Entrepreneurship education in Hong Kong's secondary curriculum Possibilities and limitations

Purpose - This paper aims to give a picture of the entrepreneurship education programs currently provided in Hong Kong secondary schools, to present teachers' evaluations of the effectiveness of the programs offered, and to point out the factors that hinder the development of entrepreneurship education in Hong Kong secondary schools. Design/methodology/approach - A questionnaire about entrepreneurship education was designed and piloted and then faxed to all Hong Kong secondary schools, inviting teachers teaching business related subjects and those in charge of extra-curricular activities to complete it. One hundred and twenty-eight usable questionnaires were received, which gave a valid response rate of 31 percent. Close-ended and multiple-choice questions were adopted to maintain readability of the questionnaire and encourage participation. As the participants of the quantitative research did not have the opportunity to elaborate their responses, in-depth phone interviews were conducted. Findings - Half of all respondents reported the presence of entrepreneurship education in one form or another at their schools. Of the remaining respondents, nearly 80 percent said their schools were not planning to implement entrepreneurship programs. Around 70 percent of the schools running entrepreneurship programs had more than three years' experience in entrepreneurship education, and forty-three percent had even been running these programs for more than 5 years. The survey revealed that schools tended to take a comprehensive approach in delivering entrepreneurship education. Originality/value - This study shows that entrepreneurship programs in Hong Kong are largely similar to those in the West in terms of objectives of provision, content and teaching strategies.