Recipient of Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fellowships in 1999/2000
尤徳爵士紀念基金研究生獎學金1999/2000年度得獎者
From a straight “A” student, to a Biochemistry undergraduate, to a secondary school teacher upon the graduation of master’s degree, the recipient of Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fellowships in 1999/2000, Principal of Jockey Club Ti-I College, Mr. Vincent Cheng always inspires people around him by not following the “expected path”. Becoming a teacher and nurturing the younger generation with a strong foundation in secondary education has always been his aspiration, his path, and his mission. All his beliefs and visions of education have been supporting his 20 years of teaching, and in his current lead of the Jockey Club Ti-I College.
Mr. Cheng studied Science subjects in his secondary school and he was a straight-A student in Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE). Among all the science subjects, he liked Chemistry the most. Mr. Cheng therefore majored in Biochemistry at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). After completing his bachelor’s degree, Mr. Cheng continued his Master of Philosophy in Biochemistry at HKUST. Unexpectedly, rather than pursuing a doctoral degree, he chose to become a secondary school teacher after the completion of his MPhil.
It might not be that surprising to those who knew him from his childhood as it has been an ambition since his very young age. “Maybe it was the first occupation that I have encountered,” he explained. He firmly believed that secondary school life is a significant milestone for every adolescent, so he decided to take the responsibility of shaping the lives of young people by becoming a secondary school teacher. Mr. Cheng has taught in St. Mark’s School for 13 years and he was invited to be the Vice-principal of King Ling College. Gradually, Mr. Cheng realized that there is a limitation of impacts on students no matter how excellent a teacher is while involving in the framing of school policies allows him to impact the entire school, and benefit more teachers and students. Therefore, five years ago, he took up the appointment as the Principal of the Jockey Club Ti-I College.
The founding philosophy of Jockey Club Ti-I College originated from Sir Edward Youde. Sir Edward Youde had always cared about education in Hong Kong. He advocated the establishment of a diversified secondary school within the system, which does not only emphasize academic performance, but also provides more opportunities for students to realize their potential in sports and arts. All students are immersed in an enriched curriculum in either physical education or art upon its admission. The number of teaching hours and resources allocated to these two areas are also comparatively more than other colleges. The supportive environment has made Ti-I College the cradle of Hong Kong’s outstanding athletes, with its connected alumni network over all kinds of sports in Hong Kong.
Mr. Cheng has actively participated in Extracurricular Activities (ECA) during his student life; “some of the spirits that profoundly impacted my life were learned from ECA.” he claimed. He always believes that the ECA inspires students and the Ti-I College shares the same vision. Among the past experiences as an education worker, Mr. Cheng said getting along with the parents is the most challenging part. As he has seen, many parents imposed various restrictions on their children based on their personal perception of being successful, which limited students’ potential. He hopes that parents could understand the needs of their children and respect their decisions so that they could find their own paths.
Mr. Cheng was nominated for the Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fellowships by the supervisor of his master degree, Prof. Nancy Ip. The scholarship was a cornerstone for his subsequent development. Despite not developing a career in the field of biochemistry at the end, Mr. Cheng is still very proud of being a winner of the Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund. Working as a teacher for more than 20 years, he encourages young people to have dreams and set off to pursue them because it takes effort to realize the dreams. For those who are interested in devoting themselves to education, he suggested that they should remain passionate about their works, and see treat teaching as a mission rather than a job. Today, Mr. Cheng is still enthusiastic about education and, committed to nurturing talents for Hong Kong society.
從會考9A，到大學選修生物化學科，再到碩士畢業後轉換跑道成為一名中學老師，尤徳爵士紀念基金研究生獎學金1999/2000年度得獎者，賽馬會體藝中學校長鄭元山先生的決定總是岀人意表。其實，他從小的志願就是成為一名老師，期望自己能讓學生在中學時期接受良好的熏陶，為他們往後的發展奠定基礎。
鄭校長在中學階段修讀理科，並在香港中學會考中考獲9A。成績優異的他並沒有像其他人一樣選擇修讀「神科」，而是出於對化學科的喜愛，選修香港科技大學的生物化學科，並在原校升讀生物化學系的哲學碩士。出乎意料地，他沒有繼續升讀博士，而是成為了一名中學教師。
或許小時候第一個接觸到的職業就是老師，他自小的志願便朝着這個理想前進。他一直堅信中學是人生中最重要的階段之一，因此他選擇以老師的身份重返校園，成為他們的指路明燈。他在聖馬可中學手執教鞭十三年，漸漸地，他體會到一名再出色的老師也只能影響到少部份的學生，若要發揮更大的影響力需參與學校的行政工作才能從更高層面影響整間學校，惠及全校師生。於是，他之後轉到景嶺書院擔任副校長，五年前他更接受賽馬會體藝中學的委任成為該校的校長。
賽馬會體藝中學的創校理念源自於尤徳爵士。尤徳爵士一直關心香港的教育，他主張在教育體制內建立一所不單強調學術表現，更鼓勵全人教育的多元化中學，讓學生有更多機會發揮體育及視覺藝術方面的潛能。因此，學生入學必需選修一科體育或藝術科，而學校分配到這兩科的課時和資源都會較一般中學多。這使到體藝中學一直被公認為香港精英運動員及藝術家的搖籃，其校友網絡更遍布各項運動及藝術範疇。
鄭校長自學生時期便經常參與課外活動，他指出自己從中學會了不少畢生受用的精神。從學生到成為老師，鄭校長始終深信課外活動會帶給學生無窮的啟發，而體藝中學的宗旨正好跟他的教育理念如出一轍。
身為教育工作者，鄭校長坦言與家長的相處最具挑戰性。他看到很多家長因個人對成功的標準而對子女施加各種不同的限制，導致有潛質的學生無法一展所長。所以他希望家長可以用心聆聽子女的心聲，並相信他們，讓他們選擇一條自己想走的道路。
談及尤德爵士紀念基金的獲獎經歷，鄭校長屢屢提及當年鼓勵他去申請獎學金的恩師 ── 葉玉如教授。他坦言獎學金成為了他當時進一步發展的台階。即使鄭校長最後沒有朝生物化學方向發展，但他仍對自己身為尤德爵士紀念基金的得獎者感到自豪。
從事教育工作二十多年，他鼓勵年輕人既要有夢想，更要付出行動去追夢，因為只有行動才會夢想成真。對於有志投身教育界的年輕人，他則寄語他們必須要對教育充滿熱誠。若他們無法從中獲得滿足感，對他們來說教育只會是一份工作，而非使命。自為師那天開始，鄭校長一直對教育滿腔熱誠，往後也會繼續致力為香港社會作育英才。