Arts and Creativity is one learning area of Hong Kong’s official kindergarten curriculum framework. Kindergarten teachers are expected to foster children’s creativity via four art forms: music, visual arts, dance, and drama. However, prior studies have investigated the provision of activities for each of the art forms in isolation and have not explored the demographic variables that predict teachers’ provision of arts education activities. Investigating the provision of the four art forms and its relationship with teachers’ demographics could provide an overview of the status of arts education in Hong Kong kindergartens. We had two research goals: (1) investigate the frequency with which kindergarten teachers conduct arts education activities focusing on music, visual arts, dance, and drama; (2) identify subgroups of teachers who differ regarding the provision of arts education activities and analyze how key demographic variables predict their memberships to these subgroups. We surveyed 477 teachers. Descriptive statistics, latent profile analysis, and multinomial logistic regression analysis were performed. We found that the presence of the four art forms was unbalanced. Participants reported conducting music and visual arts activities frequently, while dance and drama activities were occasionally or rarely conducted. Moreover, we identified three subgroups of teachers who provided arts education activities with different frequencies. Participants with a master’s degree and those who worked in government-funded kindergartens were more likely to be in the highest arts provision group. Findings suggest that the curriculum is not being implemented accurately, as teachers do not equally expose children to the four art forms. We interpret these findings as a reflection of teachers’ uneven preparation in the various art forms. Implications for educational policy regarding professional development are discussed. Copyright © 2024 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyze the complex, intricate relationships between the central (intended) curriculum, teachers’ perceived curriculums, and the enacted/assessed curriculum in classroom contexts. To do this, the authors have used Hong Kong’s new core senior-secondary liberal studies (LS) curriculum as a case study, with a special focus on its key pedagogical component – inquiry teaching/learning. Design/methodology/approach: This study’s objects are two teachers (from two local schools), each with a LS teacher’s education. Documentary analysis, lesson observation, and focus interviews were used to triangulate data for interpretation and analysis. Findings: The findings illuminate: how LS teachers’ perceptions of inquiry teaching/learning relate to and align with the advocacy embodied in the intended curriculum, the relationships between teachers’ perceptions and practices of inquiry learning and teaching, and how this aspect of the intended curriculum reform can be made more relevant to the classroom context. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the under-researched area of curriculum gaps and (mis)alignments in Hong Kong’s LS curriculum reform.
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