補習-Rights beliefs of teachers far from liberal

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Students are set to develop a rather skewed view of both civil and human rights, if the opinions of several teachers are anything to go by.
A survey of 791 liberal studies teachers from 255 schools last year saw more than a third backing police use of torture to get confessions, while nearly half felt courts should pay more heed to public opinion than the rule of law.

Leung Yan-wing, who led the survey conducted by the Hong Kong Institute of Education, blamed the results on conservatism among some teachers and the apparent apathy to human rights over the past 10 years.

The survey laid special stress on liberal studies - introduced as a compulsory subject in all secondary schools under the new 3-3-4 system but one without a fixed syllabus.

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Leung said the results are shocking and reflect how the rights awareness of generations to come may be eroded.

"I am very worried about the mind- sets of teachers and how this will affect the next generation," he said.

Leung suggested that after the promised universal suffrage comes into effect in 2017, the government pay more attention to how teachers think and what is being taught in schools.

Sun Kei Secondary School liberal studies teacher Hui Shing-yau urged firmer guidelines on the subject.