Abstract The purpose of this study was to explore the present state of the sense of teacher efficacy in public kindergarten teachers as it relates to their background and subjective perception variables. The aim of this study was (1) to understand the condition of the sense of teacher efficacy in public kindergarten teachers, (2) to investigate the differences in teachers¡¦ sense of efficacy among public kindergarten teachers with diverse background variables (the teachers¡¦ attribute and schools¡¦ attribute variables), (3) to analyze the relationships between the subjective perception variables (the job characteristics perception and the social evaluation perception variables) and the teachers¡¦ efficacy sense, (4) to explore the predictive power of the diverse background variables and subjective perception variables for the teacher efficacy sense, (5) to compare the attitudes toward children, instruction and work between high and low sense of teacher efficacy, (6) based on the results of this study, the researcher proposed several suggestions for improving the sense of teacher efficacy in kindergarten teachers. This study adopted both questionnaire survey and interview methods. The participant¡¦s questionnaire survey included 354 public kindergarten teachers in Taiwan. The instruments employed were The Scale of Kindergarten Teachers¡¦ Efficacy, The Scale of Job Characteristics Perception, and The Scale of Social Evaluation Perception. The quantitative data obtained were analyzed by Descriptive Statistics, t-test, Hotelling¡¦s T2, One-Way MANOVA, Product-moment Correlation, Canonical Correlation Analysis and Stepwise multiple regression analysis. The participants in the interview for understanding the different attitudes toward children, instruction and work between high and low sense of teacher efficacy were 10 high and low efficacy sense teachers. Major findings of this study are summarized as follows: 1. The public kindergarten teachers possessed higher teachers¡¦ efficacy sense. 2. There were significant differences in the teachers¡¦ efficacy sense of the public kindergarten teachers with the diverse teachers¡¦ attribute variables. 3. There were relationships between the subjective perception variables (the job characteristics perception and the social evaluation perception variables) and the teachers¡¦ efficacy sense. 4. There were significant differences in the teachers¡¦ efficacy sense of the public kindergarten teachers with the diverse job characteristics perception and the social evaluation perception variables. 5. Number of working years, diploma and class grade background variables, skill variety, task importance, task autonomy, task feedback of the job characteristic perception variables, and the social evaluation perception variables could predict the sense of teacher efficacy of the kindergarten teachers. 6. There were differences in opinions and attitudes toward children, instruction and work between high and low sense of teacher efficacy. Finally, according to the results and conclusions of this study, the researcher proposed several suggestions to the kindergarten teachers, the kindergartens, the teacher education institutes, the educational administration institutions, and for future study.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2000. / Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 182-183). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

　　Although kindergarten work environments in Hong Kong and overseas have been found to be unfavourable, a smaller than expected number of teachers have displayed a low level of subjective well-being (SWB). This research aimed to investigate how SWB could be predicted by perceived work environment, personality types, and resilience. It also examined the mediating functions of resilience in the relationships of perceived work environment and personality types to SWB. 　　In this research, SWB was represented by job satisfaction, measured by the Job Satisfaction Survey; self-esteem, assessed by the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale; and mental health complaints, captured by the General Health Questionnaire-12. Perceived work environment comprised psychosocial and non-psychosocial aspects, with the former evaluated by the School Culture Survey and the latter measured by the Kindergarten Ergonomics-Manpower Inventory (KEMI), a new inventory developed in Study 2. Personality types were measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Resilience was represented by hardiness and optimism, which were captured by the Hardiness Scale and the Revised Life Orientation Test, respectively. 　　This research adopted a mixed method design and comprised four studies. Study 1 was the pilot study involving 64 teachers in validating seven inventories and exploring the relationships between perceived school culture, personality types, hardiness, optimism, job satisfaction, self-esteem, and mental health complaints. Data analyses using SPSS 17 revealed that perceived school culture and personality types were significantly related to job satisfaction, self-esteem, and mental health complaints. Hardiness, but not optimism, mediated the relationships of perceived work environment and personality types to job satisfaction, self-esteem, and mental health complaints. 　　 Study 2 developed a new inventory (i.e. KEMI) to measure kindergartens’ non-psychosocial work environments and comprised two stages. The first stage involved two panels of 10 kindergarten principals in the item pool development and 141 teachers rating the items. The second stage was the cross-validation of the findings and involved 125 teachers. Data analyses using SPSS 17 and AMOS 18 showed that items in the KEMI clustered into five subscales, of which the “Ergonomics” subscale contributed the largest variances. 　　 Study 3 was the main study, involving 371 teachers. It investigated how job satisfaction, self-esteem, and mental health complaints were predicted by perceived school culture, perceived ergonomics-manpower, personality types, hardiness, and optimism, and how hardiness and optimism mediated the relationships of perceived work environment and personality types to job satisfaction, self-esteem, and mental health complaints. Data analyses using SPSS 17 and AMOS 18 revealed that perceived work environment predicted job satisfaction, but its effects on self-esteem and mental health complaints were fully mediated by hardiness and optimism. Teachers were predominantly sensing-feeling-judging types. Teachers who were extraverted, intuitive, feeling, judging types tended to perceive their work environments more favorably and to show higher levels of SWB. 　　Study 4 aimed to enrich the interpretations of the quantitative findings by interviews with 24 teachers (volunteers from the participants in Study 3) in four focus groups. Five main themes and two sub-themes emerged. 　　Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed. Recommendations for future research directions are also made. / published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

