A study was conducted for creating digital classrooms to support students to learn subject knowledge and develop information literacy competency as well as critical thinking skills. A total of 144 students in four Secondary 1 classes in a secondary school in Hong Kong were invited to participate in the study. In the 12 trial lessons, every three students shared a Tablet PC for learning the topic “Air Pollution Problems in Hong Kong” in the Integrated Humanities subject. After the trial teaching, the students and teachers were interviewed about their perception of the support from the designed digital classrooms. The study found that the students and teachers positively perceived the support from the designed digital classrooms on developing subject knowledge, information literacy competency and critical thinking skills. Three recommendations are made for enhancing the pedagogical designs in digital classrooms that emphasize the use of mobile technology. Copyright © 2012 Asia-Pacific Society for Computers in Education.

本研究嘗試探討嚴重智障兼多重弱能兒童是否具備高階思維的共通能力︰創造力、批判性思考能力、解決問題能力。透過文獻探究擬定評估準則，並利用互動故事作為教學策略，進行施教、觀察和評估，以得出結果。研究結果顯示，嚴重智障兼多重弱能兒童一樣具備不同程度的高階思維能力。只要因應學生的學習特性和需要，給予適當的引導和啟發，一樣可以提升這些方面的能力。當然，他們必須經過不斷的練習，及教師採取多元化的課程設計、教學策略和活動來引導學生，才能提升和鞏固其高階思維的能力。 The study examined whether students with severe mental handicap and multiple disabilities had higher order thinking skills: creativity, critical thinking skills and problem solving skills. The students were taught using the strategy of interactive story and the assessment criteria of the three higher order thinking skills were develop through reviewing related studies in the literature, Students' performance in the three higher order thinking skills were observed and rated based on the developed assessement criteria. The results indicated that students with severe mental handicap and multiple disabilities exhibit different degree of higher order thinking skills during the lessons. In teachers could provide appropriate guidance and stimulation based on the characteristics and needs of these students, higher order thinking skills could be developed though repeated practice would be necessary to reinforce the skills.
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This study explored the effects of the classroom learning environment of a Liberal Studies course on the critical thinking skills and disposition of 3,869 Grade 12 students in Hong Kong. Through combining both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, a two-level model of the classroom learning environment for critical thinking with seven dimensions (i.e., Student Negotiation, Challenging Task, Multiple Perspectives, Shared Control, Skeptical Voice, Uncertainty and Personal Relevance) at the first level and three broader aspects (i.e., Pedagogy, Relationship and Content) at the second was generated. The correlation and structural equation modelling analyses indicated that the classroom learning environment had a stronger relationship with critical thinking disposition than skills. Structural equation modelling analysis also indicated a mediation effect of critical thinking disposition between the classroom learning environment and critical thinking skills. It is suggested that different approaches be combined so as to achieve a balanced development of students’ critical thinking skills and disposition.
[Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V.]

This study investigates Hong Kong primary teachers’ perceptions of moral, civic and national education, which may have an impact on how they prepare students to become ‘good citizens’ through classroom instruction. Moral and Civic Education (MCE) has been an overall goal of Hong Kong’s education system since 2001, while Moral and National Education (MNE) was proposed as a new subject in an effort to introduce a patriotic agenda in 2011. Teachers play essential roles in nurturing students to become ‘good citizens’ because they are the key figures in implementing education and curriculum policies in schools. Therefore, gaining a greater understanding of teachers’ perceptions of MNE provides insights into the extent to which teachers are prepared to contribute to the patriotic agenda as part of a revamped civic education curriculum. While there are complex factors affecting teachers’ receptivity to curriculum change, an understanding of factors that influence teachers’ perceptions of patriotic education could be valuable for school stakeholders (such as policymakers, educators and researchers), not only in Hong Kong but in other places (such as the United States and the United Kingdom), when they consider what can be done to influence students’ attitudes towards citizenship. Utilizing pilot data, this study reports Hong Kong teachers’ attitudes towards patriotic education through the proposed new school subject of MNE. The findings indicate that ‘perceived others’ support’, ‘perceived concerns of MNE’ and ‘non-monetary cost-benefits’ were the significant predictors of teacher receptivity of MNE. The results suggest that when teachers had concerns about patriotic education, they were less likely to support its implementation, while if they had the support of others they were more likely to support implementation of MNE. More importantly, teachers who perceived that patriotic education can cultivate more well-rounded students were more likely to support the implementation