Purpose: This study investigated the usefulness of various communication means for providing university study information with prospective students before and during the pandemic for three consecutive academic years. Design/methodology/approach: Students who had recently taken undergraduate program admission indicated how useful communication channels were in providing the information about university studying. Seven communication channels were examined: open/information day, admission talk, campus visit, education fair, admission website, social media and summer activities. The students were asked to complete an online survey at the beginning of an academic year. In the survey, they were asked to indicate the usefulness of each of the communication channels using a five-point Likert scale with the descriptors: 1 = not useful, 2 = slightly useful, 3 = somewhat useful, 4 = useful, 5 = very useful. If students did not have any usage experience with a communication channel, they were asked to choose "no experience." There were 1798, 1735 and 1961 students at a university in Hong Kong participating in the study in academic years 2019/20, 2020/21 and 2021/22, respectively. Findings: The pandemic has transformed the landscape of the university's ways of marketing channels to communicate with prospective students. The top useful channel of information for students during the pandemic was admission website, followed by social media and then open/information day. Before the pandemic, open/information day was the most useful channel of information for students and then admission website; the least useful one was social media channel. Significant differences were revealed in the usefulness rating on open/information day and social media channel among the three academic years. Originality/value: The findings facilitate educational managers to determine the appropriate marketing and recruitment strategies for connecting with prospective students under dynamic context in the era of

This study investigated the development of computational thinking (CT) in young children within the specific context of Hong Kong. The researchers utilized an unplugged digital arts activity to explore the CT knowledge exhibited by children and document their developmental trajectories. A sample of 23 children aged 3 to 6 years participated in an animation art workshop conducted in a Hong Kong kindergarten. The video data were recorded and analyzed in terms of content. Drawing on a three-dimensional framework combining powerful ideas for teaching coding, the observations and field notes revealed that children’s CT knowledge construction aligned with the CT conceptual framework. Notably, older children demonstrated more advanced competences and more complex cognitive structures in terms of the design process, representation, algorithms, modularity, sequences, connecting, choices of conduct, and utilization of hardware/software. These findings emphasize the importance of designing age-appropriate curricula that foster children’s CT skills through the animation art. Copyright © 2023 Taylor & Francis.

The article focuses on teacher-based materials development, which encourages teachers to create their own materials to align with the needs of their students. Topics include a case study in which a teacher in Hong Kong created a learning unit for her English as a Second Language (ESL) class, aimed at developing critical thinking, creativity, and cultural awareness; and the purposes of teacher-based materials design are to promote situational interest and affection in food culture. Copyright © 2023 Wiley-Blackwell.

This study explores the career concerns that confront mainland Chinese Master's students in Hong Kong, and identifies their needs for career support. Forty mainland Chinese students from a wide range of Master's programmes participated in semi-structured interviews, after which the qualitative data were subjected to phenomenological analysis. The results showed that most interviewees were uncertain about their career paths. The study contributes to the literature by applying the systems theory framework of career development to organize the various factors that give rise to career concerns into three systems: a) individual, b) social and c) environmental-societal. Four key aspects of the students' career support needs at the institutional level were also identified: information channels, relational networks, technical skills and practical experience. Based on the findings, we discuss the theoretical and practical implications for understanding the career concerns and meeting the needs of Master's students. Copyright © 2023 Taylor & Francis.

This study focuses on older participants’ experiences of and views on a lifelong learning program at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hong Kong. As many third age adults tend not to have the opportunity to receive tertiary education when they were young, this program aims to fulfil their dream of studying at a university and boost their self-esteem and self-confidence. Using qualitative research methods, this research was conducted after the MiniU program (supported by the Institute of Active Aging of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 32 participants after the program. While participants had acquired knowledge and experience of university life from the Mini-U program, they also reported concerns and difficulties with participation including difficulties in memorizing course content and financial difficulties. The program has offered a unique opportunity for enhancing participants’ interpersonal relationships and wellbeing. The research also further informs the development of creative lifelong learning programs aimed at improving the well-being of older people. Copyright © 2023 Taylor & Francis.

