ERIC Number: EJ1387518
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 18
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0256-8543
EISSN: EISSN-2150-2641
"Tian Shi" (Timing) "Di Li" (Context) "Ren He" (Human Capital): A New Theoretical Framework for Analyzing the Implementability of Imported Early Childhood Practices and Making a Case for a Hybrid Model
Journal of Research in Childhood Education, v37 n2 p292-309 2023
In this conceptual paper, we propose a new three-pronged theoretical framework derived from Chinese philosophy: (1) "Tian Shi" (timing); (2) "Di Li" (context); and (3) "Ren He" (human capital). Specifically, we delineate the nature of "Tian Shi, Di Li, Ren He" required for the successful translation of top-down education policy into practice using Hong Kong as a case example. Applying this new conceptual framework, we conducted secondary data analysis of two cases examining the implementability of U.S.-originated and popular child-centered early childhood models by Hong Kong kindergarten teachers (serving children ages 3-6), with one case focusing on the Project Approach in one kindergarten, and the other on the HighScope Curriculum in another kindergarten. The findings revealed that Hong Kong had not yet attained favorable "Tian Shi, Di Li, Ren He" to render success in these kindergarten teachers' adoption of imported early childhood approaches with fidelity due to incompatibility in sociocultural and educational realities as well as professional competence. Instead, the teachers' implementation behaviors made a case for a hybrid model as a viable and potentially sustainable solution to reconcile these contextual incompatibilities by weaving local and global practices into a conflation.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Confucianism, Human Capital, Early Childhood Education, Educational Policy, Models, Preschool Teachers, Kindergarten, Curriculum Development, Context Effect, Curriculum Implementation
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education; Elementary Education; Kindergarten; Primary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Hong Kong
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A