Adopting a phenomenographic approach, Learning Study utilises diagnostic approaches to identify students’ ways of understanding before teaching to tailor-make teaching to cater for students’ needs and after teaching to evaluate the effectiveness of pedagogical designs in research lessons. Yet in the existing publications, there was little discussion on the methodology of designing and analysing pre- and post-tests in Learning Study to ensure the test validity and reliability. This paper reports a study that attempted to fill the knowledge gap by analysing the pre- and post-tests adopted in 16 Learning Study projects in Hong Kong (4 from each of the four key learning areas, i.e., Chinese, English, mathematics and science, 2 from primary schools and 2 from secondary schools respectively in each area). It reviewed the frameworks of test validity and reliability by Heffner (2014) and designed a comprehensive checklist of test validity and reliability for analysing the 16 sets of pre- and post-tests in terms of purposes, contents, structures, types of questions and ways of test analysis. It was found that the application of Variation Theory helped identify the critical features and their structure, which enhanced construct and content validity of the tests. The use of pilot tests and team meetings promote Inter-Rater Reliability. Observations of teaching and pre- and post-lesson interviews were often employed to triangulate with test data to increase the credibility of evaluation. The paper concludes with recommendations for developing valid and reliable pre- and post-tests for diagnostic purposes in schools. Copyright © 2017 World Association of Lesson Studies.

本文是探討如何運用校本電子教材，提升特殊學校不同科目的教學效能，如「個別差異照顧」、「自主學習」、「混合式教學」、「互動模式及師生角色」等。結果顯示，透過校本電子教材教學，教師在「個別差異照顧」及「自主學習」等方面，意識非常清晰，提升了學生的學習動機和課業表現。結論指出教師應多利用電子教科書的優勢，提供不同互動方式，使教學更能以「學生為本」。This paper is to examine the effectiveness of school-based e-learning materials in the aspects of learning diversity, self-regulated learning (SRL), blended learning mode; and interaction mode & role of teacher and students in special schools. From the findings, with the use of the school-based e-learning materials in teaching, the teachers were with good awareness on the learning diversity and SRL that led to the enhancement of learning motivation and performance among students. It was recommended that teachers should make full use of the e-learning materials so as to provide different interactive learning. This will help the learning be more student-centered. Copyright © 2018 特殊教育學會有限公司.