This research aims to determine whether the voucher scheme in Hong Kong would really increase professional development of Hong Kong early childhood teachers, and to see how the teachers will react to this change. Few studies have been conducted on how the voucher system affects the teachers. A qualitative approach was employed where a total of twelve teachers and four principals from the four kindergarten schools were asked to participate in the study. The results of the study show that teachers from the different kindergartens were having more convergent views about the pre-primary education voucher scheme among the teachers from these schools. Many of them believe that the voucher scheme is in fact a fair policy and that it could effectively improve teachers‟ quality, though the apprehension of old generation teachers over the influx of the younger and relatively more qualified teachers is a concern that needs to be addressed. / published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Almost all 3- to 6-year-olds attend preschool programmes in Hong Kong, yet until recently early childhood education (ECE) was excluded from the boundaries of formal government policy and the sector received minimal financial support from the government. The eventual introduction in 2007 of the Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme (PEVS) — a HK$2 billion government package to subsidise ECE, instead of bringing the early childhood predicament to an end, generated considerable controversy due to its unique nature. Unlike other education voucher programmes, which promote and rely on the “free” market to regulate the quality of education provision, the PEVS limits the vouchers to a restricted sector of the ECE market and ties financial assistance with official quality assessments. Against this background, the purpose of this study was to examine the evolution and the continuous development of this atypical education voucher scheme in the policy context of Hong Kong. The PEVS is conceptualised as both product and process, constantly shaped and reshaped by policymakers as well as parents and ECE providers. To adequately capture the evolving and emergent nature of the policy process and reflect the divergent voices of these stakeholders, a mixed-method approach was employed, and a historical approach is used to analyse and discuss the findings. Focusing on the context of policy text production, in the first two time periods, namely Pre-voucher (Pre-2006) and Announcement and Amendments (2006 – 2009), the rationale for the development and the modifications of the policy text was explored through documentary analyses. In the following time period, After Amendments (2009 – 2010), a survey of 628 parents, kindergarten principals, and teachers, and in-depth interviews with 16 kindergarten principals and teachers were conducted to determine the opportunities for parents and ECE providers to reform and reinterpret the policy text in different contexts of practice. In the final time period, the Official Review and Further Re-modification of the Policy Text (2010 onwards), the results obtained were compared with that of a critical analysis of the official government review of the PEVS and the resulting package of enhancement measures endorsed by the government to understand how parents and ECE providers in the context of practice might in return affect the production of the policy text. Taken together, the results illustrate a full depiction of the policy process. They also show the intertwining relationship among the government, parents, and ECE providers, as well as between the two contexts of policymaking. The illumination of these previously unexplored subjects has important theoretical and practical implications for educational change and policymaking in ECE, and lays the foundation for future research in related areas. / published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Early childhood inclusive education (ECIE) has been advocated in Hong Kong and other societies for decades. Anecdotal evidence, however, suggests that there might be some gaps between teachers’ beliefs and their practices regarding ECIE in Hong Kong. Although a large number of studies on the implementation of ECIE have been conducted in western countries, there are very few in a Hong Kong context. Therefore, this thesis is dedicated to the investigation of Hong Kong kindergarten teachers’ beliefs and practices regarding ECIE with two studies. Study One was designed to be quantitative in nature, examining Hong Kong kindergarten teachers’ beliefs and practices of ECIE by surveying 184 practitioners. Responses revealed that Hong Kong teachers: (1) shared mixed beliefs in both inclusive education and special education; (2) had positive attitudes toward children with special education needs; and also (3) had positive attitudes toward inclusive practices. However, most of them reported that they had failed to put ECIE into practice. Further analyses found a significant school type effect: the teachers in special child care centers (SCCC) and kindergartens with integrated programs (IP) had more positive attitudes toward ECIE and tended to use more individualized practices than those working in kindergartens without IP. In addition, the special education teachers were found to hold the most coherent beliefs and practices of ECIE among all the samples. Study Two was a multiple case study of five early childhood settings, with a focus on the gaps between teachers’ beliefs and practices of ECIE. The validity was established by triangulating the data sources (principal, general teachers, and IP teachers) and methods (classroom observation, interviews, and document analysis). The results indicated that: (1) there was no consistent pattern in teaching schedules, settings, curricula in the five cases; (2) the principals and teachers had mixed beliefs in ECIE and special education; (3) there was a remarkable belief-practice gap in ECIE; and (4) and the teachers from SCCC, kindergartens with IP, and those without IP had different attitudes about communication with parents, perceived behavioral control and intention, and the practical difficulties in ECIE implementation. These qualitative findings were consistent with those found in Study One. The thesis is believed to offer a contribution to the theoretical and practical development of ECIE. This study provides empirical evidence to the early childhood policymaking. The findings imply that the educational authorities need to provide more resources, teacher training, and support to facilitate the implementation of ECIE in Hong Kong. The limitations of this research and future directions are discussed, and some suggestions about how to bridge teachers’ beliefs and practice gaps are also made. / published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Education

