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published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

This dissertation seeks to document a local Hong Kong secondary school’s implementation of assessment for learning in the form of a case study. While the majority of previous studies on “formative assessment,” a term used interchangeably with “assessment for learning” in this dissertation, have focused primarily on modifying teachers’ teaching methods and their perspectives regarding formative assessment, there are hardly any studies that invite other perspectives, such as the students’ (Carless, 2011). Adopting a qualitative approach using mostly interviews and some observation, the researcher conducted a case study at a local secondary school in Hong Kong to study how staff members of a school realize a government educational reform goal, the implementation of assessment for learning, into action. In order to gain further insight into this matter, the researcher also invited some student opinions through questionnaires regarding their learning experiences relating to the implementation of assessment for learning. Results of this study suggest a need for continual help on behalf of the local government to provide supplementary assistance in guidance and education regarding assessment for learning for teachers and staff members of schools that are planning to or are currently going through the implementation of assessment for learning. Furthermore, due to the increasing workload of teachers during the implementation of assessment for learning, the desire for an employment of additional teachers to distribute and lessen the workload is also prominent amongst teachers; therefore, additional funding for schools to hire more teachers would be most helpful. An online platform primarily for parents and students to track student learning progress employed by the school under study is commendable for its positive effects on learning attitudes and results. The “laissez-faire” philosophy of the principal of the school under study not only grants teachers professional autonomy, but also is central to the harmonious cooperative working climate of the teachers in the school. As for students, although assessment for learning is promising for the improvement of their academic results in the long run, it takes time and patience to get used to new methods of learning and thinking. In such a way, perhaps it would be more beneficial for assessment for learning practices to be introduced earlier in students’ learning careers in order to better internalize effective learning habits as well as positive learning attitudes. / published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Politics and Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

In the recent decade or so, the phenomenon of enrollment decline of secondary schools has been clearly observed in Hong Kong. The significance of this phenomenon has grown over time such that the number of public sector schools has had to be reduced. Meanwhile, an alternative to school closure is to reduce the class size of schools which is however not less controversial. On the surface, the arguments against class size reduction include perceived extra cost per student and ineffectiveness of small class teaching in secondary schools. Hidden in the agenda of the Government could be, arguably, the political difficulty to reverse such class size reduction trend when the enrollment rebounds eventually. This dissertation reviews how the Government has reacted to the changing situation and developing public concern on the issue, and cautiously evaluates the effectiveness of the Government’s responses. Then, this dissertation explores the literature in public administration in relation to school retrenchment policies, and hence addresses the Hong Kong case accordingly. Finally, recommendations are made along with rationale for the betterment of managing enrollment decline by means of controlled class size subject to a mechanism to be agreed on. In making these recommendations, it is hoped that the policy direction should point to the future, with an aim to look for positive management opportunities while solving problematic phenomenon at the same time. / published_or_final_version / Politics and Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

This study investigates the extent to which the elements of Confucian thought, survive and are practiced in the curriculum of Hong Kong secondary schools. It briefly examines the historical background of Confucianism in moral education in China and Hong Kong, examines curriculum guidelines and reference materials issued by the Hong Kong Education Department, and reports on interviews with two supervisors, seven principals and twenty-five teachers. It includes their perceptions of the locus of responsibility for moral education, their assessment of recent curriculum trends, their views on the impact of Confucian values on youth and their speculations on the future of moral education as Hong Kong is reintegrated with mainland China. Overall the study finds that elements of Confucian thought continue to prevail in the teaching of some school subjects and in the quality of school life; however, teachers are generally apprehensive about the erosion of Confucian values in the face of alternative models of moral education and the forces of modernization.