The purpose of the study is to construct and validate a Chinese self-regulated learning (SRL)-based reading instruction questionnaire (CSRIQ) and to examine the relationship between Chinese reading instruction and Hong Kong students' reading development from the SRL perspective. A total of 339 Grade 10 students completed the initial CSRIQ in Study 1. Exploratory factor analysis and reliability analyses were used to assess the psychometric quality of the questionnaire, and the original CSRIQ subscales were then revised. Study 2 comprised 1,121 Grade 10 students. The factor structure of the revised CSRIQ was supported by the findings of confirmatory factor analysis. The findings of structural equation modelling indicated significant relations between SRL-based instruction and various reading-related variables. Among the four aspects of instruction, teacher support was the most positive factor facilitating Chinese students' reading development, whereas student autonomy seemed less favourable. Cultural and curricula factors affecting Chinese reading instruction in Hong Kong were discussed.
[Copyright of Educational Research & Evaluation is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13803611.2012.689730]

Partial fraction decomposition is a useful technique often taught at senior secondary or undergraduate levels to handle integrations, inverse Laplace transforms or linear ordinary differential equations, etc. In recent years, an improved Heaviside's approach to partial fraction decomposition was introduced and developed by the author. An important feature of this approach is that there is no need to solve a system of linear equations or to use differentiations to find the unknown coefficients of the partial fractions. In order to study its potential application in mathematics education at the undergraduate level, a pilot study of tryout at the Hong Kong Institute of Education has been conducted. The data are collected via quizzes, questionnaires and face-to-face interviews. In this article, the results and implications will be discussed. In general, according to the responses and feedbacks from the instructors and students concerned, the improved Heaviside approach is suitable to be introduced at the undergraduate level, as an alternative to the method of undetermined coefficients described in common undergraduate mathematics textbooks.
[Copyright of International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology is the property of Taylor & Francis. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0020739X.2012.662292]

The main objective of this paper is to explore how two different intervention programmes that were based on Dörnyei's L2 Motivational Self System succeeded in motivating Chinese university students to learn English by enhancing their vision of their Ideal L2 Self. One was a voluntary programme at a university in England, whereas the other was conducted within a compulsory credit-bearing English course at a university in Hong Kong. In spite of the differences between the two programmes, including the design of the interventions, the tasks employed, the length of the programmes and the types of students who participated in the study, the findings revealed that both programmes were effective in motivating the participants to learn English and increasing their linguistic self-confidence through strengthening their vision of their Ideal L2 Self, and making their goals clearer and more specific. Lessons learned from the two pioneering programmes and recommendations for future similar programmes will be discussed.
[Copyright of Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2011.614693]

The purpose of this study is to provide a better understanding of how instructional leadership responsibilities are distributed in International Baccalaureate (IB) schools in East Asia. Case studies were conducted in five international schools located in Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and China. These schools were selected on the basis of location in East Asia, the offering of the full continuum of the IB's three programs, and evidence of prior academic success. In total, 68 teachers and administrators and 25 students were interviewed. Qualitative analysis of the interview data was conducted using pattern coding. Three broad instructional leadership practices were identified: curriculum articulation, cross-program activities, and strategic staffing. These appeared to enhance curriculum consistency and coherence across the three IB programs, a problem that had been identified in full-continuum IB schools. The qualitative data suggested that distributed instructional leadership forged and sustained professional interactions among staff across programs and organizational units. IB schools globally are often structurally separated into two or three organizational units (e.g., primary, middle, high school). These units operate IB programs that, despite their common origin and international philosophy, employ distinct pedagogical and curricular approaches. The findings reinforce the importance of acting intentionally to distribute responsibilities for instructional leadership widely throughout the school. They also support the assertion that international schools offer a unique and fruitful context for studying distributed instructional leadership.
[Copyright of Educational Administration Quarterly is the property of Corwin Press, Inc. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0013161X11436271]