Learning management systems (LMSs) have been launched in universities and other schools. However, because the use of such technology in schools is relatively new in the blended context, it is essential to understand whether students will accept and continue to use it. In this study, longitudinal latent growth modelling was used to examine the relationship between changes to LMS use and belief, and satisfaction with LMS among 1179 students, mostly between 12 and 13 years old, from 25 Hong Kong schools. Both LMS use and belief had positive linear growth over time. We observed individual differences in the students' initial level of belief and the rate at which their belief changed. In addition, individual differences in the students' initial level of LMS use were observed. However, there were no individual differences in their rate of change for LMS use. The initial level of belief and increased LMS use were directly associated with system and learning satisfaction with LMS. Changes to LMS use mediated the relationship between changes to beliefs and system and learning satisfaction with LMS.
[Copyright of British Journal of Educational Technology is the property of John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.]

This article is a response to Allan Luke's [(2018). Critical literacy, schooling, and social justice: The selected works of Allan Luke. New York, NY: Routledge] provocation to "join an international, intercultural and peer-conversation" about the imaginings and possibilities of "an education for critical literacies" (p. xii). Using Edward Said's [(1983). The world, the text, and the critic. Cambridge: Harvard University Press] "traveling theory" to reflect on my own engagement with critical literacy over time, place and space, I stitch together an account of how I mobilized critical literacy within the challenging national contexts of Hong Kong and Singapore after first encountering critical literacy in Australia with Allan Luke. Finally, drawing on emerging theories of postcritique (e.g. Anker, E. S., and Felski, R. (Eds.) (2017). Anker, E. S., and Felski, R. (Eds.) Critique & postcritique. Durham: Duke University Press; Felski, R. (2015). The limits of critique. Chicago: University of Chicago Press; Moi, T. (2017). Revolution of the ordinary: Literacy studies after Wittgenstein, Austin, and Cavell. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press), I explore how top-down, "methods" frameworks in critical literacy might be re-oriented towards more radical and inquiry-based approaches, resisting the imposition of artificial limits to critical literacy pedagogy.
[Copyright of Curriculum Inquiry is the property of Routledge.]

The past 40 years have witnessed significant developments in ELT research, reflecting the changes in learners' language needs and the extensive development of various language learning/teaching methods in different times and places. The aim of this study is to provide a systematic and comprehensive account of changing ELT methods (oral-structural approach, communicative language teaching and task-based language teaching) in Hong Kong's secondary education between 1975 and the present. By adopting Richards and Rodgers's (2014) framework (approach, design and procedure), it examined how ELT theories have been transformed into local curricula (1975, 1983, 1999 and 2002/07) and commercial textbooks (Longman, Oxford University Press) via detailed content analysis. The findings suggest that research into ELT methods in Hong Kong over the past decades has generally directed the designs of the language curricula. Changes in the textbooks, however, have been relatively limited, although considerable attempts have been made to align textbook design with ELT trends. By considering various constraints in the theory-to-practice process, this study offers suggestions for future research and language teaching, particularly regarding the recent debate over the choice between the 'weak' and 'strong' versions of task-based language teaching in EFL contexts, and the post-methods perspective in language teaching.
[Copyright of Language Teaching Research is the property of Sage Publications Ltd.]

近年，香港學校多以「自主學習」為旗幟，爭相模仿推行，甚至把自主學習看成是一種教學方式，以進行教學改進，可是對此中涉及的很多學習概念及策略，卻未有準確理解。本文嘗試分析各地推行的自主學習，大致歸納為三個取向，以作學校改進的參考：（1）源於西方認知發展理論中人在自我調適過程（self-regulated process）的角色；（2）中國內地在「還課堂給孩子」的觀念下，於課堂上進行不同形式的學生學習活動，並以「預習」及「導學案」來配合；（3）香港利用資訊科技發揮電子及網上學習的優勢，鼓勵學生主動學習。本文亦因應香港學校的實況，探索在學校層面制訂推行自主學習的策略及有效推動的關鍵。Self-directed learning (SDL) has become a prevalent focus of development in Hong Kong schools in recent years. However, a more thorough discussion on the concepts and strategies related to SDL is anticipated to clarify its core essence and understand its impact. Based on the analysis of different initiatives to facilitate SDL across countries/regions, three orientations are consolidated in this article to provide insight into facilitating SDL: (1) the metacognition orientation, developed in Western countries, which emphasizes the role of self-regulatory process in human development; (2) the instruction model orientation, prevailing on the Chinese mainland, which emphasizes students' autonomy in learning and is supported by students' effort in "preparation" and "pre-lesson enquiry"; and (3) the learning enrichment orientation in Hong Kong which encourages SDL through the support of information technology (e.g., e-learning, Web teaching, flipped classroom). This article identifies the essence of encouraging SDL and discusses the conditions for facilitating SDL effectively in the context of Hong Kong. Copyright © 2014 香港中文大學.

