In today's digital environment, gamification has become a satisfactory method for promoting certain behaviours and enhancing motivation and engagement. Though it is most often used in marketing tactics, it is increasingly being used in education, assisting instructors in attaining their goals while also responding to changing student requirements. In recent years, gamification, as an innovative teaching method, has also attracted much attention in China. With the further promotion of educational reforms, teachers are the change agents of reforms, and their cognition, attitude, and behavior determine the effectiveness of educational reforms. To know more about teachers’ intention to use gamification, the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) was used for testing what factors affect their intention. For testing the TPB model, this study took the teachers of schools in Huizhou as a sample. This research collected data through a questionnaire survey and in-depth interviews for analysis and discussion. By collecting 152 questionnaires from primary and secondary school teachers and in-depth interviews with 22 teachers, this study confirmed that attitudes toward using gamification, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control affect teachers’ intention of using gamification for teaching through the mediator commitment. This finding provides a more comprehensive model and perspective to understand teachers’ use of gamification. Moreover, it gives a reference for related research on the implementation of gamification among teachers in second and even third-tier cities. All rights reserved.

This chapter addresses the limited research on equipping teachers with relevant knowledge and enhancing students' motivation in the context of Hong Kong. Previous studies in Hong Kong have primarily focused on measuring the motivation of students in specific language skills while neglecting the investigation of how to effectively train teachers in motivational strategies. To fill this gap, an intervention was conducted to examine the change in motivational strategies among pre-service Chinese teachers in Hong Kong. Adopting Dörnyei's Motivational Strategies Framework as the theoretical framework, the study utilizes pre-and post-self-report with over 116 pre-service Chinese teachers and followed up by a focus group interview. The aim is to understand their perceptions of various motivational strategies and how these perceptions are formed before and after the intervention. By taking a pragmatic approach, the study seeks to provide valuable pedagogical insights for practicing teachers and bridge the gap between motivation theories and classroom practices. Copyright © 2024 selection and editorial matter, Sin Manw Sophia Lam, John Chi-Kin Lee and Chung Mou Si; individual chapters, the contributors.

This mixed methods study explores EFL students’ experiences and perceptions as they learn to write a composition with ChatGPT’s support in a classroom instructional context. Students’ perceptions are explored in terms of their motivation to learn about ChatGPT, cognitive load and satisfaction with the learning process. In a workshop format, twenty-one Hong Kong secondary school students were introduced to ChatGPT, learned prompt engineering skills, and attempted a 500-word English language writing task with ChatGPT’s support. Data collected included a pre-workshop motivation questionnaire, think-aloud protocols during the writing task, and a post-workshop questionnaire on motivation, cognitive load, and satisfaction. Results revealed no significant difference in students’ motivation before and after the workshop, but mean motivation scores increased slightly. Students reported high cognitive load during the writing task, especially during prompt engineering. However, students expressed high satisfaction with the workshop overall. Findings indicate ChatGPT’s potential to engage EFL students in the writing classroom, but its use can impose heavy cognitive demands. To ensure that ChatGPT use supports EFL writing without overwhelming students, educators should consider an iterative design process for activities and instructional materials and carefully scaffolding instruction, especially for prompt engineering. Copyright © 2024 The Author(s).

This study examines how new ways of learning (NWL) affects students’ study engagement and learning satisfaction with online teaching, and whether subject lecturer support moderates the effect of NWL and study engagement on learning satisfaction. Undergraduate students in Hong Kong were invited to complete a survey about their experience of online teaching. Hierarchical regression analysis indicated that NWL were positively related to study engagement and learning satisfaction. Subject lecturer support moderated the relationship between NWL and study engagement, which mediated their interactive effect on learning satisfaction. The results imply that academic institutions can transform traditional face-to-face teaching into online teaching that achieves learning satisfaction for students. © 2023 The Author(s).

