Education

Mr Pascal Lamy, former Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and European Commissioner for Trade, gave a lecture on the challenges and future of global commerce and globalisation at The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) on 11 December. The event attracted over 100 participants, comprising government officials, business and community leaders, economists, academics and members of the University community.

The School of Graduate Studies of Lingnan University has initiated a research project to address growing concerns regarding the emotional well-being of Hong Kong students and the academic stress they have faced since the COVID-19 pandemic. The project focuses on "Enhancing positive values among primary students through digital storytelling." Research findings indicate that incorporating digital storytelling in primary schools’ English language classes helps inculcate positive values among students. It is found that this pedagogical approach not only improves students’ engagement in class, but also significantly contributes to their holistic development, and emotional and mental well-being, and cultivates positive values in young learners.

"Amaterasu" particle: a new cosmic mystery, Geckos inspire robotic device, Targeting cancer while protecting healthy cells, Honey, I shrunk the bear, Two species lost to science spotted again. Plus New Science Communication Resources. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.

Lingnan University held the opening ceremony for Lingnan@WestKowloon and Lingnan Arts Biennale 2023 Digital Art Exhibition “Digital Matter” at M+ Tower of West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) today (7 December). The unveiling ceremony of it was officiated by Council Chairman Mr Andrew Yao Cho-fai, Council Treasurer Ms Katherine Cheung Marn-kay, Chairman of the Court Dr Patrick Wong Chi-kwong, and Prof S. Joe Qin, President and Wai Kee Kau Chair Professor of Data Science of Lingnan University. They marked the launch of the Lingnan@WestKowloon by presiding over the switching-on ceremony.

Professor Keith Ho Wing-kei, Acting Head of the Department of Science and Environmental Studies, has been named in the 2023 Highly Cited Researchers list released by Clarivate Analytics. This is the sixth consecutive year Professor Ho has been named on the list, which charts the world’s most influential researchers. Those on the list have demonstrated exceptional performance by producing multiple highly cited papers that rank in the top 1% by citation for their field. In 2023, only 6,849 researchers in 20 research areas, across multiple fields and from over 67 countries and regions, have earned this exclusive distinction.

Riding on the success of the previous two seminar sessions, the Distinguished Scholars Seminar Series organised by Lingnan University’s School of Graduate Studies continues with the delivery of its third seminar. The seminar series takes place between November and December 2023 and features world-renowned scholars sharing their insights and expertise on various topics.

The School of Graduate Studies at Lingnan University recently kicked off its much-awaited Conference for Higher Education Research (CHER) – Hong Kong 2023. This year, over 180 participants from 12 regions registered for this two-day conference, including scholars from Australia, United States, Finland, England, Turkey, Singapore, Kazakhstan, China. The conference is centered on the theme of "Education for Sustainability: Navigating the Changing Landscape of Higher Education." The conference aims to bring together scholars, policymakers, and practitioners from around the world to explore the latest trends, challenges, and good practices to promote education for sustainability in the higher education setting.

The QS Higher Education APAC Summit 2023, a pivotal event for academics and administrators, will take place in Kuala Lumpur from 7-9 November 2023. In a noteworthy precursor to this, Lingnan University successfully hosted a Pre-Summit APAC 2023 at its Hong Kong campus today (3 November 2023). The pre-summit was particularly focused on liberal arts, and it explored the ongoing evolution of these disciplines along with the increasing impact of technology in and beyond the classroom.

EdUHK’s Centre of Excellence in Higher Education Teaching and Learning Innovations (CEHETLI) has won the Game Changer Award at the Bett Asia Awards 2023. The award celebrates those leveraging technology to make significant strides in the education field across the Asia-Pacific region. It represents notable recognition for CEHETLI – a higher education teacher capacity building project led by Professor Lim Cher-ping, at the Faculty of Education and Human Development (FEHD).

This prestigious event will feature 400 education leaders from schools and higher education establishments across Asia, taking the stage to share insights and best practices on shaping the digital future of education.

Hunting for supermassive black holes, Coastal survival at risk, Calcium and dead cell clean-up, Two naps are better than one & Pineapple leaf prosthetics. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.

Past research on Chinese mathematics teaching has focused mainly on the role of teacher’s beliefs and professional knowledge separately in teaching approaches, or examined three variables – teacher’s beliefs, professional knowledge and teaching approaches – in correlational studies. How teaching beliefs and professional knowledge specifically influence teaching approaches remained largely unclear. Also, most studies have focused on pre-service or elementary school teachers in the West. There is a need to know whether these conceptual frameworks can be applied and adapted to the Chinese teaching context at the secondary level.

Most research on the association between visual skills and reading has focused on how visual skills facilitate reading. But learning to read Chinese involves both visual skills and mapping between print and sound. It is not clear how their association develops in later stages. This study investigated the association of timed visual processing tasks varying in levels of phonological processing with word reading.

