Research Findings: This study explored the moderating effect of child competence in independent learning in relations between the amount of learning assignment, length of online learning, and parent satisfaction with children's online learning during COVID-19 imposed class suspension. The data came from an online survey conducted in Hong Kong in February 2020. The respondents were parents (N = 3381, 92.4% mothers) of primary school grades 1–6 students (Primary 1: 801, 24.1%; Primary 2: 739, 22.3%; Primary 3: 578, 17.4%; Primary 4: 547, 16.5%; Primary 5: 406, 12.2%; Primary 6: 250, 7.5%, 60 missing) who engaged in online learning during class suspension. The findings showed that both the length of online learning and the amount of assignments were related to parents' satisfaction, but these relations were qualified by the children's competence. Positive relations were found only among children who were rated as more competent in engaging in online learning independently. Practice or Policy: Together, the findings suggest that in designing online learning, consideration of children's ability to complete such learning independently will help increase parents' satisfaction. Copyright © 2021 Routledge.

This study explored parents' views on kindergarten and primary school students' distance learning experience and support needed as well as the amount of time children spend on screen media at home during COVID-19 class suspension. Between February 19 and 22, 2020, three weeks after classes were suspended in Hong Kong, responses from 6,702 parents (93% mothers) of kindergarten students and primary school students were collected via an online survey. Research Findings: Three major findings emerged: (a) Most children encountered difficulties in completing distance learning tasks at home, with major difficulties being children's lack of learning interests and home environment related limitations. Most children were not able to complete the learning tasks independently; (b) More parents without online learning were dissatisfied with distance learning during class suspension than those with online learning. Parents wanted more interactive online learning to facilitate children's learning during class suspension and desired better learning support from schools, flexible work arrangements, and government subsidies; (c) There was a high usage of electronic devices without parental mediation during class suspension. Practice or Policy: Together, the findings have important policy and pedagogical implications for delivering a distance learning curriculum and working with families during class suspension. The findings also suggest the need for schools to work on a balance of types of learning during class suspension by introducing diversified on- and off-line activities as well as supporting parents in navigating children's screen time. Copyright © 2021 Routledge.

Research Findings: The objective of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness of Incredible Years Basic Parent Training (IYPT Basic) in a community clinic setting in Hong Kong. IYPT Basic is a Western program developed to promote children’s academic, social, and emotional regulation skills and to reduce conduct problems among typically developing children. The program has not been tested in non-Western cultures, where the challenges for parents of children with developmental disabilities can be different. The IYPT Basic was adapted slightly to accommodate cultural characteristics in Hong Kong. Parents of 52 preschoolers with developmental disabilities were randomly assigned to either the IYPT Basic or a waitlist control. Parent and child dyads were assessed before and after the 12-week intervention/waitlist period via self-reports and spouse/kin reports and videotape coding by observers blind to the intervention/waitlist status. Significant intervention benefits included (a) increase in positive and reciprocal parent -child interaction, (b) reduction in parental stress, and (c) decrease in oppositional behavior among the children. The parents’ attendance, satisfaction, and homework compliance was high. Practice or Policy: IYPT Basic, when implemented with cultural sensitivity, can be effective for —and well received by—Chinese parents of preschoolers with developmental disabilities in a community setting.
[Copyright of Early Education & Development is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2018.1461987]

Research Findings: In this study, 88 kindergartners received special training in lexical compounding, homophone awareness, or phonological awareness or were assigned to a control condition over a period of approximately 2 months, with 20-min lessons administered twice per week. Chinese word reading improved significantly more in the lexical compounding group as compared to the other groups. Vocabulary knowledge also showed a trend toward improvement in this group (p<.08) and improved significantly in the homophone group. Although phonological awareness improved most in the phonological awareness training group, this group showed no reading or vocabulary improvements relative to the other groups. Practice or Policy: The results underscore the importance of morphological awareness training for both word reading and vocabulary knowledge in young Chinese children.
[Copyright of Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2010.530478]