The purpose of this study was to examine creative thinking and learning in arts-infused education by using the invention kit Makey Makey as a platform for Human-Centred Design Instrument (HCDI). Data were collected from 249 adolescents (n = 249) from a Hong Kong secondary school in a participatory design format. They were selected for the STEAM project, which is provided through the school curriculum to examine the level of attitude change towards creativity through the creation of human-centred musical instruments for different age cohorts, including children (aged 3–6), adults and elderly people (aged over 65). The research objectives were concerned with the development of collaborative creative thinking through an HCDI and with how students combined and transformed new knowledge for everyday application with meaning – a breakthrough in musical instrument design for human needs. Questionnaires, observation and interviews were conducted to examine the students’ level of creative thinking. Based on a modification of the creativity measurement framework from the Runco Ideational Behavior Scale (RIBS), a significant increase in the attitude change of students’ creativity was shown from the paired-sample t-test in the dimensions of originality, flexibility, fluency and elaboration through the STEAM project. Copyright © 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Creativity literature was criticized for its bias towards conventional areas (e.g. arts), and creativity studies in domains less concerned about creativity, such as environmental sustainability (ES), are rare. This study aimed to understand the development of "creativity for ES" (pro-ES creativity) of common tertiary students. Based on a pro-environmental behaviour model and a pro-sustainability competence model found in literature, a pro-ES creative learning curriculum was designed and integrated into an existing toy course in a university of Hong Kong. A total of 20 students from three cohorts were interviewed, and their feedback was analysed inductively with open-coding by the consensus of two experts. Together with their affecting factors, five learning outcomes emerged as attributes of pro-ES creativity: sensitivity and problem-finding; creative problem-solving abilities; affinity for self-creating life-style; creative systems thinking and futures thinking; and reconceptualization of creativity and ES. This study discovered that creativity, as a kind of self-actualization, had developed both individual competences and intrinsic motivation, which are conducive to life-long self-determining ES behaviours. This study informs the education field that the five attributes of pro-ES creativity can be enhanced in a curriculum based on a simple everyday theme. As such, pro-ES creativity education can be integrated into many existing curricula. Going beyond ES, this study shed light on creativity studies of other less popular areas. It suggested a dual domain-specific-general creativity education approach and a dual deductive-inductive research approach for developing creativity theories and curriculum of "low-creativity" domains. Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multimedia-supported e-learning is considered useful as it can offer an enjoyable independent learning experience to learners. However, the effectiveness of e-learning for self-regulated science learning is still inconclusive. This study aimed to explore primary school students’ perceptions and experiences of self-regulated science learning in a multimedia-supported e-learning environment. A total of 11 classes from grades 3 to 6 from four Hong Kong schools participated in this study. All e-learning lessons were observed, and 33 (3 from each class) were interviewed using cognitive walkthroughs of how they made use of the multimedia resources and system tools, scaffolds, or prompts to direct their own learning in each of the three self-regulated learning phases (forethought, performance, and reflection). Results revealed that the combined use of the discussion forum and statistics table seemed to facilitate the students’ diagnosis of their prior knowledge of natural phenomena in the forethought phase. In the performance phase, the students mostly enjoyed learning with the graphic data, animations, and/or simulation experiments. Some perceived the prompts or tools from the e-learning system as useful for operation and science learning. In the reflection phase, the students self-assessed their learning using quizzes with emoticons as positive feedback which seemed to increase their enthusiasm for learning science. However, not all students were able to effectively use the system tools or prompts, to keep focused self-discipline, or to achieve deeper science learning without the teacher’s guidance. Hence, this study suggests providing more opportunities for students’ exposure to e-learning resources, while at the same time assisting them in the use of digital tools or resources, in adjusting their learning strategies, and in internalizing scientific ideas and inquiry processes so as to ensure more effective self-regulated science learning. Copyright © 2019 Springer Nature

With the handover in 1997, Hong Kong has adopted the ‘Biliterate and Trilingual’ language policy, which aims at developing citizens who are biliterate in both written Chinese and English as well as trilingual in Cantonese, Putonghua, and spoken English. In this chapter, a comprehensive historical review of the development of language education in Hong Kong schools will be given first, followed by a discussion on how the ‘biliterate’ and ‘trilingual’ language policy is currently implemented in Hong Kong primary schools based on findings of an empirical study. Finally, the chapter will conclude by giving some recommendations to policy makers and school administrators to consider when formulating language policies in Hong Kong primary school education. Copyright © 2019 The Author(s).

The global trend of learning English as an L2 in the early years is identifiable in Hong Kong. Cognitively immature pre-primary learners face the dual challenges of coping with formal learning in low L2 exposure contexts. This chapter argues for a specific approach that better fits the learning characteristics and abilities of pre-primary learners who learn an L2 differently from that of older learners. The approach recommends the use of informal instructional strategies like using quality stories together with rich vocabulary activities in the form of games and songs for vocabulary learning and phonological awareness which are essential building blocks for L2 literacy skills. Evidence-based examples from research are cited to show their effect on very young learners’ motivation and interest in learning an L2. Copyright © 2019 The Author(s).

Recently, East Asian countries have sought to reduce the size of primary classes, in contrast to current Western perspectives which are based on the argument that other factors are more important in bringing about improvements in literacy and numeracy. This shift in thinking arises because the rationale for class size reductions in East Asia differs from that which influenced previous Western efforts.Initially, the paper explores the consequences of these different approaches and the problems and attempted solutions which arise when class size reductions are implemented. A specific case study is described and key elements in the implementation process identified. Finally, the paper suggests ways that present small class practice might be modified to meet current East Asian educational goals. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.