Showing papers in "Asia Pacific Journal of Education in 2014"
TL;DR: The authors examines two key concepts in research on policy borrowing and lending that are often used to explain why and how educational reforms travel across national boundaries: reception and translation, and makes the argument that policy analysts in other countries only emulate the system features of league leaders if it fits their own domestic policy agenda.
Abstract: The article examines two key concepts in research on policy borrowing and lending that are often used to explain why and how educational reforms travel across national boundaries: reception and translation. The studies on reception analyse the political, economic, and cultural reasons that account for the attractiveness of a reform from elsewhere. Translation, in turn, captures the act of local adaptation, modification, or re-framing of an imported reform. Strikingly, in most cases the act of policy borrowing is deterritorialized and draws on broadly defined international standards or “best practices”. The exceptions are references to the league leaders in international student achievement tests such as, most recently, Singapore, Finland, and Shanghai. The article makes the argument that policy analysts in other countries only emulate the system features of league leaders if it fits their own domestic policy agenda. Furthermore, there is a new body of research emerging in comparative education that invest...
202 citations
TL;DR: This paper found that only a few books on comparative education serve as general guides to introduce students to the field and to be adopted as textbooks for classroom instruction, and only few of these are edited v...
Abstract: Books on comparative education that serve as general guides usually aspire to introduce students to the field and be adopted as textbooks for classroom instruction. Only a few of these are edited v...
70 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the demand for private supplementary tutoring in Chongqing, China, based on a mixed-methods study of tutoring received by Grade 9 students.
Abstract: As in other parts of the world, private tutoring has expanded significantly in Mainland China during the past decade. This has been driven by factors including dramatic economic growth, high-stakes examinations, and the traditions of a Confucian culture at the macro-level, and school leadership and family incomes, at the micro-level. This paper examines the demand for private supplementary tutoring in Chongqing, China. It is based on a mixed-methods study of tutoring received by Grade 9 students. Based on an overview of the demand for shadow education by the sampled students and the driving factors at multiple levels, this paper investigates the role of teachers' power in shaping the demand. It draws on the data obtained from interviews and case studies, applying the theory of power bases to map the power relations among various stakeholders in both mainstream and shadow education systems. The study reveals that nearly half of Grade 9 students receive private tutoring, with mainstream teachers as the most...
64 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus on teacher-supplied private tutoring in the context of post-Soviet Georgia, and elucidate the ways in which teachers' tutoring can be related to educational corruption.
Abstract: The paper focuses on teacher-supplied private tutoring in the context of post-Soviet Georgia, and elucidates the ways in which teacher-supplied private tutoring can be related to educational corruption. The paper draws on data from in-depth interviews of 18 school teachers in different parts of Georgia in 2013. The findings of the qualitative study indicate challenges that teachers face as a result of their dual lives between schools and private tutoring. The challenges include moral dilemmas related to tutoring their students. The paper discusses how private tutoring becomes a “survival strategy” in the education system with low teacher pay, weak accountability system, and lack of monitoring efficacy. It highlights that the widely normalized practice in Georgia of teachers tutoring their students is not necessarily a form of corruption. However, it includes a high risk of corruption because of a thin line existing between teacher professional ethics and misconduct. Understanding how teachers rationalize ...
52 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors map the global discourse on shadow education, using an expanded framework for analysis based on the Bray and Thomas cube, and highlight the contribution of Asian research to shadow education.
Abstract: Private supplementary tutoring, also widely known as shadow education, is becoming a global phenomenon and an object of international scholarship. Private tutoring has multiple forms and positions across educational systems and levels, thus the term “shadow educations”. Asia is a notable location of shadow education activity. This editorial article maps the global discourse on shadow educations, using an expanded framework for analysis based on the Bray and Thomas cube. Against this backdrop, Asian research on shadow education presented in this special issue is introduced and its contribution to the global discourse is highlighted. A possible global research agenda is offered with the hope that new understandings derived from scholarly research may aid stakeholders in achieving the aims of education.
49 citations
TL;DR: Manzon is not a new name in comparative education as discussed by the authors, but she is well-known among the global comparative education community in her capacity as Assistant Secretary-General of the World Council of Co...
