published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

This study investigated the effect of a goal-based intervention package on future goal-setting for junior secondary school students on their future goal commitment, self-efficacy, and values related to academic learning. Participants were 85 newly admitted secondary one students in a local mainstream secondary school in Hong Kong. A self-report questionnaire was used to measure the strength of future goal commitment, perceived instrumentality of learning, self-efficacy, intrinsic value and extrinsic value of academic-related activities. Results indicated that the future goal-setting intervention package is effective in guiding students set their future goals, and in strengthening their future goal commitment, perceived instrumentality of learning, self-efficacy and intrinsic value of academic-related activities. / published_or_final_version / Educational Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

by Ng Hung Sum. / Chinese title: / Bibliography: leaves 115-121 / Thesis (M.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1984

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Within the framework of task-based language teaching, various types of tasks have been proposed, yet in English as foreign language classroom contexts where learners’ exposure to target language input is often limited, the adoption of form-focused tasks seems to receive much credit. Although the potential academic gains brought forth by such tasks have been studied in some previous quantitative research, the call for investigations into those tasks from a learner perspective remains warranted. In this study I investigated the use of grammatical consciousness-raising (C-R) tasks as an inductive approach to grammar pedagogy in an EFL classroom from a learner perspective. While performing such tasks the informants, who were a class of secondary level English as foreign language learners, made discoveries about the targeted grammar items based on contextualized examples provided. In the study I first examined the extent to which adopting C-R tasks impacted on the informants’ learning of English grammar through pretests and posttests. Second, I elicited their perceptions of C-R tasks through a questionnaire and two semi-structured interviews. Third, with the think-aloud protocols method I studied the informants’ engagement with the grammar items presented through either C-R tasks or deductive explanation. The findings revealed that the majority of the informants were able to develop grammatical understanding through performing C-R tasks. They tended to respond positively to and show deep engagement with the grammar items presented though such tasks as well. To enhance the perceived effectiveness of such tasks and thus to maximize the effect of grammar teaching, I concluded by suggesting the need for teachers to make the learners fully aware of the nature of and rationale behind C-R tasks and to investigate whether and how such tasks can be integrated with other methodological options in realizing effective grammar instruction in their own contexts. / published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Education

published_or_final_version / abstract / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / abstract / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work