The importance of social interaction in a community of practice for promoting effective teacher learning is well established (Johnson & Golombek, ; Lave & Wenger, ). Research outlines the challenges language teachers experience in transitioning between teacher education programmes and the classroom, particularly regarding the theory-practice nexus, and emphasizes the professional community's key role in providing mentoring and support. In this regard, language teachers' experiences in transitioning from theoretically oriented language education master's programmes to the language classroom are underresearched. This study reports data gathered from 21 mainland Chinese participants transitioning from master's programmes in three locations (Hong Kong, Scotland, and China) to language classrooms in China. In line with other research on teacher education programmes, this study's findings suggest interesting common experiences among these new teachers regardless of the context where their studies took place, including a sense of isolation, a "sink-or-swim" phenomenon leading to the abandonment of theoretically grounded pedagogical beliefs in exchange for adherence to "safe" practice, confusion regarding the relationship between learning on university programmes and the practice of teaching, and weak self-efficacy as transitioning teachers face internal and external pressures. Implications and consequences are discussed in the context of the theory-practice nexus.
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Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyze the complex, intricate relationships between the central (intended) curriculum, teachers’ perceived curriculums, and the enacted/assessed curriculum in classroom contexts. To do this, the authors have used Hong Kong’s new core senior-secondary liberal studies (LS) curriculum as a case study, with a special focus on its key pedagogical component – inquiry teaching/learning. Design/methodology/approach: This study’s objects are two teachers (from two local schools), each with a LS teacher’s education. Documentary analysis, lesson observation, and focus interviews were used to triangulate data for interpretation and analysis. Findings: The findings illuminate: how LS teachers’ perceptions of inquiry teaching/learning relate to and align with the advocacy embodied in the intended curriculum, the relationships between teachers’ perceptions and practices of inquiry learning and teaching, and how this aspect of the intended curriculum reform can be made more relevant to the classroom context. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the under-researched area of curriculum gaps and (mis)alignments in Hong Kong’s LS curriculum reform.
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Background: Almost three decades have passed since the Grunwald Declaration on Media Education was issued by the representatives of 19 nations at UNESCO’s International Symposium on Media Education in Germany (UNESCO 1982). Cycles of information revolution and education reform over this period have led to significant changes in the sectors of media and education. The new media environment has seen the rise of “prosumers” who contribute to the proliferation of “user-generated content”. In the education sector, policy makers have proposed various reforms to address the ills of the present schooling system, and learning theories have developed from behaviorism and cognitivism to social constructionism. Communication technologies now provide a more enabling environment for audiences to engage in media prosumption, and the shift in focus toward knowledge construction highlights the importance of learning motivation. With such dramatic changes on both sides, it is pertinent to examine how media education practices will be affected.
Aims: Armed with the same goal and a belief in the potential of a pedagogy of inquiry, this study started with the basic “ingredient” in any inquiry: the question. The aim was to determine what questions learners would most want to ask when assigned to conduct an independent inquiry study about a media issue.
Method: A self-administered semi-structured questionnaire on media use was distributed to 649 sixth-formers in 11 secondary schools in Hong Kong between December 2008 and February 2009.
Results: The findings identified a general concern about media ethics among young people, but also their inadequacy in the ability to formulate inquiry questions.
Conclusion: These findings have significant implications for both the media and education sectors. For the media sector, the credibility crisis has become an issue that requires substantial and serious attention; whilst educators must carefully consider the limits of inquiry learning