Abstract: Maria Manzon is not a new name in comparative education. She is well-known among the global comparative-education community in her capacity as Assistant Secretary-General of the World Council of Co...
43 citations
TL;DR: In this article, inequality in education exists among students with respect to participation in the learning activities of the school, including both classroom learning and individual learning from individual learners, as well as their participation in individual learning activities.
Abstract: As we all know, inequality in education exists among students with respect to participation in the learning activities of the school, including both classroom learning and individual learning from ...
41 citations
TL;DR: The authors argue that the importance of English in many ways promotes a neo-colonialism and certainly abets the neo-liberal ideals of encouraging a market economy, and present a series of cases in the Asia-Pacific region to illustrate dimensions of English as the hegemonic language and the implications of this for education policy and practice as examined in comparative education research.
Abstract: By the beginning of the twenty-first century, the English language had become the de facto lingua franca of the modern world. It is the most popular second or foreign language studied, such that now there are more people who have learned English as a second language and speak it with some competence than there are native English speakers. But why has English gained such prominence? What effect does this have on the globalized world? In this paper we argue that the importance of English in many ways promotes a neo-colonialism and certainly abets the neo-liberal ideals of encouraging a market economy. We present a series of cases in the Asia-Pacific region to illustrate dimensions of English as the hegemonic language and the implications of this for education policy and practice as examined in comparative education research.
36 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a quantitative picture solicited through questionnaires for students in Grades 9 and 12, and then turning to data from interviews, is presented to show that students' learning objectives may differ from those of their teachers.
Abstract: While research is increasingly available on the scale and costs of private supplementary tutoring, less information focuses on its pedagogical dimensions. This paper addresses patterns in Hong Kong. The paper begins with the quantitative picture solicited through questionnaires for students in Grades 9 and 12, and then turns to data from interviews. Among the students, some received tutoring while others did not. Those who received tutoring were asked to compare their teachers and tutors, and to indicate what they sought from the tutors that they did not find in their schooling. The students who did not receive tutoring were also asked about the culture of tutoring, and whether they would have liked to have received tutoring if they had had the necessary financial resources. Especially pertinent were statements about learning gaps and ways in which tutoring was perceived to help. The themes of this paper may resonate widely. The paper shows that students' learning objectives may differ from those of their...
34 citations
TL;DR: This paper used semi-structured interviews with 12 American, Canadian, Indian, Nepalese and Pakistani teachers working in three secondary schools in Hong Kong to examine how school teachers are handling the growing cultural diversity of the student population.
Abstract: One of the challenges facing Hong Kong schools is the growing cultural diversity of the student population that is a result of the growing number of ethnic minority students in the schools. This study uses semi-structured interviews with 12 American, Canadian, Indian, Nepalese and Pakistani teachers working in three secondary schools in the public sector to examine how school teachers are handling this challenge. The study uses these interviews to establish a model for the creation of culturally responsive environments that may help to improve the academic performance and promote the personal growth of students in Hong Kong's secondary schools. Five aspects of cultural responsiveness are identified: conceptualising cosmopolitanism, raising sensitivity to “minor acts of racism”, managing the diverse learning needs of students, promoting a deep understanding of cultural values and helping students deal with the challenges of trilingualism. This study argues that ethnic minority teachers are engaged in a con...
34 citations
TL;DR: A review of the evolution of different genres of comparative educations reveals the importance of contextual considerations as a constant ritornello (a refrain or instrumental interlude) in comparative education research as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: This introductory article serves as a hermeneutical tool for interpreting the subsequent articles in this special issue, which explores the nature and roles of comparative education in the 21st century within the context of a changing world order and the growing prominence of comparative education in the Asia-Pacific region. A review of the evolution of different genres of comparative educations reveals the importance of contextual considerations as a constant ritornello (a refrain or instrumental interlude) in comparative education research. Reflections on comparative education in dialectical perspectives in this article provide new impetus and enlightenment on contemporary issues in education and society. Seeing comparative education as a dialectic process enhances the openness of comparative education to challenge the status quo perception of issues, and provides a compare-and-contrast perspective to identify polemic interpretations, such as empirical epistemology which can be viewed as a subjectivity ...