In this collaborative project between Newcastle University and Universiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP), the team aimed to create a sustainable, cost-effective lower limb prosthetic socket (LLPS) using natural fiber-reinforced composites. The objectives included designing a green LLPS, assessing its environmental impact, and engaging stakeholders. PALF was selected as a sustainable reinforcement and incorporated into the composite. The design was guided by a static-friction (‘stiction’) load-transfer framework, developed previously by Goh and co-workers, which explains how force is transferred from the polymer to the fibres. The project has also inspired worldwide interest in sustainable LLPS development through a press release, receiving inquiries from students at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and a group of 7th graders in the USA.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are a new species of fish that was spotted being sold at local markets, how humans almost went extinct, and an Earth-like planet that may be lurking in our solar system.

Although the importance of investigating the enabling role of student feedback literacy has been widely covered in the literature, a measurement instrument is still lacking. A study by Dr Jane Zhan Ying, Assistant Professor at the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, The Education University of Hong Kong, used a construct validation approach to validate the self-developed student feedback literacy scale, with two types of examinations: within- and between-network examinations. Within-network examinations use reliability and confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) to explore the dimensional structure of the scale. Between-network examination performs correlation analyses to investigate the correlation between the scale and other constructs theoretically related to the scale.

How much is adequate screen time for a child? It is the question at the forefront of many parents’ minds. Now, a recent cohort study has found that the amount of screen time spent by one-year-olds is associated with developmental delays.

Numerous studies highlight vocabulary as a critical predictor determining word and text reading comprehension in monolingual and bilingual children, but when measuring vocabulary, most studies focus on either breadth or depth, or conflate the two, which devalues the unique role each dimension plays in reading comprehension.

Japanese fossil forest found, AI finds a way to people’s hearts, Language diversity and child social development & Supplement for kidney disease. Plus Submissions open for Asia Research News 2024. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.

Greetings from JHSSR, Horizon is proud to announce the highly acclaimed publication of the latest issue of 2023, Vol. 5, Issue 1 (Jul. 2023). The issue is now live at the Journal’s webpage. You may explore our range of contributions within this Issue. Explore this issue, click the links below.

Newcastle University (UK) and the Energy Research Institute at Nanyang Technological University hosted a UK-Singapore symposium funded by the UK Government in April 2023. It aimed to foster partnerships and research for widespread electric vehicle adoption. The event featured discussions on technology, economics, and policy over three days, encouraging joint collaboration in advanced electric transport research and commercialization.

Two cross-institutional initiatives, the ‘Academic Integrity and Ethics – Augmented Reality’ (AIE-AR) Project and the Joint University Mental Wellness Project (JUMP), with The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) as team members, have won the Second-Class Prizes at the 2022 National Teaching Achievement Awards (Higher Education) presented by the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China.

Researchers from Newcastle University, led by Dr Kheng Lim Goh, have developed a cost-effective Cellular Automata (CA) model for predicting marine plastic movement. Findings from model predictions align well with traditional particle-tracking models, suggesting its potential as a valuable tool for assessing marine plastic pollution and mitigation strategies.

A team of researchers from universities in Thailand and Malaysia have collaborated to develop a unique kind of bioplastic sheet that is good for the environment and can decompose naturally. They made this bioplastic sheet using a byproduct of the bromelain industry which used the leftover pineapple stems from agricultural waste. This new type of bioplastic sheet has the potential to be used as single-use packaging material, as an alternative to the use of harmful plastic sheet, contributing to a more sustainable way of doing business and promoting a circular economy.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are ice-free Arctic summers, how monkey malaria gets transmitted, and over 300 new species discovered in the lower Mekong.

A delegation led by President Professor Stephen Cheung Yan-leung of The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) met with officials of Cambodia’s Directorate General of Higher Education (DGHE) of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, in Phnom Penh, last month. The purpose of the visit was to follow up on discussions held during DGHE representatives’ visit to EdUHK in February 2023, and to strengthen educational collaboration between the University and the Cambodian Government.

- Business agreement for implementing and operating a Semiconductor Contracting Department - After recruiting students starting from 2024, those selected as scholars will have the opportunity to join Samsung Electronics.

Dr Daniel Fung King-tat, Assistant Professor at the Department of English Language Education, The Education University of Hong Kong, has written a book chapter entitled ‘Students’ Experience in Online Teaching and Learning: An Investigation into EMI Classroom Interaction, Willingness to Communicate and Classroom Enjoyment’. The chapter, which was featured in the book The Use of Technology in English Medium Education, explores students’ views and experiences by comparing online and face-to-face classes.

Osaka Metropolitan University researcher demonstrates that social and educational indicators strongly affect the population decline rate. This indicates that municipalities that invest more in education for children tend to have lower population decline rates. Surprisingly, educational indicators have a greater influence than economic indicators, such as the financial strength index. Some Asian countries, such as South Korea and China, will experience population declines as a result of low birth rates and aging populations.

This study by Dr Chrysa Keung Pui-chi, Assistant Professor at the Department of Education Policy and Leadership, The Education University of Hong Kong, examined the relationships between leadership practices, professional learning communities, teachers’ efficacy beliefs and perceptions of whole-child development in the context of kindergarten education.