Purpose: This study aims to examine the impact of the transformation of an assessment on students' performance and perspectives in an English for Academic Purposes course in Hong Kong. The assessment was changed from the traditional pen-and-paper mode to an unproctored online mode. Design/methodology/approach: Using mixed methods, the research team analysed the differences between the assessment performances of those who took the course before the pandemic (n = 664) and those who took it during the pandemic (n = 702). Furthermore, focus group interviews were conducted with seven students regarding their perspectives on the unproctored assessment. Findings: The results revealed that, although there were no major differences in the overall grades of the two groups, students who were assessed online during the pandemic performed significantly better in terms of their English use. Nevertheless, the shift to online assessment had several negative effects on the students. Originality/value: Previous studies on unproctored online assessments (UOA) were concerned with potential learning quality issues, such as plagiarism and grade inflation. This study, however, provided empirical evidence that high-quality assessment delivery can be provided via UOA if the question types and assessment arrangements are carefully decided. Copyright © 2023 Emerald.

Despite research studies on TESOL materials and textbooks addressing a wide range of pedagogical issues as well as evaluation strategies, reference books for examination preparation have received little attention from TESOL researchers. This study reports an attempt to develop a checklist for evaluating the reference books for the examination for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE, the college entrance requirement for secondary school students in Hong Kong), with a particular focus on books for the English writing examination. The researchers acquired a total of 39 reference books on DSE English writing and examined them against the reports and documents of the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority as well as the Education Bureau. After identifying the most concerning issues in the reference books, the researchers developed a checklist for evaluating future reference books using the framework suggested by McGrath (2002), taking into account the Education Bureau's guidelines for local school textbook evaluation. The authors conclude by briefly discussing implications and how their findings could be shared with HKDSE candidates through engaging the Hong Kong government. Copyright © 2023 Wiley-Blackwell.

Undergraduate research (UR) is regarded as an impactful instructional practice, but implementing it in the curriculum is challenging. Faculty members' approaches to the design of UR are under-explored due to the scarcity of studies that situate practices in both the curricular contexts and the concept of the research-teaching nexus. This multiple-case study investigated faculty members' approaches to UR in four curricula in two research-intensive universities in Hong Kong. Document review and semi-structured interviews revealed five approaches to UR: project-based, process-based, lab-based, scenario-based, and research community-based approaches. Particularly, the scenario-based and research community-based approaches complemented the current typologies. Another contribution of this study is the identification of nuanced differences in the adoption of the approaches. Faculty members perceiving reciprocal research-teaching nexus at both departmental and personal levels, and viewing UR holistically, tended to connect students with their own research experiences. In contrast, those who only acknowledged the research-teaching nexus at a departmental level were unlikely to create such a connection. Meanwhile, concerns over curricular coherence and ethics were also discussed. The implications include creating a more transparent process of curriculum design and facilitating students' understanding of their contributions to the research community. It would also be useful to engage faculty members more fully in curriculum planning to enhance the coherence of students' research experiences. Copyright © 2023 Taylor & Francis.

Following the increasing use of online learning among academic institutions worldwide, this study examined the relationships between enjoyment of study, study engagement, learning performance, and informal learning. Based on the intrinsic motivation theory, enjoyment of study is posited to motivate students to engage in their studies and affects their learning performance. In this study, study engagement was used as a mediator between enjoyment of study, learning performance, and informal learning. Data were collected from 137 undergraduate students in a Hong Kong university who participated in online learning for an academic semester. The results indicated that enjoyment of study and study engagement were positively related to learning performance and informal learning. Study engagement partially and fully mediated the relationships of enjoyment of study with learning performance and informal learning, respectively. Theoretical and practical implications for enjoyment of study in online learning are discussed. Copyright © 2023 University of the West Indies Open Campus.

The extant literature on parental involvement in the university choice process sheds light on the positive impact of parents' social capital on enrolment. Little research captures the complex dynamics of parental social capital that might within certain sociocultural and economic contexts compound the effects on university choice and access. This study contributes insight to address this gap, from the context of Hong Kong. It administered a questionnaire survey to 139 students and examined the role of parental social capital in students' university aspirations. Moderated multiple regression analysis and simple slope analysis revealed that parent-student involvement – a main composite of parental social capital – weakened rather than strengthened the effect of parents' cultural capital on the students' educational aspirations. This study cautions us against a context-independent stance towards the value of parental social capital and warrants future research and policy work on how to optimise parental involvement in education. Copyright © 2023 Taylor & Francis.