Community & Charities
Sports and Recreation
HKJC Junior Sports Reporters programme gets underway
13/02/2017
After attracting a record number of applicants, the fifth HKJC Junior Sports Reporters programme got off to a fantastic start on 4th February with the launch of this extraordinary four-month educational journey. In view of the rapid transformation of the media industry, the course content has been revised this year to allow course mentors and junior reporters to be more interactive in their exploration of the future development of sports and sports media.
A record 47 students were accepted into the programme this year, including two secondary school students and one working professional. Programme head Li Tak Nang revealed that only one among 3.5 applicants was selected, and that the decisions were not easy to make. In fact, one accepted student is outside of the 17-25 age range, yet he was selected due to his sincerity, and to the organisers being flexible and believing that age should not limit one’s opportunity to learn.
Making the most of every moment, lessons got underway at the Opening Ceremony, with the Chairman of the Hong Kong Elite Athletes Association, Miss Amy Chan; the Chairman of the Hong Kong Sports Press Association, Mr Chu Hoi Kun, and many other instructors sharing their decades of experience in the development of sports and sports media with the new recruits.
After the students were warmed-up, they were challenged to put their minds to work in the first group discussion and lecture, where they performed surprisingly well. Being tri-lingual and bi-literate (in Cantonese, Mandarin and English) is one of the prerequisites to being a journalist in Hong Kong. Therefore this year, more English classes have been scheduled to focus on interview skills and everyday life situations. From the first day of class, the students have been encouraged to step out of their comfort zone and be creative; and in doing so, allow themselves to grow as individuals.
Miss Kate Wat, a social worker from Tung Wah Group of Hospitals, has organised the programme since its launch four years ago. She has been pleased to see that this year’s intake has grasped very quickly what the programme is about and what is expected of them. She has said that they are extremely attentive and serious in their attitude toward learning, which has led to several of the mentors and group discussion judges being very excited in what the students will be able to achieve. They have great confidence in the students’ ability to realise the course theme “be a better me”.
Through workshops, group discussions and encouraging students to read more, the programme aims to help students explore their potential, improve their language proficiency and communication skills, and adopt a more professional attitude. In addition, a defining feature of the programme is to give the students real-life experiences and encourage them to try new things by taking them out of the classroom and into the real world. On the second day of the course, the students are scheduled to visit the Legislative Council to not only learn about the current situation of sports development in Hong Kong, but also to take part in simulated interviews.
The HKJC Junior Sports Reporters Programme is organised by The Hong Kong Jockey Club in association with Tung Wah Group of Hospitals and supported by the Hong Kong Sports Press Association, Hong Kong Elite Athletes Association, Hong Kong Football Commentators Association, Sportsroad, Cable Sports, Oriental Daily and Canon, among others.
For more information on the HKJC Junior Sports Reporter programme, please visit our website (in Chinese only) or follow us on Facebook .
