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Ethnic minority students--often descendants of earlier waves of immigrants from neighbouring South and Southeast Asian countries--have been under-represented in enrolment in higher education in Hong Kong. In addressing low university/college-enrolment, traditionally under-represented students' family and community are considered deficit and under-resourced, and their inherent values and strengths remain unrecognised and less-explored. This study employed the community cultural wealth framework to highlight the various forms of capital existing within the families and communities of 15 South/Southeast Asian university students that had allowed them to navigate university predisposition, search and choice processes. The findings of this study unveil the diversity and richness of capital within non-dominant communities that have limited access to capital, normalised within hegemonic and oppressive educational institutions and call for researchers and educators to legitimise and utilise the community resources for widening university attendance.

The value of student voices in dialogues about learning improvement is acknowledged in the literature. This paper examines how the views of students regarding School-based Assessment (SBA), a significant shift in examination policy and practice in secondary schools in Hong Kong, have largely been ignored. The study captures student voices through a survey of 423 Secondary 5 students and interviews with 45 students in 3 schools concerning the use of SBA in the high-stakes assessment for the English Language subject. Results suggest a wide range of student perceptions of, and responses to SBA and related feedback. In general, students indicated that they did not appreciate SBA and were unable to capitalise on the feedback. The paper argues that the intentions of SBA can be threatened if these negative tendencies are not addressed through teacher education, and calls for a dialogic model that allows student participation in debates about learning improvement.

This paper investigates quality assurance in Chinese higher education by looking at the Evaluation of the University Baccalaureate Programmes Project (EUBPP) conducted in China. It analyses factors that bring about tensions between policy and practice in this area through a study of two contrasting tertiary institutions. The results show that the aims of the EUBPP have been partly achieved through the interaction of policy-making and implementation. In the process, contextual factors connected to institutional status and stages of development have led to varying degrees of tension between policy and practices.

This study investigates how teachers understand and implement the emphasis on studentcentredness in the new English curriculum in secondary classrooms in urban areas of China and the factors affecting implementation. It focuses on whether the advantages (greater access to resources, better trained teachers, and so on) of the urban context make implementation easier than in rural areas. Data from lesson observations and reflective statements by teachers in urban schools show that their understanding of the notion of student-centredness is superficial and that the well-resourced urban schools find reform as challenging as rural schools.

Educational issues in relation to ethnicity and language education policies have been underexplored in Asian contexts. In particular, issues related to ethnic and linguistic minority students have not received much attention in the post-colonial context of Hong Kong. This paper highlights challenges and tensions faced by Nepali ethnic minority students in two Hong Kong schools arising from language policies adopted by the post-colonial government. Based on data arising from interviews with 28 secondary school Nepali students in 2013 and 2014, and an observation of two schools with a sizeable population of Nepali ethnic minority students over a period of more than two years, this paper investigates how students face the pressures of learning through the medium of either English or spoken Cantonese and written Chinese. Analysis of the data reveals that these students face inequities in schools due to neglect of attention to their overall educational development, discrimination in the institutional settings, and lack of opportunities to maintain their own heritage language and identity. Based on the findings, this paper proposes a multilingual education model for ethnic minority students, drawing on the models set out in Adamson and Feng (2014. "Models for Trilingual Education in the People's Republic of China." In "Minority Languages and Multilingual Education," edited by D. Gorter, V. Zenotz, and J. Cenoz, 29-44. Dordrecht: Springer), which has potential to redress the balance.

In mainland China, most ethnic minority students today face the challenge of learning three languages in schools, namely, their home language (L1), Mandarin Chinese (L2) and a foreign language, usually English (L3). Research into trilingual education for minority groups has been most active since the turn of the twenty-first century. This paper offers an overview of recent research, depicting major models adopted by minority schools and the contextual factors leading to the models in various minority regions in China. The paper begins with an account of "state" policies relevant to language provision for minority groups in China, which is followed by a discussion of the outcomes and models of trilingual education. A critical analysis is then made of contextual factors such as ethnolinguistic vitality, history, economy, geopolitics and the changing status of the three languages that affect trilingual education for minority groups. The paper argues that language policymaking in different domains including "families, schools, regions and the state" should be informed by research evidence on practical models that are effective in meeting the cognitive and affective needs of children from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Task-based learning (TBL) was a methodological innovation in the 1999 English Language syllabus for secondary schools and the 2006 curriculum for senior secondary schools in Hong Kong, designed to replace teacher-centred, grammar-focused approaches that were identified as previously prevalent. This two-year longitudinal study analyses the implementation of TBL in three schools. It focuses on teachers' conceptions of TBL and classroom practice, and the support provided by senior management. It finds that TBL is enacted differently by individual teachers, and that the lack of senior leadership is significant in causing the innovation either to wither or to become diffuse. In some cases, problems associated with implementing TBL were addressed through the determined commitment of pioneering teachers and the collaborative efforts by staff, but change was nonetheless hampered. (Contains 1 figure.)

