This chapter discusses the effectiveness of current professional development programmes for teachers of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Hong Kong. The article first introduces the available services for students with ASD. The Resource Teaching Programme has been the major service provided by special schools since 1984. The principle of teaching students with special educational needs (SEN) in the least restrictive settings has rendered a rapid growth of the population of students with ASD in ordinary schools in the last decade, causing concern among the teachers. Different tiers of professional development programmes have been developed to equip teachers in ordinary schools with the knowledge and skills needed in dealing with students with SEN. However, these programmes are mainly short term and transmitted directly from the top down. The lack of opportunity to practise newly acquired knowledge and skills in real environments cannot provide sufficient confidence for teachers to handle students with ASD independently. The final part of this chapter provides a recommendation for a collaborative mode of professional development that can assist teachers in gaining practical experiences in a field-based training programme. Copyright © 2022 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

The purpose of this study was to investigate Hong Kong preschool teachers’ music-specific professional development (PD) preferences and analyze the potential differences among teachers with varying levels of teaching experience (beginning, experienced, and advanced). A survey was developed to assess four music-specific PD preferences: content, facilitators, types, and activities/resources. We found that respondents (N = 1,019) preferred PD that was centered on musical creativity and curriculum integration; facilitated by experts in pedagogy and music performance; conducted as short workshops and mentoring sessions; and focused on observation, skill acquisition, and practice. The data also revealed significant differences between beginning, experienced, and advanced teachers and their PD preferences. Beginning teachers showed a higher preference for graduate studies and blended PD. Beginning and experienced teachers were more interested in playing instruments and in learning by observing other teachers. Advanced teachers showed preference for PD focusing on dance and music appreciation. The study shows that teaching experience is a crucial factor for determining preschool teachers’ music-specific PD preferences. Implications include considering teachers’ interests, motivations, and needs while planning and designing PD for preschool teachers. Further research should explore what teachers with different profiles require in specific educational settings. Copyright © 2023 The Author(s).

The present study investigated 69 local Hong Kong English language education students' cross-cultural learning as a result of an Internationalization at Home (IaH) initiative that made use of international students' knowledge of English language education in contexts outside of Hong Kong. An analysis of written responses to open-ended questionnaire items revealed that most students reported acquiring superficial cultural facts related to teaching methods, testing methods, and public versus private education in international contexts; however, some students reflected more deeply on perceived cultural differences by challenging their own prior assumptions about English language education and, as a result, demonstrated cultural humility and enhanced empathy towards teachers in contexts outside of Hong Kong. This research suggests that teacher education programs should consider implementing IaH initiatives that capitalise on international student populations to satisfy program-level cross-cultural learning objectives. Copyright © 2022 Routledge.

Opportunities for pre-service teachers to participate during their initial teacher education (ITE) in teaching-abroad experiences, where they spend time teaching in a foreign country, have become increasingly popular. However, studies to date have collected data during or soon after the participant’s return. Little is known about how recently qualified teachers (RQTs) who participated in such experiences during the ITE perceive their benefits. By collecting and analysing reflective writings of ten RQTs in Hong Kong, who participated in a teaching-abroad experience in China, this small-scale study sought to explore its impact on their perceived preparedness for their current roles in their home context. The findings suggest that the teachers feel that the experience added to their preparedness, in areas such as lesson preparation and planning, teaching confidence and flexibility and professional collaborations. The RQTs attributed these benefits to the unfamiliar teaching context and the additional teaching practice that the experience provided, as well as the opportunity to work closely with peers, course tutors and teachers in China. The study adds to the growing teaching-abroad literature by including the perspectives of RQTs, providing further justification for including such experiences in ITE programme curriculums. Copyright © 2022 Taylor & Francis.

We report on an action research study conducted by two mathematics teacher educators in the United Kingdom and Hong Kong. The project consisted of three phases, the first two taking place in our respective teacher education courses and a final phase in which prospective mathematics teachers from both locations engaged in dialogue through a speculative fiction task. Our aim was to explore how our prospective mathematics teachers can be supported in becoming mathematics teachers for sustainable futures by innovating our own mathematics teacher education curricula. This study suggests that generative methods which support teachers in speculating on paths to potential futures as teachers of mathematics, can provide access to how prospective teachers negotiate issues in relation to the climate crisis and ways in which they conceive of related changes in their practices. By identifying the aspects of mathematics teaching that are viewed by the prospective teachers as contingent, and through offering tasks that support an expansion of this view, teacher educators are better placed to support the development of teaching practices needed for sustainable futures. Copyright © 2022 Taylor & Francis.

