Abstract:
The ECE department offered foundation modules focus on educational philosophers and educational development for BEd and CE students. The project team believed that the past provides lessons for the present and can be used as the guidance for the future. The team chose most Western philosophers and the study of development from documents. To help students to appreciate the process of ECE development and to learn from the past, it was very essential to offer various resources to allow students to identify different perspectives and points of views. Nevertheless, it seemed that the present teaching materials were mainly reports and critical journals and neglected the stories from local ECE educators whom had made significant contributions to the ECE profession. Their stories conveyed moral and practical lessons about how to act and provide the basis for assessing the reasons for success or failure.
This project aimed at collecting the narratives of our local academics and practitioners about Hong Kong ECE development. Studying the ECE development was not just for knowing but also for thinking. The selected ECE practitioners were best represented in history. From reading the narratives, students could interpret the ECE development from different perspectives. From the collection of multiple stories, students could understand how policies or social events impact practitioners in different ways.
Code:
3329
Principal Project Supervisors:
Subjects:
Start Date:
01 Mar 2009
End Date:
31 Jul 2011
Status:
Completed
Result:
After reading their unique life stories from practitioners s of different decades, there were some similarities across the decades:
Although changes in government policies on ECE greatly influenced the operation of kindergartens, the curricula goals and teacher development, ECE teachers were often not aware of the specific details of these policies. They carefully followed the principals’ leaderships. However, teachers experienced the changes in workload, kindergarten practices after the implementation of Voucher Scheme.
Teachers entered the profession without big ambitious, they started with “Love” children.
In-service trainings raised teachers’ aspirations and teaching quality.
Teachers experienced the changes in parental attitudes and influences on schools.
Teachers were very eager to learn, diligent and enthusiastic.
Impact:
Reading stories and experiences of ECE elders/ experts helped students to develop respect for past achievements and contributions. It helped them to think outside the box - salary and promotions trying to renew their missions and visions.
Besides, more devoted and committed ECE educators’ stories were reviewed. The team believed the best advices are from those who have made the journey before us.
The narrative inquiry approach could be further developed in researching teacher development. It was a good research method to provide an account of how a teacher’s life events unfolded and why.
Deliverables:
陳寶蓮、譚美顏、繆玉珍（2011）。四代幼師說香港幼兒教育。香港：香港教育學院。https://repository.eduhk.hk/en/publications/086b58ca-1aa5-4933-b3f7-ea40...
Financial Year:
2008-09
Type:
TDG