Research Findings: Western ideas and progressive pedagogies have been introduced to China (including Shenzhen), Hong Kong, and Singapore to replace traditional Chinese pedagogy. But these imported ideas are not congruent with traditional Chinese culture and thus have encountered resistance from Chinese teachers. The present study observed and analyzed 18 early childhood classrooms in the 3 localities and questioned the class teachers about their respective teaching practices to see how those ideas were actually turned into practice. Whole-class direct instruction was found to be the predominant Chinese pedagogical mode. This indicates that Chinese traditional pedagogy still dominated those Chinese preschool classrooms. Slight societal differences in classroom practice were also found, reflecting the spectrum of openness and Westernization of the 3 cities.
Practice or Policy: The findings suggest that people should adapt rather than adopt those pedagogical innovations developed in other sociocultural milieu, as different societies have different social, cultural, and educational traditions. Cultural appropriateness should be seriously considered when choosing the pedagogies to be adapted. Moreover, influences from the culture, language, teachers, parents, resources available, and the prevailing education system should also be taken into consideration when planning for pedagogical reforms.
[Copyright of Early Education & Development is the property of Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2010.536441]

Research Findings: The purpose of this study was to examine parenting style in the domain of emotion socialization through studying the relationships among parenting styles, emotion-related parental practices, and parental goals of Hong Kong-Chinese mothers. Data were collected from 189 Hong Kong-Chinese mothers of 6- to 8-year-old children. Hong Kong-Chinese mothers reported that among authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive parenting styles, they adopted an authoritative style most often and an authoritarian style least often. They valued both relational and individualistic emotional competence of their children as parental goals but regarded the former as more important than the latter. Structural equation modeling results indicated that parental goals mediated the influences of parenting styles on parental practices. Authoritative mothers who held individualistic emotional competence goals adopted different parental practices (a coaching or an emotion-encouraging approach) from those who held relational emotional competence goals. When mothers adopted authoritarian parenting and endorsed relational emotional competence as a parental goal, they responded to children's expression of emotions in a dismissing way.
Practice or Policy: Parenting styles play an overarching role in emotion socialization, influencing both parental practices and goals. The results imply that school personnel, counselors, or social workers should take into account parenting styles, parental goals, and cultural values of participants when they offer training programs to parents.
[Copyright of Early Education & Development is the property of Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Full article may be available at the publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10409280802541973]

Research Findings: Assessment and accountability have been given prominent attention in the field of education in recent decades. Educators have been debating what assessment is, how it is practiced in school, and how it is used for accountability purposes. A case study was conducted of the assessment practices in a Hong Kong preschool to understand the issues of assessment and accountability. This study investigates changes in assessment practices and explores implications for assessment and accountability. This research adopted various qualitative data collection methods, including interviews, site observations, collection of documents, and review of personal notes. The findings showed that there was a paradigm shift of assessment practice from an outcome-oriented approach to a process-oriented approach. Results revealed 4 major changes in the new assessment approach that involved the choice of assessment tools, the planning procedures, data collection methods, and new assessment activities. The major changes were built on the idea of assessment for learning and the strength of school capacity supporting self-improvement. The development of a culture of collaboration and professional learning communities helped to enhance teacher development and build school capacity.
Practice or Policy: This study urges the improvement of process-oriented assessment, school capacity, and the use of assessment data to understand the impacts of the new accountability system. The study supports a more balanced approach of combining school internal capacity and external systems to uphold school accountability and advocates the use of process-oriented assessment in early childhood education.
[Copyright of Early Education & Development is the property of Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Full article may be available at the publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10409281003638717]

Research Findings: This article describes research into leadership practice for school improvement in Hong Kong preschools at a time when there was a move toward increased accountability. Two schools were selected for study, both of which were rated as excellent in the quality assurance inspections of the Education Bureau. Leadership practice for school improvement and related factors were investigated from the perspectives of various school stakeholders.
Practice or Policy: The findings indicate that the 2 case study schools adopted different approaches to the process of change. One school principal delegated more to her subordinates and sought a radical change in the curriculum. In contrast, the other school principal imposed more restrictions on the exercise of authority in decision making and delegation and tended to follow the logic of a quick-fix approach. Overall, though the 2 schools adopted different approaches to curriculum change, the exercise of leadership in both schools was still highly centralized. The characteristics of leadership practice as perceived by various school stakeholders were different from the concepts of distributed leadership documented in the Western literature.
[Copyright of Early Education & Development is the property of Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Full article may be available at the publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10409280903582835]