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

Pre-kindergarten students often arrive the first day of school carrying a backpack filled with supplies which they are eager to use. Inside these backpacks are scissors, glue, and crayons. This study proposes that the pre-kindergartners are also carrying another backpack, their literacy backpack holding all of their literacy skills and practices that they use every day at home. This qualitative case study examined these literacies brought from home in the students’ figurative literacy backpacks. The study also focused on their teachers’ literacy views and practices. The study was conducted in three parts. First, through field observations and interviews with parents, the literacy practices occurring at home were identified and examined. Unique “literacy stories” were crafted from the data for each of the pre-kindergartners and shared with their parents. Part two of the study examined the two pre-kindergarten teachers’ literacy practices through semi-structured interviews. The impact of external forces (e.g. state and federal mandates, school curriculum, grant requirements, and trainings) on the views and practices of the pre-kindergarten teachers was discussed. These external forces stress the development of formal literacies, thus modeling a narrow definition of literacy. Part three of the study focused on sharing the students’ “literacy stories” with their teachers and examining the teachers’ reactions to the stories. Data from the interviews following reading the stories pointed to the teachers’ acknowledging the multiple literacies found in the homes of their students and a desire to learn more about their families’ literacy practices in order to utilize them in the classroom. The students’ “literacy stories” proved to be a valuable tool in expanding the teachers’ definition of literacy. The stories helped the teachers broaden their views of literacy to include literacy practices that occur in many different cultural and social contexts; adopting a definition more in line with the socio-cultural development of literacy and the NLS concepts (Street, 2003). Using this definition, multiple literacies will be made visible in the classrooms and connections from home to school can be made allowing students to strengthen their existing literacies and expand them to incorporate other literacies. / text

published_or_final_version / toc / Education / Master / Master of Education

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of parenting style, home-based involvement, parents’ educational expectations and pre-literacy readiness. Sixty-two preschool children and his or her parent or guardian participated in this study of: 1) The relationship between parenting style and pre-literacy readiness of Black children enrolled in Head Start programs; 2) The relationship between parents’ educational expectations of Black children enrolled in Head Start programs and preliteracy readiness; 3) The relationship between home-based involvement of Black parents and levels of pre-literacy readiness of their children enrolled in Head Start programs; and 4) The relationship between the predictor variables (i.e., parenting style, parental homebased involvement, and parents’ educational expectations) and pre-literacy readiness of Black children enrolled in Head Start programs. Data were obtained from a Parent Survey that was administered to parents of children who attended Head Start Centers. Child participants were also administered pre-literacy assessments. A series of correlation and multiple regression analyses were conducted to answer the four research questions in this study. Overall, all correlation and multiple regression analyses lacked significant results. None of the predictor variables had more of an influence on pre-literacy readiness variables. Despite the lack of significance, the results of this study contributes to the literature that supports that Black parents do have high expectations for their children and are engaging in activities at home with their children, whether it’s the primary caregiver (e.g., mother) or another person in the immediate or extended family (e.g., father, grandparents, uncle, boyfriend). These results further support the notion that Baumrind’s parenting style constructs may not generalize across other cultural and economical contexts. Future research is needed to determine the generalizability of these parenting style constructs across other ethnic minority and cultural groups. Practical implications of this study suggest that prevention and early intervention practices are two essential components in improving the learning outcomes of young minority children from less privileged backgrounds.