This paper examines the effectiveness of active learning implemented in two undergraduate programmes at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Several learning activities were implemented during student seminar sessions. The effectiveness of these activities was investigated using questionnaires and interviews to explore student attitudes as well as the Study Process Questionnaire to measure student approaches to learning. Results showed that active learning made a valuable contribution to the development of independent learning skills and the ability to apply knowledge. It also helped to create interest in the curriculum and to prepare students for their future careers. The activities used affected the quality of student learning by shaping the way that students studied and meeting desired learning outcomes. The results are discussed in the context of student approaches to learning and in relation to the programmes' educational objectives.
[Copyright of Innovations in Education and Training International is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/135580000750052991]

Hong Kong has one of the busiest higher education sectors in Asia with eight universities and a network of institutes, colleges and associations. It is also a hub of international educational activity with many foreign universities and other educational bodies participating in various forms of strategic alliances with a range of Hong Kong based education based providers. The aim of this paper is to analyse and evaluate the range of alliance options (universities, institutes, associations, colleges and so on) available to foreign universities in Hong Kong, compare these briefly to the rest of China, and discuss how these various options can be accessed by foreign universities wishing to enter the Hong Kong market via the strategic alliance mode of entry. The paper notes that each type of alliance option has particular features which may be of relevance to particular foreign universities, depending on their entry aims and objectives. The paper also notes that because these entry options are somewhat different from the rest of China, previous research relating to that country cannot easily be applied to Hong Kong, thereby suggesting that country based entry models need to be developed to assist foreign universities to enter differing markets. These various entry models can later be developed into a model which may be able to identify entry issues of commonality between countries, and differences which may be expected.
[Copyright of Journal of Marketing for Higher Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J050v11n03_03 ]

It has been suggested that although the most theorisation about globalisation has emerged from western contexts, the material implications of globalisation have been felt most strongly in non- Western regions. With this in mind, the authors undertake a situated analysis of how two states, Singapore and Hong Kong, are interacting with the broader processes of globalisation through their educational policies. Foucault's conceptual tool of governmentality is used to understand (i) the conduct of governing in the contemporary nation- state, and (ii) how the right rationalities are being inculcated by government to create desiring subjects who will play their part in ensuring national prosperity. The Asian economic crisis is used as a point of departure to show how global local tensions are being managed by Singapore and Hong Kong. The article concludes that both these global cities have adroitly managed the Asian economic crisis to steer their citizens away from pursuits of greater political freedom and towards concerns of material well being. They have done so through a selective interpretation of globalisation, by simultaneously resisting and embracing the contradictory strands of globalisation. Education has emerged as a critical space for this selective absorption of globalising trends.
[Copyright of Asia Pacific Journal of Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0218879030230104 ]

Australia is rapidly moving into the globally competitive higher education market. As a consequence the issue of consumer satisfaction and quality is emerging as an area of interest. This paper focuses on the issue of student understandings of quality by developing a consumer derived scale which identifies the quality variables related to student perceptions with the university experience. The scale was derived from focus groups, in-depth interviews and through an examination of the literature. The scale was tested and refined on a cohort of 351 Australian and Singaporean/Hong Kong students studying business subjects at an Australian University. The refined scale comprised 25 quality variables which factored into four orthogonal components. The mean values of the variables and factors were examined to make inferences about how educational marketing practitioners can be assisted.
[Copyright of Journal of Marketing for Higher Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J050v10n01_03 ]

Will our Christian colleges in Asia serve as possible venues for the cultivation of communication and understandings among people of different cultures? This is the issue addressed in this paper and the author attempts to give a report of the work of Chung Chi College overall, with special reference to her distinctive contribution as a Christian college in Hong Kong, China, and its Asian contexts. As a Christian college, Chung Chi College has found herself serving not only as a light to the gentiles but also as "a bridge" between the Eastern and Western cultures, between Christianity and other religious traditions.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15363750590959977]

The 'Teaching and Learning Quality Process Review' (TLQPR) recently completed in Hong Kong had an emphasis on education quality work. This paper analyses how, from the perspective of academic staff in one university in Hong Kong, the good intentions embedded in that idea are enhanced or subverted by the broader 'quality system' setting in which staff operate. A 'critical incident' survey suggested that useful changes would involve the following. First, focus on a 'lean' philosophy and an associated examination of the extent to which (essentially administrative) system requirements are 'adding value' to the fundamental aims of achieving quality in teaching and learning outcomes. Second, build adaptability into the system by giving staff the maximum flexibility to translate a minimal set of overall requirements into activities. Third, tolerate staff and groups who 'break rules' in rational and well-intended ways to optimise intended outcomes. Fourth, develop a culture of trust between staff and management.
[Copyright of Quality in Higher Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13538320500074899]