Purpose: Catering for learner diversity is a key issue in the recent educational reforms in Hong Kong. The present study addresses this issue through an investigation of the relationships between students' learning styles and approaches to learning in Hong Kong secondary schools.Design/Approach/Methods: A total of 6,054 junior secondary students in Hong Kong responded to a questionnaire consisting of two instruments. A series of confirmatory factor analysis, two-way analysis of variance, and structural equation modeling analysis were conducted.Findings: The results identified three types of learning style among the students which are characterized by a cognitive orientation, a social orientation, and a methodological orientation. Some significant gender- and achievement-level differences were revealed. Compared with the socially oriented learning style, the cognitively and methodologically oriented learning styles were more extensively and strongly related to students' approaches to learning, even though these students showed a greater preference for the socially oriented learning style.Originality/Value: It is unwise to blindly cater for students' learning styles in classroom teaching and curriculum design. Teachers should adopt a comprehensive and balanced approach toward the design of curriculum and teaching which not only highlights the congruence between students' learning styles and teacher's pedagogy but also integrates the constructive frictions between them into classroom teaching. Copyright © 2020 The Author(s).

This research pioneered the investigation of the role of doctoral students' thinking styles in their program satisfaction and perceived intellectual competence. Participants were 285 STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) students in Hong Kong. Results showed that students' thinking styles as measured by the Thinking Styles Inventory-Revised II (Sternberg, Wagner, & Zhang, 2007) statistically significantly predicted their program satisfaction and perceived intellectual competence as assessed by two of the scales in the newly constructed Graduate Student Survey (Shin et al., 2015)-beyond their gender, program year, and academic discipline. Findings have brought new insights into the assessment of doctoral students' program satisfaction and perceived intellectual competence. At the same time, findings have contributed to the literature on intellectual styles and that on doctoral education in STEM fields. Practical implications of the findings are proposed for STEM doctoral students in understanding their own ways of thinking and program experiences and outcomes, as well as for academics and senior managers in their efforts to enhance students' access to positive program experiences and outcomes.
[Copyright of Journal of educational psychology is the property of American Psychological Association.]

Educators and policy makers have increasingly recognized the importance of computational thinking (CT). Despite the growing body of CT literature, how to cultivate CT is still underexplored and undertheorized in early childhood education. Informed by Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development, this exploratory study was conducted with a focus on three CT skills: pattern recognition, sequencing, and algorithm design. The framework for the study was developed in two stages. First, we designed two sets of unplugged activities (relying on tangible materials), aiming to (1) provide students with more concrete experiences of CT and (2) equip them with the necessary vocabularies/instructions for the subsequent plugged activity (with a digital device). The theoretical foundation for such an unplugged and plugged design comprised Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development and Asher’s Total Physical Response. In the second stage, we offered our CT course in a kindergarten in Hong Kong, involving six teacher participants and a total of 11 students from K1 to K3 (aged 3 to 6). After 10 h of CT training, almost all students demonstrated their mastery of pattern recognition and sequencing. However, the K1 students could only partially complete the tasks of algorithm design while the others generally reached the target level of achievement. Strengthening preschoolers’ training on CT language and differentiated instruction are some possible strategies to improve the CT instructions. Copyright © 2019 De La Salle University.