Pre-service mathematics teachers (PSTs) enter university with diverse beliefs and understandings of teaching and learning; yet, they may not be aware of how these conceptions are related to their epistemological and efficacy beliefs. This study explored how the mathematical beliefs, mathematics self-efficacy, and mathematics teaching efficacy of PSTs predict their teaching and learning conceptions. Participants were 80 PSTs (59.7% men and 40.3% women) who were studying in a 5-year full-time undergraduate degree program at a comprehensive research university in Hong Kong. Multiple regression analyses were performed to investigate the relationships between the PSTs' teaching and learning conceptions and various predictors. The results indicated that mathematical beliefs and personal mathematics teaching efficacy, a component of mathematics teaching efficacy, predicted traditional conceptions. Mathematics self-efficacy and mathematics teaching outcome expectancy, another component of mathematics teaching efficacy, predicted constructivist conceptions. This study yields insights into the different roles of mathematical beliefs, mathematics self-efficacy, and mathematics teaching efficacy in explaining and predicting the teaching and learning conceptions among PSTs, which demonstrates the potential to inform and improve PSTs' professional learning and development. Copyright © 2022 Springer.

Purpose: The study evaluated the effectiveness of a training program for social workers to reduce their negative perceptions on children with special education needs (SEN), enhance their self-efficacy for inclusive practice, and promote their competencies in helping these children in Hong Kong. Method: A prospective quasi-experimental design was adopted in the evaluation, with 58 social workers (74% females) joining the program (the intervention group) and 39 (56.4% females) who did not join the program (the control group). Results: Participants of the intervention group showed a significant decrease in negative perceptions towards children with SEN and an increase of self-efficacy for inclusive practice and competencies after participating in the program when compared with the control group. Discussion: The study provides encouraging evidence on the effectiveness of a training program for promoting social workers' self-efficacy and competencies for inclusive practice, which is essential for social work intervention for children with SEN. Copyright © 2022 SAGE Publications.

This study draws on the findings from a STEM education project to examine Hong Kong in-service primary school teachers’ perceived challenges in implementing STEM education, the support they received in STEM teacher professional development (STEM TPD), and their needs for future STEM TPD. The study engaged teacher professional development through a school-university partnership and adopted a practitioner research approach that aimed at enhancing primary school teachers’ professional capacity of designing STEM activities relevant to the Hong Kong curriculum, with an emphasis on the learning of crosscutting concepts and inquiry-based teaching. STEM TPD is aimed at collaborative curriculum development as an opportunity to foster active learning through co-creating curriculum materials among teachers and university facilitators. Twelve primary school teachers from various subject teaching backgrounds were interviewed. Semi-structured interviews were carried out to collect the teachers’ experiences with the STEM TPD and their views on the integration of cross-cutting concepts in designing STEM lessons. Findings of the study revealed teachers' perceived challenges during the preparation and teaching phases related to STEM instruction and lesson planning, limited resources, and other concerns embedded in broader contextual situations. While teachers reported to have received different types of support from the STEM TPD relating to the pedagogical knowledge of STEM, future directions for STEM TPD were expressed in relation to content components of STEM TPD, opportunities for authentic learning and first-hand experiences, and coherence. Finally, this chapter discusses areas that need to be resolved before a further enhancement in terms of quality and quantity of STEM lessons could be expected. Copyright © 2022 The Author(s).

Objectives: Research in recent years has shown that mindfulness-based interventions can enhance teachers’ mental and physical health. However, the existing studies were predominantly conducted in Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD) societies. As a randomized controlled trial in a non-WEIRD society, the present study examined the effectiveness and mechanisms of mindfulness training for Hong Kong teachers in difficult times. Methods: Teachers from primary and secondary schools (n = 186) were randomly assigned to mindfulness training (eight-week .b Foundations) or waitlist control condition. They completed online self-report surveys on measures of well-being, emotion management, and mindfulness in teaching at baseline, post-intervention, and two-month follow-up. Results: The intervention group reported significantly higher levels of life satisfaction, positive affect, general health, along with significantly lower levels of insomnia, stress, and negative affect than the control group at post-test and two-month follow-up. The effect sizes were medium to large (ηp2 = 0.06 to 0.14). More importantly, teachers’ baseline well-being had a significant moderating effect on the intervention effectiveness. Those with a lower baseline in well-being benefitted more than their counterparts with a higher baseline. In addition, teachers’ emotion management was found to be the mediator through which mindfulness training enhanced teachers’ well-being. Such improvement in well-being also predicted higher levels of mindfulness in teaching. Conclusions: This study provides evidence on the efficacy of mindfulness training for teachers beyond WEIRD societies. It suggests the universality and practicality of mindfulness training in enhancing teachers’ well-being and reducing their distress in difficult times. Copyright © 2021 The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.