The international literature reflects the significance of transition services for postschool outcomes of students with disabilities. In 2008, the Hong Kong Government introduced a policy to support students with disabilities, especially those with specific learning difficulties (SLD), to transition to postschool life in inclusive settings. This article focuses on the status of policy implementation in Hong Kong and its link to the higher education participation of students with SLD. Analyses are based on expectations of policymakers for school practices in transition services, parental experiences, and a discussion forum involving postsecondary students with SLD, advocacy groups, and university student affair personnel. Findings reveal a lack of expectation for implementation and school accountability from policymakers, an extremely low participation rate of students with SLD in higher education, a slow development of support systems in higher education, and the significant role played by an advocacy group on moving the higher education support forward in the absence of a policy mandate. By focusing on the close relationship between transition services and postsecondary outcomes, the use of legislation for disability policies to ensure the provision of transition services and the role of self and external advocacy to lobby for such legislation are recommended and discussed.
[Copyright of Australasian Journal of Special Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jse.2013.4]

To describe inclusive practices in Hong Kong schools, the author presents the current state of educating children and youth with disabilities in Hong Kong schools. The article also highlights specific strategies in the inclusive educational settings that promote holistic learning and development for children in the region. Implications for other countries are also discussed.
[Copyright of Preventing School Failure is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1045988X.2013.780232]

In this paper the authors employ a case study approach to investigate the transition process for a student with special educational needs from a Hong Kong subsidised primary school into a secondary school. An analysis of transcripts from individual and focus group interviews with the student, his parents, his 4 primary teachers and his 10 secondary teachers, as well as government documents and notes of school observations, indicated that a lack of formal procedures for supporting a student's transition can result in a range of significant difficulties. The discussion focuses on the urgent need to develop strategic guidelines at a systemic level within Hong Kong, with a much greater focus on a collaborative school approach rather than the current overreliance on the parents to lead this process.
[Copyright of Australasian Journal of Special Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jse.2013.8]

This paper reports the results of an international study examining preservice teacher reports of teaching self-efficacy for inclusive education; principally focusing on the explanatory relationship between a scale designed to measure teaching self-efficacy in this area and key demographic variables within Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, and Indonesia. The study builds on earlier work by this research team on attitudes towards inclusion and offers a more comprehensive picture of preservice teachers' preparedness to teach in inclusive classrooms. Data were collected from 380 preservice teachers in four countries. Results indicated that strong international differences existed. Other factors impacting responses regarding teaching self-efficacy for inclusion include the type of teacher preparation program offered by the institution; variations in the level of knowledge about inclusion law and policy; previous interactions with people with disabilities; confidence levels in teaching people with disabilities; and, prior teaching experience and training in working with students with disabilities. Implications for ongoing development of international teacher preparation programs are discussed within the context of improving self-efficacy.
[Copyright of Australian Journal of Teacher Education is the property of School of Education, Edith Cowan University. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2013v38n1.10]

This paper attempts to argue that using market forces to raise education standards casts doubts to quality education, although this is seemingly an international trend, for such practice presents challenges to many issues such as equity. Using Hong Kong as a case, the paper analyses the practices of quality school education by focusing in particular on the difficulties that newly arrived children encounter. A multi-level framework is employed to critically examine the current government policy on quality education with reference to nine schools from five levels: individual student, institutional, government, societal and professional learning community. Discrepancies between policy goals and school practices are highlighted. The paper then addresses options for improvement and consideration if quality education is to be the hallmark of Hong Kong schooling.
[Copyright of International Journal of Inclusive Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2010.481430]

Achieving equality remains a major challenge in schools globally. In Hong Kong, the current education policy has a core value that all students have the right to learn. Policy-makers and school personnel are struggling to find ways of catering for diverse learning needs in schools. Early in 2006, a self-initiated inclusive educational project has linked one mainstream school and a special school. Their project can be seen as a pioneer in the field of education, for it provides concrete recommendations to other education practitioners on initiating whole-school participation and joint-school partnerships, integrating such collaborations into the culture of the school, and encouraging teachers committed to student voice and engagement. This article records the qualitative case study comprising the teachers' self reports to demonstrate how teachers re-shaped their perceptions, beliefs and behaviours as they developed and implemented a school-based inclusion project. It is expected that the findings of this study will assist educators to further understand present challenges in the school system regarding managing diversity and attaining inclusive education goals. In particular, local schools are now facing the challenge to implement inclusive education.
[Copyright of International Journal of Inclusive Education is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2010.495792]