Conceptions of learning and preferred learning approaches have been suggested to vary cross-culturally. The extent to which learning is 'student-centred' or 'teacher-centred' also appears subject to cultural variation. This has led some to conclude that particular cultures exhibit learning preferences more suited to distance learning than do other cultures. This article examines the strategies that students from varying cultural backgrounds use to manage the experience of the isolation of distance learning. Two distinct isolation experiences emerge that reflect differences in the perceptions of the student-teacher relationship. These, it is argued, can be classified as a 'surrogate teacher' model in the Asian cultures of Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia and a 'student identity' model in Europe.
[Copyright of Open Learning is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0268051032000131035]

This paper describes the moves towards greater inclusion in the Hong Kong education system and the problems that have arisen from those moves. It then describes the introduction of an adapted version of the Index for Inclusion, called the Indicators for Inclusion in Hong Kong, in order to stimulate greater progress. As the adapted Hong Kong Indicators for Inclusion are developed in a unique education culture and based on a particular notion of inclusion, it may be of interest to international readers to see the impact of culture differences in shaping the Indicators. Further, the Hong Kong Indicators for Inclusion are connected with school self‐evaluation and performance standards. The interaction between inclusion and school evaluation will be explored. The paper questions the use of the indicator system to drive inclusion in Hong Kong and the assumptions regarding the capacity of schools for self‐review.
[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/10.1080/13603110500430674]