International kindergartens, which offer an immersive dual-language (English and Chinese) environment, are popular among middle-class families in Hong Kong. The international learning and teaching environment is cultivated primarily by developing a diverse workforce, in which Chinese-speaking (Putonghua and/or Cantonese) teachers with local training or from mainland China generally work with their English-speaking counterparts from overseas in the same classroom. Such heterogeneity has complicated the already challenging concept of collaborative teaching. This article presents a case study of the collaborative teaching practice in a trilingual international kindergarten which had been established for over 50 years. Through in-depth interviews, questionnaires, text messaging, document analysis, site visits, and observations, the study examined the collaborative teaching practices among international colleagues in the kindergarten. The findings revealed that collaboration among international colleagues was made successful by: (1) senior management and teachers sharing a common goal; (2) a dynamic whole-school supportive structure that embraced heterogeneity; and (3) the development of a shared culture of professional learning. The implications of these findings for management, practice, and research are discussed, including the need to foster a culture of collaboration, the importance of professional development, and the need for further research on collaborative teaching practices in diverse educational settings. Copyright © 2023 Springer.

隨著二零一五年《施政報告》發佈，香港教育業界開始關注STEM（科學、科技、工程及數學）教育﹔然而，業界的討論主要聚焦於中小學教育，尚未觸及幼稚園處境。事實上，數學與自然科學是本地幼兒教育不可或缺的學習範疇，個別辦學團體及幼稚園已試行STEM教育活動，以培育幼兒的探索與科學精神。為了探討STEM在香港學前教育的出路，本文將運用質性研究方式，以五位幼兒教育工作者的個案訪談為基礎，透視在本地幼稚園推行STEM教育活動時的挑戰，並探討當中給予業界的啟示。 Copyright © 2018 香港教師中心.

This study contributes to the Western-normed whole-day versus half-day kindergarten debate with Asian-focused evidence from a longitudinal study on parental perceptions, needs, and decisions in the privatised kindergarten marketplace in Hong Kong. The parents of children attending the whole-day and half-day programmes were surveyed in the first two years of kindergarten. Both programmes were perceived to possess distinctive qualities and parents reflected an effortful quest for an optimal home–work–life balance. Two-step cluster analysis identified three parent profiles – the Slightest Needs, the Moderate Needs, and the Urgent Needs – differentiated by family income, parents' occupation and education, and residence ownership. Finally, logistic regression analyses predicting parental decisions found a shift from a socioeconomic orientation to an educational orientation. The findings indicate that the ‘either or’ thinking in this debate is problematic as what parents need is not the ‘best’ programme but the best ‘fit’. The 4As approach – allocation, affordability, availability, and accessibility, was proposed for policy refinement to cater for evolving societal, familial, and educational dynamics.

Decades of research in the West cannot determine whether the whole-day or half-day kindergarten program is more beneficial to children's development. In Hong Kong, despite strong public demand for the whole-day program, mixed research findings have led the government to support the half-day program only. As a supplement to a large-scale 2-year longitudinal study, this mixed methods study adopted Donabedian's (2003) approach to explore this complex social-educational issue with reference to Hong Kong-Chinese educators’ perceptions of the whole-day kindergarten program. The authors surveyed 180 kindergarten educators from 15 randomly sampled kindergartens and conducted interviews with 30 of these educators one year later. The results showed that the whole-day program allowed for structural, curricular, and pedagogical improvement, enhanced children's development, and eased families’ childcare concerns. The disadvantages, however, were reduced parent–child time and heavier tuition fees. The findings imply that no “best” program exists, only a better program “fit.” Program selection should reflect family preferences and needs while ensuring high-quality learning opportunities and active parental involvement. The whole-day program is recommended for families that lack a stimulating home environment and childcare resources; the half-day program might be a better fit for financially able families with adequate childcare resources. The authors argue that the supply and affordability of the free whole-day program should better match the needs of families. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Using a qualitative descriptive design, researchers describe andidentify similarities and differences in the professional preparation of infant-toddler care and education (ITCE) teachers at university based teacher education programmes in Hong Kong China, Aotearoa New Zealand, and the USA. Researchers overview the ITCE landscape, describe statutory regulations, and consider major documents and prevalent ideas influencing ITCE teacher education in their respective countries. Key findings are presented from each researcher’s analysis of the teacher education programmes at their own institutions and then summarised in descriptive narratives around four major themes: (1) country-specific values, (2) pedagogical elements, (3) curriculum focus, and (4) teaching practicum expectations. On the basis of a dialogic deliberative process, the three researchers then discuss the findings together by deliberating upon how culture in the forms of norms, values, prevailing beliefs, and expectations, appeared to–intentionally or unintentionally–shape the three different approaches to preparing students to become fully-qualified teachers of infants and toddlers. Copyright © 2023 TACTYC.

