Creativity as a generic skill identified in the key learning areas of the school curriculum has received unprecedented attention. Many schools in the Chinese regions, particularly in Hong Kong, have attempted to implement creativity education in the classrooms. This paper reviews the many interpretations of creativity and differentiates between the notion of creativity, creative thinking and creative ideas in the school context. Six different examples of school practice in fostering creativity will be discussed and issues arising from these practices will be highlighted. Future prospects for creativity education and ways in which creativity can be developed by teachers and students are also examined.
[Copyright © 2004 The Hong Kong Institute of Education.]

Lifelong and life-wide learning are the foci of learning in an information age. The World Wide Web (Web) is thought to be the driving force behind these changes as it is vast, flexible, and accessible with virtually no boundaries. Although there are many claims of the advantages of using the Web for module deliveries and promoting higher order learning, the results are controversial. The author attempted to examine whether a Web-based learning system could enhance flexible and collaborative learning. The thirty-two participants in the study were pre-service student teachers form the Hong Kong Institute of Education taking Information Technology as one of their minor studies. The module materials, discussion forum and announcements were presented on a dedicated Web site. Participants were encouraged to access this site for learning resources and to communicate using an e-forum. Twelve learners volunteered to attend five focus group meetings to share their experiences and opinions about using the Web. It was observed that they greatly valued the opportunity to use the Web, as it was convenient and flexible. In particular, the e-forum was found to be an invaluable arena for collaborative learning during their teaching practice period when they did not meet each other on campus.
[Copyright © 2002 The Hong Kong Institute of Education.]

Primary school pupils’ attributions of academic success are presented in this study. The sample for the study comprised 1154 Year-3 and Year-5 pupils from ten primary schools in Hong Kong. Pupils’ academic attributions were measured by a 16-item Academic Attribution Scale. Pupils indicated the extent to which they attributed their performance at examinations, tests, homework assignments, and class work to luck, ability, effort and use of strategy, on the scale. It was found that girls tended to have healthier attributions than boys did. Girls attributed significantly more to strategy use and effort than boys did. Boys attributed performance to luck significantly more than girls did. Multilevel analysis showed that there was significant school-level and class-level variance for attributional beliefs. Nevertheless, most of the higher level variances of attributional beliefs occurred at the class-level rather than at school level. Implications for teaching and learning are discussed in the article.
[Copyright © 2006 The Hong Kong Institute of Education.]