A corpus provides extraordinarily rich and flexible resources for self-learning and can guide students in finding answers to their language queries. Although corpus linguistics has become mainstream in language research, a corpus-based language teaching approach remains largely unknown to the frontline teachers due to various reasons. In the past few years, our EdUHK corpus team have been working towards bridging the gap between corpus linguistic research and teachers’ teaching practice by introducing a corpus-based language pedagogy (CBLP) to English teachers in Hong Kong, China’s Mainland and elsewhere. In this presentation, we will focus on an awardwinning website, The Corpus-based Platform for Language Teachers (CAP) (https://corpus.eduhk.hk/cap/), and demonstrate how we theorised CBLP and enacted CBLP training for in-service and pre-service English teachers through the learning and teaching resources we created on the CAP website. The CAP website serves as the ideal pathway to transfer our expertise in corpus linguistics to the broad teacher community in Hong Kong, China’s Mainland, and other regions/countries. We will first provide the theoretical framework for CBLP and then use concrete examples from the CAP website to show how we implemented the CBLP training for our target participants to help them develop competence to learn and teach with corpora. Copyright © 2022 ICELEAL.

The use of educational apps in teaching the humanities in higher education is increasingly widespread and commonplace. Understanding the efficacy of using such apps, however, presents a challenge due to the proliferation of countless different apps, each with unique and overlapping functions, often used in courses with very different content and objectives. The PICRAT model provides a framework to compare the educational efficacy of integrating various education apps, even when used in a variety of different courses. This paper presents the results of a project conducted at the Faculty of Humanities at a Hong Kong university. The objective was to develop examples of effective technology-enhanced teaching in the humanities that could be shared as models with other instructors teaching in the humanities. The PICRAT framework focuses on the students’ and teachers’ roles in using technology. All the project courses aimed to change the students’ role from one of more passive to more active and ultimately more creative engagement; and to advance the teachers’ use of technology from merely replacing traditional pedagogy to providing a more amplified and, whenever possible, transformative approach to its use. Examples from three of the twelve project case studies will be described; teacher and student perspectives of the efficacy of using the apps will be analyzed; and the PICRAT model will be used to analyze the overall conclusions that can be drawn from the range of diverse exemplars developed in the project. Copyright © 2023 ICLT.

The innovative use of technologies in language learning and teaching significantly impacts language education. This paper aims to investigate technology-enhanced language learning (TeLL) and teaching (TeLT) in higher education through surveying 223 students and 93 teachers across four Hong Kong universities, and interviewing around 50 students and 20 teachers. The current study investigated the e-resources/tools frequently adopted in language learning and teaching, how participants perceived the affordances of TeLL and TeLT, and challenges they had faced in technology-enhanced language learning and teaching. The results reveal that students and teachers perceived several affordances of TeLL and TeLT, such as provision of authentic materials, enhancement of interactivity, and enhancement of learner autonomy. A list of commonly adopted e-resources/tools for language learning and teaching were identified. The students and teachers also indicated what support they would hope to receive from a Community of Practice (CoP) on technology-enhanced language learning and teaching. Copyright © 2022 IGI Global.

Objectives: Research shows that compassion from others and from the self may enable university students to face, overcome, and bounce back from adversity and generate a greater sense of thriving and meaning in life. However, the underlying processes are largely unknown. The present study aimed to examine the associations of compassion with psychological distress, flourishing, and meaning in life among university students and explore the mechanisms underlying these associations. Methods: A total of 536 Hong Kong university students completed questionnaires measuring their experiences of compassion from others, self-compassion, resilience, psychological distress, flourishing, and meaning in life. Results: Serial mediation analyses showed that compassion from others was associated positively with self-compassion, which was, in turn, linked to greater resilience and consequently lower levels of psychological distress and higher levels of flourishing and meaning in life. Conclusions: Our findings reveal the associations of compassion from others and self-compassion with the well-being and life meaning of university students. The findings highlight the importance of being open and receptive to love and kindness from others. The findings also point to the importance of developing a caring attitude toward oneself. Copyright © 2022 The Author(s).

As a multilingual society, three major languages co-exist in Hong Kong: Cantonese, English, and Putonghua. After the political transition to Chinese rule in 1997, the Hong Kong government adopted the Biliterate and Trilingual policy, which aims to make citizens of Hong Kong trilingual in Cantonese, English, and Putonghua and biliterate in Chinese and English. However, there are no clear government guidelines on which language should be used as the medium of instruction (MoI) for which subject in primary schools. In order to gain a clear picture of how trilingual education is being implemented in Hong Kong primary schools, a survey was carried out across 155 primary schools and detailed case studies were conducted in three of the surveyed schools to find out the extent to which the MoI policies instituted in each school facilitated students’ trilingual learning. The findings suggest that the principals’, teachers’, students’, and parents’ views towards the use of different MoIs vary, as do the ways trilingual education is implemented. It is hoped that this chapter will help readers to gain a better understanding of trilingual education in Hong Kong primary schools, and of which methods of trilingual education best serve the interests of the students. Copyright © 2021 selection and editorial matter, Peter Siemund and Jakob R. E. Leimgruber; individual chapters, the contributors.

