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Background: Schools are a key setting for student well-being promotion. Various school-based mental health programs have been implemented worldwide, with greater emphasis placed on psychological and social aspects. The bio-psycho-social model provides a holistic and integrated view of mental health based on theory and research evidence. Given the importance of considering all three dimensions in mental health promotion, this study explored reasons for the relative neglect of this approach by studying the early phase of school well-being program development and implementation. Method: Seventy-seven Hong Kong government-funded student well-being programs implemented in 2000–2009 were reviewed for the use of biological, psychological, social interventions. Questionnaires and interviews were conducted to explore program leadersz usage and views regarding theoretical frameworks and evidence-based practise and program evaluation. Challenges encountered in the initial stage of school well-being program development and implementation were identified and analysed. Results: Of the 77 programs reviewed, only 5 addressed all three bio-psycho-social factors of mental health. A significantly greater number of programs addressed psychological (n = 63) and social (n = 40) factors compared to those that covered biological factors of mental health (n = 13). Of 24 program implementers who responded to the online survey, 75% claimed to have studied or applied a theoretical framework yet only 41.7% considered evidence-based practises to be important. The majority of interviewed participants valued their own practical experience over theory and research evidence. Many programs lacked rigours evaluation of clear objectives and measurable outcomes, thus the mechanisms of change and program effectiveness were uncertain. Perceived barriers to program adoption and continuation were identified. Conclusion: This study highlighted a neglect of the biological contribution to mental health in school well-being promotion initiatives, possibly due to lack of theoretical knowledge and evidence-based practise among program leaders and implementers in the early phase of school mental health promotion. The bio-psycho-social model should therefore be recommended for student well-being programs as a holistic and integrated theory of mental health underpinning program objectives, mechanisms of change, and measurable outcomes. To develop effective practises in student well-being promotion, more thorough documentation, a rigours evaluation framework and support for frontline educators to evaluate their practises were recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spiral bianshi curriculum, an improvement on bianshi teaching developed by Gu () and in line with Marton’s theory of variation (Marton & Booth, ), was tried out in a primary school in Hong Kong. This improved theoretical framework for the spiral bianshi curriculum comprises four types of bianshi problems—the inductive bianshi, the broadening bianshi, the deepening bianshi, and the applicative bianshi. Based on this framework, the research team developed a set of teaching materials on the three topics of division of fraction, speed, and volume. The materials were tried out in 21 Primary 6 classes (a total of 686 students) in a school. The effect was compared with a reference group using standard textbook materials in Hong Kong. A series of instruments, pre-tests, and post-tests were administered to gauge the effects on students’ performance in solving routine and non-routine problems, as well as the affective outcomes including self-concept, attitude towards learning mathematics, approaches to learning, and conceptions of mathematics. The intervention effects of the experimental design were examined by hierarchical regression analysis. The research reveals that students using spiral bianshi teaching materials performed significantly better than their counterparts using standard textbook materials. However, no significant differences were identified among affective learning outcome variables despite the positive results on cognitive learning outcomes. The findings indicate that spiral bianshi curriculum has high potential in enhancing students’ learning effectiveness. However, further studies are needed to map its strengths in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]