As Hong Kong students return for the new academic year, veteran teacher Wong is counting down the days until the political maelstrom sweeping the city leaves him no choice but to quit.

Wong, 34, fears he will soon join the exodus of teachers and students triggered by Beijing's tightening grip on Hong Kong, which has started transforming local schools, according to multiple educators.

The latest government figures show more than 4,000 teachers left their jobs in the past school year, a five-year high and a 70-percent spike from the year before.

"I have no faith in the future of Hong Kong or that of the industry. It is hard to nurture a person in this environment," Wong, who asked to use just his surname, told AFP.

The political crackdown has coincided with the coronavirus pandemic, during which Hong Kong has kept strict zero-Covid rules that have fueled further departures.

Students have pulled out of school in droves, with 30,000 fewer attending primary and secondary school in September 2021 compared to the preceding October.

Wong, who has taught for more than a decade, said five teenagers from his class of 32 withdrew halfway through a term to emigrate.

"The students are leaving not because they dislike the school, but because of Hong Kong's environment."

Patriotic classrooms

China is remolding once outspoken Hong Kong in its own authoritarian image, following massive and sometimes violent democracy protests in 2019 in which youngsters played a key part.

Teachers have since been ordered to instill patriotism in students and comply with a Beijing-imposed national security law that has criminalized much dissent.

Curriculums are being tweaked to align more closely with Chinese Communist Party ideology.

Earlier this month, teachers were told to "study and learn the key messages" of a recent speech by President Xi Jinping.