2010 News Releases

Hong Kong —Manulife’s long-standing support for children with special learning difficulties was again in evidence when the insurer-sponsored Manulife Centre for Children with Specific Learning Disabilities (MCCSLD) recently introduced new computer software, Kurzweil 3000, in its annual summer training course to help students with learning disabilities.

Kurzweil 3000 is a special software that facilitates conversion of print to electronic text and is tailored to improve reading speed and comprehension. It allows students to discover for themselves the learning methods that are most suitable for them and also enables teachers to assign tasks, receive scores and track general usage data. MCCSLD is one of the first centres to introduce this software.

Michael Huddart, Manulife’s Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer for Hong Kong, explained: “By our sponsorship of the MCCSLD, which has been in existence for 11 years, Manulife has made advanced technologies and other resources widely available in many Western countries accessible to Hong Kong children. This commitment to youth is also a crucial part of Manulife’s forward-thinking sense of social responsibility.”

According to a recent study conducted by universities and the Hong Kong SAR Government*, approximately 10 per cent of all students in Hong Kong suffer from dyslexia, a specific learning difficulty in reading, writing and spelling.

Dr. Alice Cheng Lai, Person-in-Charge of the Centre and Associate Professor in Educational Psychology at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said: “Specific learning disability in reading and writing, including dyslexia, is becoming a widespread problem among schoolchildren in Hong Kong with a 12.6 per cent prevalence rate and a boy-girl gender ratio of 1.6 to 1. All these affected children are unique individuals with special talents. If detected and addressed early, their learning barriers can, in fact, be overcome with appropriate teaching and learning strategies.”

At the summer camp, MCCSLD combined the newly introduced technology Kurzweil 3000 with small-group, special-learning programs, including memory games, artwork creation and performances, to maximize impact.

Manulife’s strong and reliable backing for the MCCSLD since its establishment has been a core ingredient of its corporate charitable activity. The Centre was set up in 1999 with a mandate to assist children with SLD, as well as their parents and teachers, by studying how to identify those in need of assistance and then helping them to develop to their full potential in a warm and friendly environment. In Hong Kong, which does not have any specialist schools for SLD sufferers, it has been a pioneer in the field and is now an internationally recognized research centre.

*”Prevalence, gender ratio and gender differences in reading-related cognitive abilities among Chinese children with dyslexia in Hong Kong”, Educational Studies, Vol. 33, No. 2, June 2007, pp. 249-265.

About Manulife(International) Limited

Manulife (International) Limited is a member of the Manulife Financial group of companies.

Manulife Financial is a leading Canadian-based financial services group operating in 22 countries and territories worldwide. For more than 120 years, clients have looked to Manulife for strong, reliable, trustworthy and forward-thinking solutions for their most significant financial decisions. Our international network of employees, agents and distribution partners offers financial protection and wealth management products and services to millions of clients. We provide asset management services to institutional customers worldwide as well as reinsurance solutions, specializing in life and property and casualty retrocession. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were Cdn$454 billion (HK$3,332.7 billion) as at June 30, 2010. The company operates as Manulife Financial in Canada and Asia and primarily as John Hancock in the United States. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at www.manulife.com.  

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