TL;DR: Park et al. as mentioned in this paper conducted a series of secondary analyses of the data set produced by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International M... and found that PISA data set is highly readable.
Abstract: In this highly readable book, Hyunjoon Park undertakes a series of secondary analyses of the data set produced by Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International M...
TL;DR: The authors investigated professional learning taking place in a teacher-created online community and found that teachers usually began as observers, reading others' postings and using contributors' teaching resources, and moved to collaborators, posting their comments on teaching resources and discussing their problems with other teachers.
Abstract: This study investigated professional learning taking place in a teacher-created online community. In particular, this aimed to explore how teachers at different levels of participation learn in an online community. The results showed that teachers usually began as observers, reading others' postings and using contributors' teaching resources, and moved to collaborators, posting their comments on teaching resources and discussing their problems with other teachers, and then to contributors, sharing their teaching resources with other teachers and providing information, advice, and help to other teachers. As they participated in the online community at different levels, teacher learning took place in multiple ways including learning through tryout, collaborative problem solving, and critical reconstruction. Yet, not all teachers moved toward full participation in the online community. The majority of teachers remained as observers and their lack of participation in the negotiation of meaning constrained tea...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the potential of practitioner research to produce contextually relevant knowledge and to develop leadership capacity in early childhood education and care, and found that collaborative practitioner research groups provide a relatively safe environment for the sharing of dilemmas and critical reflections.
Abstract: Early childhood education and care is currently experiencing unprecedented policy interest and expansion. This policy and practice landscape requires new forms of adaptive leadership, new spaces for production of the knowledge necessary for this changing context, and tools that can support the development of leadership qualities. This paper examines the potential of practitioner research to produce contextually relevant knowledge and to develop leadership capacity. Our findings show that collaborative practitioner research groups provide a relatively safe environment for the sharing of dilemmas and critical reflections. The practitioners who participated in this research wanted access to narratives of change in typically resourced early childhood contexts as well as in the more highly resourced settings that are more often reflected in academic research and literature. This suggests there is a need for much more of this work to be publicly available. These groups can generate the courage required to open ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors use descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis (both Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and covariate m... to evaluate the impact of the new merger and investment programmes on the educational performance of students.
Abstract: Aiming to provide better education facilities and improve the educational attainment of poor rural students, China's government has been merging remote rural primary schools into centralized village, town, or county schools since the late 1990s. To accompany the policy, boarding facilities have been constructed that allow (mandate) primary school-aged children to live at school rather than at home. More generally, there also have been efforts to improve rural schools, especially those in counties and towns. Unfortunately, little empirical work has been available to evaluate the impact of the new merger and investment programmes on the educational performance of students. Drawing on a unique dataset that records both the path by which students navigate their primary school years (i.e., which different types of schools did students attend) as well as math test scores in three poverty-stricken counties, we use descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis (both Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and covariate m...
TL;DR: The institutional framework of the field of comparative education has developed significantly in recent decades as mentioned in this paper, and one manifestation of development has been the establishment and activities of professional societies that operate in Asia and the Pacific.
Abstract: The institutional framework of the field of comparative education has developed significantly in recent decades. One manifestation of development has been the establishment and activities of professional societies. This paper focuses on 12 societies that operate in Asia and the Pacific. Some of these societies have long histories while others are recent creations. The paper considers the geographic and conceptual remits of these societies, and their activities including organization of conferences and publication of journals. Patterns are viewed through the lenses of literature on intellectual fields and on academic tribes and territories.
TL;DR: For instance, this paper found that Hong Kong university students are generally quite aware of globalization's impact on the economy and personal consumption choices and that while there is considerable apathy towards international affairs, there is also a great interest in cross-cultural service learning opportunities that is not being met by the available programmes.
