There has been an increasing number of calls to apply new technologies to learning contexts for STEM education. However, limited studies have explored the role of technology in bridging teachers and children to create STEM knowledge collaboratively. Therefore, early childhood teachers encounter challenges integrating digital technologies to support children’s STEM learning. The challenges include developing effective and innovative scaffolding strategies to incorporate digital technology and visualize the processes of using technologies in children’s STEM knowledge building. This study reports on an in-depth exploratory case study from a kindergarten classroom in Hong Kong, exemplifying a new approach to integrating digital technologies within spatialized STEM learning. The case selected continuity learning episodes from a spatially directed STEM learning unit on making a safe traffic city. Under digital technology-integrated scaffolding, the teacher and children co-created a traffic symbolic system by designing symbols of landmarks, developing and applying spatial language, making maps and traffic games with rules. The thematic analysis was adopted to analyze the teachers’ STEM activity plans and reflective reports. The finding indicated that the process through which the teacher and children collaboratively created STEM knowledge via technology-integrated scaffolding involved recalling spontaneous understanding about everyday concepts, exploring ideas in authentic contexts, sorting and organizing their collected information, and identifying and correlating abstract concepts with corresponding everyday practices. The children required two levels of technology-integrated scaffolding strategies to engage in STEM knowledge collaborative creation: scaffolding for technology using and scaffolding through use of technology. Three novel roles of technology emerged that transform learning from knowledge delivery to collaborative creation in inquiries STEM tasks for young children

Kindergarten teachers’ performance at work has important implications for the quality of early childhood education and the development of children. Therefore, promoting teachers’ work performance is of interest to kindergarten managers and policymakers. Evidence suggests that professional development opportunities may play an important role in understanding employees’ work performance. However, the possible mechanism underlying the relationship between professional development opportunities and work performance remains underexplored, especially among kindergarten teachers. This cross-sectional study examined whether professional commitment and work engagement mediated the association of professional development opportunities with work performance among Chinese kindergarten teachers. Online questionnaire data were collected from 336 kindergarten teachers working in Hong Kong, China (mean age = 31.6 years; 86% of them were women). Kindergarten teachers rated the availability of professional development opportunities and their work performance. They also rated their professional commitment (indicated by affective, continuance, and normative commitment) and work engagement (indicated by vigor, dedication, and absorption). Structural equational modeling revealed that both professional commitment and work engagement uniquely mediated the association between professional development opportunities and work performance. The findings illustrated how professional development opportunities may enhance work performance by motivating teachers at the affective/cognitive and the behavioral levels. The findings also pointed to the potential utility of supporting the work performance of kindergarten teachers by providing them with ample professional development opportunities and promoting their professional commitment and work engagement. Copyright © 2025 by the authors.

The expansion of English medium instruction (EMI) in higher education has generated significant scholarly interest, resulting in an increasing body of research across different contexts. This bibliometric study examines 1522 publications in the Scopus database to explore the intellectual, conceptual, and social structure of the EMI literature in higher education. Findings revealed substantial growth in publications and citations between 1974 and 2024, showing a notable increase in productivity after 2018. Most cited authors focus on EMI within their affiliated country, but some affiliated with British universities have made global contributions. The field exhibits global coverage, albeit with strong dominance by China, Spain, the UK, Australia, and Hong Kong, as well as limited representation from African nations, barring South Africa. EMI networks are primarily driven by authors’ current and past institutional affiliations as well as geographical proximity, with the UK, Spain, and China emerging as leaders in these networks. The most productive journals focus on multilingualism, bilingualism, language policy, teaching, and learning while also encompassing higher education and multidisciplinary areas. Key topics signal a shift towards translanguaging and classroom interaction. Under-researched areas include (post)colonialism and EMI implementation. These findings provide a comprehensive insight into the evolving landscape of EMI research and potential future directions. Copyright ©2024 MDPI.

The way in which different cities teach children to read in Chinese may have an impact on the skills they later utilize to acquire English word reading skills. This study examined the relative contributions of several cognitive–linguistic measures to English word reading for Chinese students learning English as a second language in two Chinese cities, one whose school system teaches Pinyin (Beijing) and one whose school system does not teach Pinyin (Hong Kong). Students in grades 2–3 completed measures on Chinese morphological awareness (MA), Chinese phonological awareness (PA), Pinyin writing, and English word reading. In the Beijing group, it was found that PA (β = 0.334, p < 0.01) and Pinyin (β = 0.257,p < 0.05) were significant predictors of English word reading. In contrast, in the Hong Kong group, only MA (β = 0.263, p < 0.05) was found to be a significant predictor of English word reading. The difference in predictors could be due to the availability of a phonological tool (Pinyin) for the Beijing students when learning Chinese, while the Hong Kong group may have relied more heavily on learning using MA and rote memory techniques. Overall, the results from this study provide data supporting the benefits of having a phonological tool like Pinyin for Chinese children when learning to read in English. Copyright ©2024 MDPI.

Schools in Hong Kong are encouraged to engage students in learning activities to strengthen moral and values education. The use of fairy tales in drama teaching—in this case, Mr. Fox—is an approach to learning that can present opportunities to positively engage students in a range of issues, such as moral and value education. The aim of this research was to enhance moral and values education by taking an autoethnographic approach to exploring my experiences of using and adapting a Western fairy tale with local student teachers learning to teach drama as part of their Master of Education degree at a university in Hong Kong. The use of various narrative genres to engage in the process of self-dialogue emerged as an important source for developing understandings of teaching and learning. Through this reflective process, I gained insights into my own teaching and the challenges and benefits of using fairy tales and structured drama in moral and value education. This research also revealed that fairy tales, as cultural treasures passed down through generations, may hold immense value as a resource for personal enjoyment, drama teaching, and academic exploration. Copyright ©2024 MDPI.