Effective teaching practice requires that teachers know their students not as ‘faceless average learners’, but as individuals. The most individual of learner characteristics is personality, and yet language education research has made little progress in understanding the role of personality. As the field of language learning motivation seeks to develop frameworks for motivational teaching practice, a richer understanding of learners’ individuality is crucial in shaping practices that respond to learners’ needs. The present study examines the role of learners’ personality and teachers’ practice in shaping motivation and self-efficacy in language learning. Drawing on data gathered from 277 learners of English in Hong Kong, aged 11–14 years, and 24 lesson observations, across 10 classes, the study applies hierarchical multiple regression analysis to reveal a significant role of personality and teachers’ motivational practice in predicting language learning motivation and self-efficacy. Results reveal that while personality variables demonstrated large effect sizes for motivational orientations, teacher practice variables evidenced large effect sizes for language learning self-efficacy. Implications are discussed for theorization of language learning motivation and for teaching practice, with a particular emphasis on language teacher education. © The Author(s) 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered learning and teaching approaches in higher education. Research concerning COVID-19 revealed inconsistent results on student engagement, which is a robust predictor of academic performance in higher education. This exploratory study examines the relationship between grit and student engagement in the pandemic through the mediating role of negotiable fate. Although previous research demonstrated that grit could positively predict student engagement, there have been inconsistent findings between the two sub-factors of grit: consistency of interest (grit-CI) and perseverance of effort (grit-PE). Besides, there is a lack of theoretical explanation of the mechanism between grit and engagement. The adaptation of negotiable fate seeks to provide one of the pathways of how grit would be associated with student engagement. To examine these hypotheses, the present study recruited 339 undergraduate students from two universities in Hong Kong to participate in an online survey. The results showed that grit, grit-PE, and negotiable fate positively correlate with student engagement, but the path of grit-CI did not reveal any significant results. After accounting for the mediating effect of negotiable fate, grit-PE still positively correlates with student engagement, suggesting a partial mediation model. This study provides empirical evidence that grit positively predicts student engagement with the mediation of negotiable fate. However, only grit-PE was positively associated with other variables, while grit-CI did not reveal any significant predictions. The present study (1) extends the understanding of the mechanism between grit and student engagement and (2) explores the mediating role of negotiable fate in this relationship in the higher education context. Theoretical and practical implications of this mediation model among grit, negotiable fate, and student engagement were discussed. Copyright © 2023 SAGE Publications.

There is evidence showing that the triarchic model of grit and its dimensions (i.e., "perseverance of effort," "consistency of interests," and "adaptability to situations") predict engagement and well-being outcomes in high school and undergraduate students during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. However, there has been limited research on how this model of grit relates to engagement and optimal psychological outcomes in primary school students. This research investigates the association of grit's dimensions with academic engagement in math and science as well as well-being outcomes (i.e., positive emotions, negative emotions, and flourishing) in primary school students. Participants were primary school students (M[subscript age] = 10.42; SD[subscript age] = 1.26) from Hong Kong (n = 279) and Macau (n = 124). Results showed that "perseverance of effort" positively predicted cognitive and behavioral engagement in math as well as positive emotions even after controlling for demographic covariates (i.e., age, gender, setting, and year level), conscientiousness, and achievement goal orientations. "Adaptability to situations" positively predicted cognitive and social engagement in math and flourishing. "Consistency of interests" negatively predicted both cognitive engagement in science and negative emotions. Indeed, this study indicates that "perseverance" and "adaptability" may facilitate children's positive academic and psychological functioning during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. Copyright © 2023 SAGE Publications.

Though well-being problems are prevalent among PhD students, the contextual antecedents and underlying mechanisms behind these problems remain underexplored. The aim of this study was to explore whether and how the research environment affects the well-being of PhD students through their motivation. Self-determination theory was used as the theoretical framework in order to understand how the research environment plays a role in PhD students’ well-being. Students’ autonomous and controlled motivation was posited as mechanisms linking the research environment to well-being. PhD students (n = 2578) from eight Hong Kong government-funded universities were recruited. Results revealed various dimensions of the research environment including process and assessment, culture, and skills development that had distinctive connections with students’ motivation and their well-being. Furthermore, students’ motivation significantly mediated the relationships between the research environment and their well-being. This study provides theoretical implications for increasing awareness of the factors and mechanisms that support or undermine PhD students’ well-being. It also has functional suggestions for educators and administrators interested in enhancing PhD students’ motivation and well-being. Copyright © 2023 HERDSA.

Within the context of the broad application of online teaching and learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, this chapter aims to explore two questions: What are the well-being challenges for Hong Kong university students in online learning during the pandemic? And what are university students’ responses to these challenges? This chapter is based on a quantitative analysis of the well-being-related survey data collected from 1227 Hong Kong university students. From the perspective of well-being, this chapter finds that the sudden transformation to online learning has brought many issues related to Hong Kong university students’ physical (like eye fatigue) and psychological (like increased stress) status. These issues have been augmented by the compact living situation of some university students from low-income families in Hong Kong. This chapter proposes that higher education institutions and instructors should ensure students’ physical and psychological well-being through course restructuring (e.g., scheduling frequent breaks and applying interactive tools to increase student engagement) and relevant professional development programs for instructors (e.g., online platform training and online course design and delivery). Copyright © 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.