The variation theory of Ference Marton and his collaborators has widely been used as a framework for explaining what can possibly be learned in a particular classroom and what cannot. This paper reports on an experiment that put this theory to test in the context of students' learning of the orthographic structures of Chinese characters. The…

This study examined an extended theory of planned behaviour (TPB) model that specified factors affecting students' intentions to collaborate online for group work. Past behaviour, past experience and actual behavioural control were incorporated in the extended TPB model. The mediating roles of attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural…

This study examined whether there is evidence in Hong Kong and Taiwan students' early attitudes to civic participation that suggests they will adopt radical forms of civic participation and whether civic participatory potential of students from these two Chinese societies differed in early adolescence. To achieve these purposes, we used a Rasch…

This paper reports the results of a survey of 3006 Year 10-12 students on their understandings of metallic bonding. The instrument was developed based on Chi's ontological categories of scientific concepts and students' understanding of metallic bonding as reported in the literature. The instrument has two parts. Part one probed into students'…

Culture influences basic motivational processes; however, Western theories of achievement motivation seem to have neglected the role of culture. They are inadequate when trying to explain student motivation and engagement across a wide range of cultural groups because they may not have the conceptual tools needed to handle culturally relevant…

This twin survey of online journalism professionals and students examines their perceptions of journalism skills, duties, and concepts. Using samples of online journalists and journalism students in Hong Kong, Asia's media hub, it attempts to offer updated insights into the changes taking place in journalism classrooms and newsrooms and uncovers…

The study employs a case study approach to examine the impact of educational backgrounds on nine Hong Kong tertiary students' English and Cantonese language practices and identifications as native speakers of English and Cantonese. The study employed both survey and interview data to probe the participants' English and Cantonese language use at…

One way that universities assess teaching effectiveness is by eliciting student feedback. However, what standards do students themselves use to judge whether a lecturer is a 'good' teacher? As part of a study carried out at a Hong Kong university, students were interviewed about their first-year learning experience and asked what they felt…

The lesson study approach is a systematic process for producing professional knowledge about teaching by teachers, and has spread rapidly and extensively in the United States. The learning study approach is essentially a kind of lesson study with an explicit learning theory--the variation theory of learning. In this paper, we argue that having an…

This research aimed at investigating the method of using kinetic typography and interactive approach to conduct a design experiment for children to learn vocabularies. Typography is the unique art and technique of arranging type in order to make language visible. By adding animated movement to characters, kinetic typography expresses language…

This study explores how pre-service teachers in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the United States perceive educational diversity in relation to students' academic achievement by means of qualitative content analysis. It takes cultural psychological perspectives to revisit the attribute reasoning embedded in individualist and collectivist…

This article presents a principal's story of social justice practice in a Hong Kong primary school. The narration accounts for the notion of social justice through his practice in various ways. Studying in a "rooftop" primary school located in a public housing area in Hong Kong was the principal's salient memory of his first year of…

The authors examine how four organizational antecedents affect the organizational identification (OI) and in-role and extra-role performance of Hong Kong business school faculty. OI was tested to be a mediator. The survey results indicated a high level of OI, consistent with the collectivist cultural value of Chinese employees. However, OI was…

The purpose of this study was to explore what may be contributing to differences in performance in mathematics on the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 2007. This was done by using a mixture item response theory modeling approach to first detect latent classes in the data and then to examine differences in performance on items…

This study examined the interrelationships among second-order belief, interpretive theory of mind, inhibitory control, and the understanding of strategic versus white lies in 54 children approximately 5 years 7 months old. Results showed that second-order belief was associated with strategic-lie understanding, whereas interpretive theory of mind…