This chapter aims to briefly review the recent developments in early childhood education in Chinese societies such as the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan. Varying greatly in political and economic contexts, these societies share some common patterns and face similar challenges in their development. First, this chapter analyzes the shifting landscape in Chinese economies and societies with a focus on the changes in education systems and policies and the associated impact. Second, it evaluates all the efforts that these societies have made to promote the accessibility, affordability, and accountability of early childhood education in the past decades. Third, it critically reflects on the early childhood curriculum reforms and pedagogical changes in these societies. Last, this chapter summarizes the challenges in defining culturally appropriate early childhood education in a globalized world as well as the lessons that we could learn from these Chinese societies.

本研究透過文獻探究福祿貝爾（以下簡稱福氏）的遊戲教育理論，將其和香港的遊戲學習課程的政策和實踐做比較、討論，其中，從探究福氏的教育理念和遊戲教育論，參考其他福氏研究專家的詮釋資料，整理出關於福氏遊戲教育的原貌，再將福氏遊戲教育和香港的《幼稚園教育課程指引》，以及國際期刊中有關香港遊戲學習課程的實證研究結果，進行批判性分析和比較，藉此反思當代香港幼兒教育的遊戲中學習的理念，並深入探討福氏遊戲教育對現代香港幼兒教育倡導的遊戲中學習的啟示。本研究獲得以下主要結果：一、香港的遊戲學習課程原以福氏遊戲教育理論為基礎，但福氏遊戲教育中強調的幼兒自動自發遊戲的自主性，受到課程時間限制和各種社會文化因素，在香港幼兒教育課程的實踐上有一定的難度；二、福氏遊戲教育的核心要素——照料遊戲，雖類似香港幼兒教育課程政策提倡的教師多元化角色，但福氏的照料遊戲亦給了教師如何運用言語等去引導幼兒學習一個更明確的方向。本研究結果提供香港或其他提倡遊戲中學習的國家一個更明確的方向，幼兒教育課程政策上應提供更清楚指引達到幼兒自主性和教師的照料遊戲工作，實務上的意涵則是對實踐遊戲中學習的方向更清楚。 Copyright © 2022 中華民國比較教育學會.

The issue of Artificial Intelligence (AI) literacy is gaining popularity in the field of education. Most research on AI literacy has focused on primary, secondary, and higher education, and there has been limited examination of AI literacy programs in early childhood education. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of an eight-week AI literacy program on young children’s AI literacy, AI-related creativity, and their perceptions of the AI4KG program. A total of 26 young children (average age of 4 years) enrolled in the program at a kindergarten in Hong Kong were the subjects of the study. The results indicated that (1) young children were capable of learning basic AI concepts and knowledge; (2) in terms of AI-related creativity, younger children were able to design a chatting robot via imagination, while older children created an AI robot to assist people in their drawings; (3) in regards to the children's perceptions of the AI4KG program, older children who enjoyed the activity were able to train AI, while younger children preferred to draw the future AI city and participate in the AI story activity. This study highlights the positive benefits of AI literacy education in preparing young children for an AI-driven future. Copyright © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

This paper reports significant findings from an exploratory investigation of factors influencing kindergarten teachers' perceptions of holistic early childhood education (HECE) following the release of a recent policy document relating to Early Childhood Education by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. A comprehensive four-page survey questionnaire was completed by 165 teachers, in 22 Kindergartens across three Districts in Hong Kong. The questionnaire sought responses on demographics (including spiritual well-being); six aspects of ECE detailed in the HKSAR document; teachers' expectations of HECE; and their perceptions of parental involvement in their young children's development. This study revealed that kindergarten teachers' spiritual well-being was a key demographic factor contributing to their expectations of holistic early childhood education. Copyright © 2022 Routledge.