Recent developments in multilingualism and multilingual education in minority-dominated regions in China highlight the importance of policy studies to support the national goals of achieving multilingualism [Feng, A. W., and B. Adamson, eds. 2015. Trilingualism in Education in China: Models and Challenges. Dordrecht: Springer], especially in remote western regions such as Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR) that pose geographical, socio-political, and educational challenges. This study investigates the effectiveness of language policies and the implementation of multilingual education for minority dominated regions in XUAR, and of the extent to which those policies support multilingual education. The data mainly comprise policy documents issued at the national, regional and institutional level, supplemented by interviews with policy makers at regional and local levels. The study finds that, while the policies at both national and regional levels regarding language education in China are generally supportive of multilingualism, in reality, some of the implemented practices at local school levels in XUAR are not totally consistent with the policy goals, while weak local capacity also hinders the implementation of multilingual education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the mid-1980s, a number of East Asian societies have consistently performed well in international tests, and their education systems have emerged as models of "best practice", including Hong Kong, which has been extensively referenced by politicians and their advisers in England. In parallel, local dissatisfaction with the education system in Hong Kong has prompted major education reforms. This mismatch between the perceptions of the Hong Kong education system of the two policy communities is explored using documentary analysis and interviews with policymakers and other key stakeholders. We analyse the ways in which features of Hong Kong's education system are reconstructed and projected in policymaking in England and argue that the referencing to Hong Kong in England is akin to a form of political theatre, reminiscent of a pantomime, with stereotyped villains, heroes and fairy godmothers, narratives of good conquering evil, and comical set-pieces. We argue that these elements provide the means for both constructing and validating simple causal claims and their associated policy actions.

Adopting a comparative perspective to address educational issues in different contexts was a hallmark of Jullien's work in the early-nineteenth century. Different emphases and approaches to comparative education methodology have emerged in recent times thanks to major developments in technology, but have these changes rendered Jullien's ideas redundant? This paper looks at the current predominant methodology in comparative studies of curriculum by critiquing the instruments of the Programme for International Student Assessment. Some pitfalls of comparing through a focus on student learning outcomes in defined subjects are discussed. The paper concludes by looking at how Jullien's Plan might offer ways of addressing some of the modern challenges and opportunities facing comparative research methodology in curriculum studies.

Background: This paper analyses the role of, and approach to, policy referencing and borrowing in Hong Kong's recent reforms that culminated in the creation of its New Academic Structure and the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education. Main argument: It argues that Hong Kong has gone further than most jurisdictions not just in responding to global influences on education reform, but in taking explicit steps to internationally benchmark its curriculum and assessment, and in involving the global community at multiple levels in the process of education policy planning and implementation. Sources of evidence and method: The paper is based on the documentary analysis of policy documents in Hong Kong, and 23 interviews with key stakeholders in the policy network, including policy-makers, practitioners and community leaders. Discussion and conclusions: While policy referencing and borrowing in the Hong Kong context can, in part, be traced to a colonial legacy, the Special Administrative Region of China demonstrates a collaborative approach to education reform involving local and international engagement that may be relevant to other systems. Its approach was informed by a measured use of policy referencing that involved "horizon scanning" of other systems' policies and practices; international benchmarking; and engaging international expertise to facilitate implementation.

This article forms the first part of an Action Research project designed to incorporate formative assessment into the culture of learning of a bilingual school in Shanghai, China. It synthesises the empirical literature on formative assessment in China to establish some of the difficulties that teachers have faced in trying to incorporate this approach into their teaching. Some of the barriers include student and teacher resistance and notions of face (mianzi) which are also related to deeply held cultural scripts for teaching and learning that emphasise knowledge transmission and respect for the teacher. The article then explores some of the bottom-up solutions that have been suggested by researchers, such as collaborative dialogue, professional development and international perspectives. These suggestions provide a jumping-off point for offering intercultural communicative competence as a concept and a method that could be effective in ameliorating cultural discontinuities. Throughout, I show how the difficulties and solutions highlighted by empirical research relate to my own teaching context. Although intercultural communicative competence is not new to China, its application to the internalisation of borrowed policies that include formative assessment has yet to be explored.

This paper presents perceptions of China's Confucius Institute project held by different stakeholders in China and the USA. A number of studies have been published in each place since the first establishment of Confucius Institutes in 2004, but there has not been a comparative study to date. The study, which draws on media reports related to significant milestones in the development of Confucius Institutes, shows that, in the USA, the institutes are viewed with a considerable degree of ambivalence. They are attractive for universities seeking engagement with China, but also seen as a threat to academic freedom. Domestically, Confucius Institutes are perceived as a way to soften China's international image and to promote the Chinese language and culture, although some concerns have been raised about the cost and transparency of the initiative. The paper highlights the controversial aspects of the institutes and outlines some of the challenges facing China in making the strategy effective.

Teacher burnout is an important phenomenon that affects the education system and society as a whole. Assessment represents a form of stress for teachers, and this study explores the association between teachers' assessment-related beliefs and their burnout level. To this end, the Teachers' Conceptions of Assessment (TCoA) inventory along with the Maslach Burnout Inventory were administered to a sample of Iranian teachers of English language. Multiple correspondence analysis and multiple regression analysis were employed for data analysis. The results reveal a significant relationship between TCoA and the three dimensions of burnout (emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment). It is similarly found that conceiving of assessment as irrelevant to the life and work of teachers and learners is the best predictor of Depersonalisation and Personal Accomplishment, whereas Student Accountability is the best predictor of Emotional Exhaustion. Finally, the results are discussed and implications are provided in the context of education.