In this chapter, a case study of implementing blended learning in a linguistics course will be reported. Traditionally, this course was taught in the mode of a 1-hour face-to-face plenary lecture plus a 2-hour small group tutorial session each week for 13 weeks. To promote blended learning and give students an enhanced learning experience that allows more flexibility and more peer interaction, two of the plenary lectures were converted into online lessons, and Moodle was used as the online platform for hosting the online content. Three levels of online activities were designed and provided online: every online lesson consisted of 3–4 mass open online course (MOOC)-style high-quality lecture video clips (Level 1, resource-based activities) followed by online quizzes (Level 2, response-based activities) and discussion forums (Level 3, collaborative activities). Post-lesson analysis shows that over 320 threads were posted by students on the Moodle forums, suggesting that students were actively engaged in online discussions. A post-lesson survey was conducted after the first online lesson, and the feedback was very positive. The majority enjoyed the flexibility of the online lesson and felt more independent during the learning process. They found the video lectures attractive and effective and the online discussion engaging and beneficial. Other than the online lessons, other resources and activities such as stand-alone course-specific website, weekly online quizzes, and Wikibook projects have been adopted to further promote blended learning. To ensure a fulfilling learning experience, instructional design plays a crucial part, especially in arranging the online lessons and other blended learning experiences. Clear and detailed instructions and guidance were also vital for the success of blended learning. Copyright © 2021 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

Since 1997, the Hong Kong government adopted a ‘biliterate and trilingual’ language policy, aimed at developing biliterate (written Chinese and English) and trilingual (Cantonese, Putonghua and English) citizens. However, Hong Kong secondary schools did not have an agreed approach for this policy implementation, and the Medium of Instruction (MOI) arrangements have been controversial. In response, the government decided to fine-tune MOI arrangements for secondary schools in 2009, allowing them the flexibility to decide on appropriate MOI arrangements. This paper reports on a case study of the trilingual education approach of a Hong Kong secondary school after the introduction of the fine-tuning policy. Research methods employed include questionnaire surveys, interviews and analysis of recorded lessons. Research findings suggest that various factors need to be considered when adopting a trilingual education approach. First, students found it more appropriate to use Cantonese than Putonghua as the MOI for teaching Chinese Language, and the effectiveness of using Putonghua as the MOI (PMI) was questioned by Chinese Language subject teachers and the principal. Second, although some subjects such as Integrated Science and Mathematics were taught using English as the MOI, mixed code is prevalent in classroom teaching. Third, the importance of using the mother tongue in teaching is emphasised. It is hoped that this study will shed light on how trilingual education can be implemented effectively in secondary schools. Copyright © 2020 University of Westminster Press.

Classroom instructions in Hong Kong secondary school context often involve code-switching/code-mixing, with textbooks in English yet the lessons being taught in Cantonese (A variety of spoken Chinese) or a Cantonese/English mix. The code-switching/code-mixing instruction has been a common practice in Hong Kong classroom teaching. However, the Education Commission of Hong Kong considered code-switching/code-mixing instruction as the primary reason for students’ inadequate levels of English and Chinese. Therefore, the Government adopted the policy of ‘mother-tongue teaching’ to promote Chinese-medium instruction so as to reduce code-switching/code-mixing instruction. In this paper, firstly, a summary of the historical background of the Hong Kong language polices will be introduced. Secondly, the role of code-switching/code-mixing instruction in classroom teaching will be discussed by illustrating examples from a case study in a Hong Kong secondary school. Finally, the reasons behind using mixed code and its impact on student learning will be analyzed and discussed. A number of research methods were employed: questionnaire survey, student focus group interviews and classroom discourse analysis. The research findings show that students in the case study school found the use of mixed code beneficial even though the school language policy does not encourage code-switching/code-mixing instruction. We anticipate that this study will shed some light on the study of code-switching/code-mixing. Copyright © 2019 GRDS Publishing.

With the handover in 1997, Hong Kong has adopted the ‘Biliterate and Trilingual’ language policy, which aims at developing citizens who are biliterate in both written Chinese and English as well as trilingual in Cantonese, Putonghua, and spoken English. In this chapter, a comprehensive historical review of the development of language education in Hong Kong schools will be given first, followed by a discussion on how the ‘biliterate’ and ‘trilingual’ language policy is currently implemented in Hong Kong primary schools based on findings of an empirical study. Finally, the chapter will conclude by giving some recommendations to policy makers and school administrators to consider when formulating language policies in Hong Kong primary school education. Copyright © 2019 The Author(s).