A recent survey on the reading habits of primary and secondary students found almost 20 per cent do not read at all and another 50 per cent read mostly comic books.

A total of 627 primary and secondary students were interviewed in the survey conducted by the Democratic Alliance for Betterment of Hong Kong (DAB) in June and July.

Of the respondents who said they do not read, 31 per cent said they have no interest in reading, 18.6 per cent thought books are too boring while another 19.5 per cent said they have no time due to too much school work.

"There is no reading atmosphere for students in Hong Kong. Parents should help their children to select appropriate reading materials and read with them at home to foster a regular reading habit," DAB district councillor Ada Mak told reporters at a press conference.

She said results of the survey suggest that students in the territory lack motivation to read in their spare time.

More than 27 per cent of primary student respondents said that their total reading time per week amounts to only about 30 minutes.

"Parents are the most important factor in children's reading development; they must set an example by reading regularly themselves and be proactive in encouraging youngsters to take up reading activities," Mak said.

The DAB also encouraged schools to incorporate a variety of reading materials in their curricula to cultivate students' interest in reading.

"Findings of our survey suggest a rising appeal of comic books among primary and secondary students, and we are concerned that this would lead to a gradual decline in their language skills and writing abilities," Mak said.

It takes concerted efforts from the government, schools and parents to cultivate reading habit among the youth. And in light of the study's findings, the DAB will organize a series of reading programmes and activities, along with book exhibitions, she revealed.

College education trend

Meanwhile, another recent study conducted by the Hok Yau Club revealed that the three most popular university subjects for some 1,400 local Form Six students are Business Management, Tourism and Hotel Management, along with Social Work.

Findings also indicate that more than 60 per cent of respondents believed that they might not be admitted into local universities, while 18 per cent said they would consider further studies on the mainland.

Important considerations for selecting university majors include level of interest in the subject, future career prospects and likelihood of being accepted by universities, according to the survey.

Responding to the survey's results, Hok Yau Club said while universities are actively recruiting new students, more than 72 per cent of students still thought assistance and information for further studies were lacking.

This reflects that students often require additional assistance during the transition from secondary to tertiary education to select the right information and establish long-term goals for academic and career pursuits, it said.

(HK Edition 07/16/2004 page2)