In this paper I argue that when a researcher is a research instrument, it is likely that the researcher would develop a heightened awareness of his/her own cultural conditioning, especially in the case of cross-cultural studies. And that such awareness would make him/her realise that one's own cultural background may indeed have an influence on…

The purpose of the study is to analyse and discuss the influences of globalisation and localisation on music education in Hong Kong and Taiwan. It argues that the reform of music education concerns changes to the contents of the curriculum that envisage the cultural and political developments that arise from processes of globalisation and…

While increasing attention is being paid to the ideological debate on Confucian-influenced cultural values communicated in Chinese language textbooks, EFL textbooks remain under-examined since the TEFL/TESOL is typically assumed to be "technical" and "neutral". Drawing on critical theoretical perspectives on curriculum,…

In this essay Charlene Tan offers a philosophical analysis of the Singapore state's vision of shared citizenship by examining it from a Confucian perspective. The state's vision, known formally as "Our Shared Values," consists of communitarian values that reflect the official ideology of multiculturalism. This initiative included a White…

The purpose of the study reported here is to illustrate how an approach based on a culturally appropriate "shepherd metaphor" has helped Asian students to cross cultural boundaries and to engage in critical thinking online. Asian students are under different levels of influence from the Confucian Heritage Culture, which cultivates…

The central purpose of China's modern higher education has been to combine Chinese and Western elements at all levels including institutional arrangements, research methodologies, educational ideals and cultural spirit, a combination that brings together aspects of Chinese and Western philosophical heritages. This, however, has not been achieved.…

This is one of the commentaries on Wu's "Interpretation, autonomy, and transformation: Chinese pedagogic discourse in a cross-cultural perspective" ("JCS", 43(5), 569-590). It highlights the paper's demystification of Western pedagogic discourse and recovery of the meaning of Chinese traditional pedagogic discourse as a…

Until a century ago, Korean medicine was based mainly on Oriental philosophies and ideas. From a religious perspective, Chinese Confucianism was prevalent in Korea at that time. Since Confucianists believe that it is against one's filial duty to harm his or her body, given to them by their parents, most Koreans did not donate their bodies or…

The purpose of this study is to gain understanding of Chinese women executives going beyond the Chinese dream, to learn how they describe and make meaning of their midlife transition experience. A narrative inquiry and holistic content and form approach was used to explore two-stage life stories: narratives of self-actualization of women…

The past decade has seen a rapid increase in the number of international students undertaking doctorates in Anglophone universities such as Australia and the UK. In 2009, 11,500 international students were undertaking postgraduate research in Australia, with a 20 per cent increase in doctoral enrolments over the previous year (AEI, 2011). In the…

It is argued that Stankov's proposal to view unforgivingness as underlying the combination of high educational achievement, anxiety, and self-doubt is an original way of summarizing Confucian score patterns. However, it is argued that the proposal cannot explain why reading scores in Confucian countries are not higher than in other countries and…

This paper presents a critical analysis of the transnational interplay of cultural, educational and economic forces that culminated with the establishment of a Chinese language and cultural centre in Peru, the Confucius Institute. Confucius Institutes are government-sponsored cultural centres devoted mainly to Chinese language education around the…

In the educational world, there is a growing amount of scholarship directed toward China. Much Western writing has focused on the supposedly deficient aspects of Chinese education: rote memorization, large class size, teacher-centered methodology. While there are those who challenge the deficiency view of Chinese education--Watkins and Biggs, Jin…

Substantial numbers of Chinese mainland students are enrolled in overseas Western-based business courses but are dislocated from their home cultures. Business education curriculum and course designers need to understand how these students are best trained in western style education programs. Four-hundred students in Singaporean business training…

This study examined the perceived parental styles of maternal warmth and control, as well as adolescent filial piety, in relation to parent-child relationship quality, in 308 Hong Kong Chinese adolescents. The three mother-child relationship qualities measured were perceived maternal support, conflicts, and relationship depth. Adolescents'…