Abstract: Despite the wealth of theoretical literature on globalization and global citizenship, empirical studies on the topic are lacking, especially in the context of pedagogical needs in relation to global citizenship education. In order to address this gap, a study was conducted in Hong Kong to investigate the attitudes of university students towards various dimensions of globalization and global citizenship. The initial results indicate that Hong Kong university students are generally quite aware of globalization's impact on the economy and personal consumption choices and that while there is considerable apathy towards international affairs, there is also a great interest in cross-cultural service learning opportunities that is not being met by the available programmes. Moreover, this study finds almost no association between age, gender, and religion and any of the measured dependent variables on attitudes towards globalization and global citizenship, the only exception being the factor of past intercultural...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the evolution and characteristics of educational policies on the private tutoring industry since the mid-twentieth century in Taiwan and summarize three strategies used by the Taipei government for implementation of policies.
Abstract: Previous studies show that attending private tutoring has become a necessity to many primary and secondary students in East Asia. Educational policies and their effective implementation are crucial to guarantee the healthy development of the private tutoring industry and thus protect the rights of students and their families. Under the framework of educational privatization, the paper discusses the evolution and characteristics of educational policies on the private tutoring industry since the mid-twentieth century in Taiwan. With documents and data mainly obtained from the website of the Short-term Supplementary Private Tutoring Section of the Taipei Education Bureau and field visits to Taipei city, the paper summarizes three strategies used by the Taipei government for implementation of policies. It concludes that educational policies on the private tutoring industry in Taiwan follow a privatization pattern of “market mechanism and government regulation”. The government does not provide or finance priva...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore how cosmopolitan perspectives have been reflected in recent changes to the Korean national curriculum, focusing on the policies associated with the Korean National Curriculum and the contents of the social studies and moral education curricula.
Abstract: The idea of cosmopolitanism is emerging as an explicit aim of the Korean educational system. Over the course of its 5,000-year history, Korea has been characterized by a largely homogeneous population. In recent years, however, it has begun to face the challenges of a multicultural society, and thus the notion of cosmopolitanism plays an important role in providing a vision for the reinterpretation of Korean identity. The purpose of this study is to explore how cosmopolitan perspectives have been reflected in recent changes to the Korean national curriculum. To achieve this aim, the study analyses national curriculum documents put in place after the mid-1990s, when great debates over educational reform emerged in the wake of globalization. In particular, the study focuses on two aspects of the manifestation of cosmopolitan perspectives: the policies associated with the Korean national curriculum, and the contents of the social studies and moral education curricula. The study concludes with a discussion of...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine migrant schools in the Thailand-Burma borderland and show the impressive growth of the migrant education institution, bringing the state into play and has achieved recognition from the state as a legitimate formal institution.
Abstract: This article examines migrant schools in the Thailand-Burma borderland. Substantial existence of migrant schools enables migrant children to have their own education even in the absence of proper legal status. The growth of migrant schools marked the building up of a migrant education institution in cooperation with international partners, showing progress in the constitution of migrant lives. Since the mid-2000s, the Thai government has engaged in migrant schools in an attempt to regularize them as learning centres under its guidance. This article argues that it should not necessarily be interpreted as a victory of the state over the migrants and migrant schools. Rather, it shows the impressive growth of the migrant education institution, bringing the state into play and has achieved recognition from the state as a legitimate formal institution.
TL;DR: In this paper, a model that considers demographic characteristics, attitudes toward shadow education and shadow education institutions' service attributes as antecedents of satisfaction level and behavioural intentions among a select group of Filipino university students was proposed.
Abstract: The overall intent of this exploratory study is to test a model that considers demographic characteristics, attitudes toward shadow education and shadow education institutions' service attributes as antecedents of satisfaction level and behavioural intentions among a select group of Filipino university students. To test the seven hypotheses in the proposed model, a total of 959 university students were recruited from one of the comprehensive universities in the capital of the country to participate in accomplishing a multi-aspect survey questionnaire. Results of the exploratory factor analysis yielded three distinct attitudes toward shadow education, namely: success-oriented, compensatory-oriented or efficacy-oriented. Structural equation modelling revealed two competing models of almost similar significant predictors. The model manifested that the aforementioned attitudes are being affected by the student clienteles' problems with academic performance and their perceived quality of education received fro...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed the Thai state policy responses to regulate private tutoring and found that the state regulation is dominated by the market ideology, while the educational aspects such as curriculum, quality assessment and qualification of the tutors.
