% of CLAP-TECH graduates reported that the programme aided them in boosting both self-understanding and career exploration, compared to 63.4% of non-participating students from the same schools. | 92.2% of CLAP-TECH graduates indicated that the programme better prepared them for further studies and career identification, compared to the 68.2% of non-participating students from the same schools. |
| Soft Skills Development | 87.1% of CLAP-TECH graduates reported higher self-assessment of their soft skills compared to non-participating students (77.7%). Significant differences were observed in the percentage of graduates reporting improvement in four key skills: "Responsibility" (94.5% versus 86.2%), "Collaboration" (89.6% versus 80%), "Motivation" (89% versus 78.5%) and "Analytical Thinking" (86.5% versus 77.7%). | Graduates indicated an average self-assessment score of 90.6%, significantly higher than the 75% reported by non-participating students. Out of the 10 essential soft skills, notable increments were observed in eight of the key skills, namely "Collaboration", "Integrity", "Responsibility", "Analytical Thinking", "Curiosity", "Motivation", "Self-Management" and "Resilience". |
| Values and Personality Growth | Graduates demonstrated an increased emphasis on "Compliance" and "Dependability" (importance of following instructions rose from 63.7% to 80.4%). They also showed greater appreciation for "Variety" and "Adaptability". (The importance placed on having influence rose from 49.2% to 58.2%) | Graduates aspired to leadership roles and to make an impact through creativity. They placed less importance on money (from 75.5% to 65.7%) and were more concerned about the impact and benefits to others and society (from 53.4% to 65.6%). |
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Jockey Club Multiple Pathways Initiative – CLAP-TECH Pathway
Launched in 2020 and funded by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, Jockey Club Multiple Pathways Initiative – CLAP-TECH Pathway (CLAP-TECH) is Hong Kong's first through-train Vocational and Professional Education and Training (VPET) pathway in mainstream senior secondary and post-secondary education. CLAP-TECH is a tripartite partnership among Hong Kong Baptist University, industry partners, and secondary schools. It currently consists of two Applied Learning Courses (i.e. Tech Basics and Multimedia Storytelling) and Higher Diplomas in Data Science and Art Tech Design. The programme equips students with technical and soft skills for the future workforce by incorporating career and life development into the curriculum. Since its establishment, over 40 industry partners have been involved in the programme, guiding and inspiring over 1,400 students from 90 secondary schools, with over 4,300 instances of programme participation. For more details, please visit: https://www.claptech.hk/en/
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