Parents play a crucial role in facilitating their children's participation in extracurricular music activities. Guided by the framework of concerted cultivation, this survey study conducted with Hong Kong parents investigates (1) the types of extracurricular music activities in which their three- to eight-year-old children participate, (2) the importance parents attribute to music education and its correlation with key demographic factors, and (3) the predictive relationship between the importance parents attribute to music education and their children's music participation. A self-designed survey was completed by 430 parents. Descriptive statistics, correlation, and binary logistic regression were conducted. Children's participation rate in extracurricular music activities was found to be low. While younger children tended to engage in collaborative and unstructured activities, older children participated more in individual and guided activities. The importance attributed by parents to music education was relatively high and correlated with their background and family demographics. The higher the parents rated the importance of music education, the more likely they were to have signed up or intended to sign up their children for music activities. This study offers insights into children's extracurricular music participation, highlights parental roles in children's music education, and underscores the necessity of educating parents about the importance of music education. Copyright ©2025 MDPI.

The advent of generative artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed information acquisition and utilization in higher education academic writing. This study fills the empirical research gap by examining how university students use generative AI tools for digital academic writing. The study investigates the experiences of 140 undergraduates enrolled in an ‘Introduction to Linguistics’ course at a university in Hong Kong employing generative AI applications, such as ChatGPT3.5 and the AI Image Generation feature in Padlet, for a collaborative multimedia Wikibook project spanning 13 weeks. The mixed-method approach included analyzing AI-generated content integration within 29 multimedia-enhanced Wikibook chapters, development logs with ChatGPT interactions, the assimilation of AI-generated content into drafts, and collaborative composition dynamics. Additionally, a survey with 98 student responses assessed perceptions regarding AI efficacy in academic writing support. Key findings reveal the multifaceted role of ChatGPT in shaping discourse, offering linguistic tools, and structuring information. The students recognized the advantages of leveraging AI tools, rapidly acclimating to their strengths and limitations through practical engagement. The outcomes of this research offer insights into students’ effective utilization of AI-generated content and suggest potential directions for incorporating generative AI tools into academic writing pedagogy. Copyright © 2024 by the authors.

Online professional development (PD) can be a sustainable and easily scalable alternative to provide early childhood teachers with training opportunities. However, there is limited research on teachers’ levels of satisfaction and engagement in online PD initiatives. Understanding teachers’ levels of satisfaction and engagement is crucial, as these may influence the effectiveness of online PD in benefiting teachers and ultimately young children. This study aimed to examine Hong Kong kindergarten teachers’ satisfaction and engagement in a music-and-movement (M&M) online PD course. This study involved 56 participants who received an 11-week online PD course. Questionnaires were administered after course completion. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-tests. Participants had high levels of satisfaction with the course, particularly those with no or some M&M background, who were more satisfied with the course content and instruction. Participants had moderate-to-high levels of engagement in the course, particularly those with no or some M&M background, who were more emotionally engaged. We conclude that sustainable and easily scalable online PD initiatives can result in high levels of satisfaction and engagement among kindergarten teachers, especially those with limited M&M background. This study supports the idea that online PD can be responsive to teachers’ needs and preferences. Copyright © 2024 by the authors.

Fundamental movement skills (FMSs) are essential building blocks for children’s physical development and future participation in physical activities. While early childhood curriculum frameworks recognize the importance of teaching FMSs, little research has been conducted to explore actual teaching practices in center-based programs and their variations across different grade levels. The goals of this study were to investigate (1) the frequency of a variety of FMSs in the physical activities conducted by Hong Kong kindergarten teachers, (2) the association among these FMSs based on the frequency of use in the classroom, and (3) potential differences in FMSs across the three grade levels of kindergarten education in Hong Kong. The participants were 526 kindergarten teachers. Descriptive statistics, principal component analysis, and parametric statistical techniques (e.g., one-way ANOVA) were employed to analyze their responses to a survey, in which we asked teachers to report the frequency with which FMSs are involved in their classroom physical activities. Overall, we found that the participants practiced an imbalanced set of FMSs in classrooms. K3 teachers were found to incorporate a wider variety of FMSs into their physical activities compared to K1 and K2 teachers. Through principal component analysis, seven components of activities were identified. K3 teachers were found to implement more activities involving springing, object manipulation, uneven locomotor movements, and agility and coordination. We concluded that there is a need to provide structured opportunities for teachers to better facilitate children’s FMS acquisition. Offering more explicit guidelines and further professional development for teachers is crucial to enhancing this situation. Copyright © 2024 by the authors.

In Hong Kong, quality assessors from the Education Bureau (EDB) visit kindergartens to conduct Quality Review (QR) assessments. Their written reports, therefore, reflect the official local perspective of quality kindergarten education. We conducted a content analysis of 323 QR reports focusing on the positive and negative feedback and recommendations for improvement regarding music education. Two coding schemes were developed using an inductive approach. High inter-reliability was obtained. The most frequently mentioned positive feedback codes were related to sufficient exposure to music and enjoyable musical learning experiences. In contrast, there were negative feedback codes pointing out that children’s musical exposure was insufficient at Kindergarten 3 (children aged 5–6 years), and some musical activities were poorly prepared and/or designed. Children’s music learning outcomes were rarely mentioned in the reports. The analyses indicate that the local understanding of kindergarten music education strongly emphasizes exposing children to enjoyable musical activities, with a lower focus on the nature and quality of musical learning. We conclude that the QR reports reflect a teacher-centric view of music education. Findings may inform curriculum designers and teacher educators about EDB’s expectations in the area of music education. Future research should explore the perspectives of other kindergarten stakeholders such as teachers, principals, and teacher educators. Copyright © 2024 by the authors.