Numerous studies have shown that the Philosophy for Children (P4C) programme can promote the development of critical thinking. Meanwhile, it is arguable that the emphasis of Confucianism on creating a hierarchical and harmonious society can easily lead to submission rather than opposition, producing a conformist rather than a critical mind. A question arises here as to whether Confucianism tends to denigrate criticism and thus hinder the development of critical thinking through P4C in Hong Kong. In this chapter, I first argue that Confucianism still has a profound influence on the Chinese in the modern world. I then examine the connection between Confucianism and criticism, focusing on how Confucianism is critical. Finally, I report the results of the first systematic study that assesses the effectiveness of P4C in promoting children’s critical thinking in Hong Kong. Copyright © 2020 selection and editorial matter, Chi-Ming Lam; individual chapters, the contributors.

The term critical thinking has received much attention over the past few decades in both Western and Eastern countries and regions. From 1990s onwards, the Hong Kong educational authority undertook a series of educational reforms in order to encourage a new generation in critical thinking. In the New Senior Secondary curriculum – which commenced in 2009 - Liberal Studies is one of the core subjects in which the aim is to promote critical thinking among senior high school students. Despite this intention, there is no clear definition of what critical thinking is. The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher and student conceptions of critical thinking in Liberal Studies; and the relationship between these two conceptions. Fourteen teachers teaching Form 5 (Year 11) Liberal Studies in four secondary schools in Hong Kong, along with their 480 Secondary 5 students, completed a questionnaire consisting of 40 definers of critical thinking, and one teacher and eight students from each school participated in interviews. The results indicated that both teachers and students emphasised the skills dimension of critical thinking; and explicit and implicit relationships between teacher and student conceptions of critical thinking were found. The results have important implications for teacher education, as well as the successful implementation of Liberal Studies as a subject in the Senior Secondary Curriculum. All rights reserved.

自 2000 年課程改革以來，教育局提倡幫助學生達至全人發展的目標和發展終身學習的能力，以「全方位學習」的概念，鼓勵把學習空間從課室拓展到其他環境，推展一系列的「體驗式學習」，「其他學習經歷」便是以此理念推行的一個高中課程組成部份，約佔總課時百分之十至十五。體驗式學習並不是新猷，是世界各地教育的主要教學模式之一。有別於正規課堂學習，體驗式學習着重利用多樣化的環境和社區資源，配合時、地、人各方面所組成的學習情境，達至一個「體驗式學習循環」，需包括具體體驗(Concrete experience)、觀察及反省(Observation & reflection)、總結體驗(Forming abstract concepts)及實踐應用(Testing in new situations)。由於體驗式學習需要不同的資源投入，校本情況不一。為使每一位學生尤其是基層學生得到公平的學習機會，「大教育平台」積極為中學提供體驗式學習活動並有意檢討體驗式學習在香港推行的成效。香港政策研究所教育政策研究中心得到大教育平台資助，於 2017 年 7 月至 2018年 9 月期間，邀請全港五間中學作一年的追蹤研究，研究分別以問卷調查及學生訪談形式進行。問卷調查利用教育局的情意及社交表現評估套件(第二版)，加上企業精神、STEM 技能、人文價值的 APASO+問卷，及活動檢討問卷，分別於 2016/17 學年末及2017/18 學年初收集，共收到 414 個有效回應，了解學生在情意及社交表現的變化。學生訪談以小組及個人形式進行，深入探討學生對「體驗式學習」的感受及意見。Since the curriculum reform in 2000, the Education Bureau has been advocating to help student achieve whole-person development and lifelong learning. The concept of Life-wide learning encourages the extension of learning from the classroom to social environment through a series of experiential learning, Other Learning Experience (OLE) in the senior secondary curriculum, which accounts for 10-15% of total class hours, is one of the examples. Experiential learning is not a recent term, but one of the major teaching models in the world. Apart from formal learning in the classroom, experiential learning emphasizes using diversified environment and community resources to reach an experiential learning circle, including concrete experience, observation and reflection, concluding abstract concept and practical application. As experiential learning requires different resources input and school-based situations are varied, Big Education Platform, which actively provides experiential learning for secondary schools in Hong Kong, has the aim to review the effectiveness of these activities, on the participating students. Hong Kong Policy Research Institute was funded by Big Education Platform to conduct an impact study in five secondary schools, including a questionnaires survey and student focus group discussion