This paper focuses on a controversial issue in the field of education in Hong Kong, namely, the effect of the initiatives of School Self-evaluation (SSE) and External School Review (ESR) on school improvement (SI), under the current school-based management reform, It made use of questionnaires and case study in an attempt to give a preliminary account on whether such initiatives contribute to school improvement arid in what ways it did. There is a presumption that the effectiveness of SSE/ESR in facilitating school improvement actually pertains to how far the inspected schools can develop or sustain a learning culture among school personnel. Findings indicate that teachers in the school have a positive attitude towards SSEIESR, and SSE/ESR fosters organizational learning which ultimately contributes to school improvement and teacher development.

This paper is to share the experience gained during deployment of smart card technology to enhance campus service of the Hong Kong Institute of Education. The Institute has been issuing smart card based identity cards (IEdSmart) to all its teaching and administrative staff, students, and other campus users for a few years. Surrounding the technology, many applications were deployed and planned to enhance its campus services, and facilitated its teaching and researching quality. They include access to both physical properties as well as information in its computer network, e-payment services toward a cashless campus, rooms and facilities management, etc. This paper reports the objectives, applications deployed and planned, difficulties encountered and resolved, benefits realized, and the future opportunities available to further enhance the campus services.

The author has helped to develop IT educational projects in various departments at the tertiary level for the last three years, and is alarmed by the many technological writings on the benefits of IT in education, which arguments look suspiciously simplistic and all pervasive. The author also witnessed the frustrations of teachers who are often disempowered under the impact of the IT education reform. This paper is a result of such concern and dissatisfaction of the seemingly uncritical and narrow approach in theorizing and implementing IT in education. It is hoped that by offering a more in-depth inquiry of the subject, that researchers and education professionals alike can take a holistic approach towards their work in teaching and learning with or without IT

This paper begins by describing the impact of computer technology on the student's thinking and learning. It gives a brief survey of the development of information technology in education in different parts of the world, including the fiveyear strategy (1998-2003) for the use of IT for learning in Hong Kong. The paper focuses on evaluating the utilization of IT in arts education in Hong Kong. Through a questionnaire survey of primary and secondary school teachers, it investigates several aspects of using information technology in art and music teaching for the five years after its implementation: the teaching and learning of art and music; lesson preparation and student assessment; student self-learning, teachers' perspectives and their professional needs when utilizing IT in teaching the arts. The findings reveal that teachers have a very positive view of IT, believing that it motivates student interest and facilitates arts teaching and learning. However, provision and funding for it are not satisfactory, and this creates problems and hinders progress. A concerted effort is needed from the various parties involved, in order that IT can be properly utilized to achieve fully its potential impact on student learning.

The majority of on-line lectures are composed of one or more of the following three components: video, audio and text. Are all three components necessary? If not, which combination is the best for on-line course delivery? When it comes to designing an on-line course, several important factors must be taken into account: the efficiency of the available network, the shooting of classroom videos, and the formats of the deliverables. In this article, I will discuss the essentiality of each of these three deliverable components for on-line course delivery and how to construct them effectively. The article aims to offer a practical solution on the development of online courses for efficient web-delivery.

In 2003, Hong Kong was one of the places in the world seriously suffering from the outbreak of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). From March to April, schools were instructed to suspend classes to help prevent the spread of the disease. During the class suspension period, students were advised to stay home and they could continue their study through different distance education media. Electronic learning via the Internet played an important role in this period. However, without face-to-face contact among students and teachers, electronic learning would be very dry and boring. In addition, students might need some psychosocial assistance and support in this difficult period. Mentoring in electronic form is suitable for the exchange of both information and morale support.