Comprehension skill is an important aspect of conceptual change in science learning. Researches have shown that low academic ability students who received comprehension training can perform just as well as the high academic ability students. Students' comprehension skills can be improved through a number of ways: text construction, multimedia presentation and comprehension strategies. In the present article, I will describe and discuss several ways of improving text comprehension, hence fostering conceptual change, via on-line text reading.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the general perceptions on health fitness and the actual fitness levels of the university students. 194 students (73 M & 121 F) were subjects in the study. They were enrolled in conditioning and fitness classes during the first semester of 1996-97 at Hong Kong Baptist University. Subjects’ perceptions on health fitness were collected through questionnaire designed by the researcher. The fitness assessment included Step Test for the cardiorespiratory endurance, Grip Test for the forearm strength, Sit-Up Test for the abdominal muscular strength and endurance, Sit and Reach Test for the hamstrings and lower back flexibility, and Skinfold Measurement for the percent body fat.
In the paper and pencil measurement, it was found that 97.26% males and 98.35% females agreed that physical fitness is important to a healthy life. However, only 54.79% males and 32.23% females were committed to regular physical activity, in which, most of them could only take part in the activity once a week. For the non-regular exercise group, the lack of time was the most popular excuse for them for not doing exercise. Among the five components of health fitness, the subjects ranked cardiorespiratory endurance the most important.
In fitness assessment, the overall fitness levels for both male and female students ranged from poor to average, when compared with the fitness norms established for similar population in the United States of America. If we agree that physical fitness is an important component to a healthy and quality life, we should support the whole person education philosophy in higher education. Education program should emphasize not only on intellectual but also on social, spiritual, and physical development as well.

Computer programming has been taught in secondary schools in Hong Kong since the 1980s. However, learning to program poses a lot of difficulties to novices. This study aims to investigate the mental model of individuals of various learning styles in learning to program. Forty-one secondary students participated in a pilot study. No difference in mental models was found among the different groups. There was some evidence that learning style predicted mental model. Concrete learners had higher similarity than abstract learners. Students' understanding of programming knowledge was only rudimentary. Sequential learners in general outperformed their random counterparts. AR learners were students particularly at risk in learning programming. A number of pedagogical recommendations are made and limitations of the study are discussed.

The cookbook-style implementation of practical experiments in schools and colleges has prompted a critical re-evaluation of their values and needs. Various studies have revealed that the use of new technologies, e.g., computer simulation, in practical experiments does not necessarily result in learning enhancements. In fact, in some cases, the opposite happened. In the present article, I will describe and discuss a case where a computer simulation was used to help students learn practical skills in a pre-lab. The result of this investigation indicates that the use of virtual lab actually gives rise to virtual, rather than real, understanding.

This paper presents a framework for selling up a system to deliver on-line learning and leaching materials via the Internet, with enhanced rich-text, graphics, video on demand, interactive revision or self-test exercises, synchronous and asynchronous chat groups, and a quality monitoring mechanism. A prototype system has been set up at the Department of Building and Real Estate of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and is being used in some of the undergraduate teaching. It is planned that a new MSc programme in Project Management will make full use of the system for the distance-learners.