The meanings and value of the arts and their impact on students’ learning have long been main areas of focus in arts education research. In Hong Kong, there are only a few studies discussing the impact of performing arts education on students’ learning, which leaves a gap in the overall understanding of performing arts education. This article reports on a study of performing arts education in Hong Kong. The participants of the study are students, teachers, principals and arts groups. A total of 28 focus group interviews were conducted with participants recruited from 25 primary schools, 26 secondary schools, one international school, nine tertiary institutions, five special schools and 20 arts groups. Although this study confirms the claims made by arts educators that performing arts education can promote students’ awareness of creative and critical thinking skills, change their behavior and attitudes, increase their socio-cultural awareness and benefit their all-round development, the stakeholders had different interpretations of the meaning and value of performing arts education. There appears to be a gap between arts groups and schools in the understanding of the fundamental purposes of performing arts education and the role that it should play in the school context. Copyright © 2022 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Transmitting traditional music for sustainability has been a common theme in global music education. Recently, the school systems of Hong Kong and Guangdong have been encouraged by governmental authorities to teach Cantonese opera aiming at enhancing the sustainability of the genre and promote a Chinese cultural identity within students. This paper details a survey of school music teachers working in Hong Kong and Guangdong examining the current state of Cantonese opera teaching in the schools of both regions and investigate how it is affected by teacher variables including their interest in Chinese opera, the confidence in teaching the subject, and their perceptions of their Chinese cultural identities. A total of 1,974 valid questionnaires were received and examined. Descriptive and inferential statistics including MANOVA and chi-square tests were used to analyze the data. Findings reveal that Cantonese opera teaching is limited in both regions. While teachers are modestly interested, confident, and knowledgeable about teaching the genre, there is a significant relationship between the music backgrounds of teachers and their interest in Cantonese opera. The article discusses the findings within the context of a historical predominance of Western music within music education curricula and wider societies. Implications for policy makers are proposed. Copyright © 2021 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

This longitudinal study (2001-09) of two Hong Kong secondary schools highlights six issues with an integrated arts curriculum: first, integration of knowledge and skills negatively precedes the integration of learners' construction of meaning; second, integration is perceived as challenging the profession's status; third, teachers are unaccustomed to co-teaching; fourth, teachers have little prior experience conceptualizing cross-discipline teaching and learning; fifth, Hong Kong's current systemwide education reform places arts integration as a relatively low priority; and sixth, because integrated arts curriculum implementation is not mandatory, the vagaries of individual school management create a plethora of integration approaches that confound the task of forging a common definition. Remedial recommendations include cascading "seed projects" to broaden teachers' views of integrated arts and teaching, facilitating supportive school timetabling, and sharing integrated learning outcomes in the individual schools.
[Copyright of Arts Education Policy Review is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10632913.2012.687339 ]

Educators in China are facing challenges as a tug-of-war between local culture and global influences in Chinese early childhood music educations plays out. By exploring the situations of Hong Kong and Nanjing, the authors demonstrate a wide gap between policy and practice. The top-down policy from government officials is based on global views of education. It cannot work without providing the necessary support for teachers, parents, and children based on an understanding of local cultural beliefs. Four factors need to be considered in bridging this gap. The aims of the policy must be appropriate; resources necessary should be available, capacity of the practitioners has to be adequate, and the local environment should be carefully considered.
[Copyright of Arts Education Policy Review is the property of Routledge . Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/AEPR.109.3.9-16]