Abstract: Private tutoring in academic subjects, which is provided for a fee and which takes place outside standard school hours, has become a global phenomenon. It is also very visible in Thailand. This paper draws on qualitative method including documentary analyses and semi-structured interviews with Thai policy elites, to understand the Thai state policy on the issue. Using a theory of the state, particularly the concepts of policy text and policy discourse, it analyses the Thai state policy responses to regulate private tutoring. While the state has given much attention to commercial regulations for safety and customers’ protection, little attention has been given to the educational aspects such as curriculum, quality assessment and qualification of the tutors. Analyses of policy texts and interviews with Thai policymakers at the Office of Private Education Commission and the Office of Education Council showed that the Thai state regulation on private tutoring is dominated by the market ideology. The Thai stat...
TL;DR: In this article, a study was conducted to understand how elementary school teachers implemented culturally responsive teaching in their classes in Taiwan, and the results indicated that teachers practised culturally-responsive teaching based on the prescripts of existing school regulations.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to understand how elementary school teachers implemented culturally responsive teaching in their classes in Taiwan. Data were collected through interviews from five teachers with new Taiwanese children in their classes. The results indicated that teachers practised culturally responsive teaching based on the prescripts of existing school regulations. Due to the restrictions of education policy, curriculum, school regulations, few numbers of new Taiwanese children in the class, and parents' lower expectation, significant teaching reform to meet the diverse needs of students and improve their learning is still a long way off.
TL;DR: The authors report on first year experiences of international students who use English as an additional language (EAL) in higher education in Australia and examine how valued resources can foster a positive educational experience of these students from sociological perspectives.
Abstract: This paper reports on first year experiences of international students who use English as an additional language (EAL) in higher education in Australia. It examines how valued resources can foster a positive educational experience of these students from sociological perspectives. It draws data from an interview study, exploring narrative accounts of 17 EAL international students from nine countries about their educational relations and strategies across their first year of study. Their narratives were analysed through Bourdieu's concepts of field, habitus, capital and legitimation, as well as tools of narrative inquiry. The paper finds that the students took up strategies to realign their capital portfolios with new rules of the game. Their decisions were dependent on their personal trajectories and conditions on offer. This paper suggests that more effort needs to be made to understand international students' differentiated access to valued resources in higher education.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue for a secular foundation in society and school to protect against religion contributing to conflict and extremism, but this is not a hard version of secularism, but a dynamic secularism which adapts to different contexts in time and space.
Abstract: The continuing incidence of extremist acts committed in the name of religion underscores the need to examine the interplay between religion and learning. This article argues for a secular foundation in society and school to protect against religion contributing to conflict and extremism. However, this is not a hard version of secularism, but a dynamic secularism which adapts to different contexts in time and space. A number of myths about secularism are exposed. The article draws on complexity theory to show how religion amplifies conflict, but also to show how a complex adaptive society can accommodate diverse faiths. A comparative perspective across a range of countries and continents reveals highly diverse patterns of religious education, and shows their links to power and nation-building. There are clear dangers of the politicization of religion and of segregation in a plural society. Yet, a complexity approach also warns of blanket global recommendations about the intersection between faith and schoo...
TL;DR: In this paper, a case study was carried out within the context of a requirement for every Australian Capital Territory Education and Training Directorate (ACT ETD) high school to include Indigenous perspectives across all areas of the curriculum.
Abstract: This study was carried out within the context of a requirement for every Australian Capital Territory Education and Training Directorate (ACT ETD) high school to include Indigenous perspectives across all areas of the curriculum. For the first time ever in the case study school reported in this article, two Torres Strait Island dances were taught to students from Year 7 to Year 9. Traditionally dance within Physical Education (PE) in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) has been informed by British and American influences. This paper seeks to problematize the inclusion of Indigenous dance into a Westernized PE curriculum and considers the challenges faced by non-Indigenous Health and Physical Education (HPE) teachers in relation to this, as well as what support is available. It is argued from the findings of this study that it is possible for schools to move beyond traditional PE content and include Indigenous perspectives in a non-tokenistic way. However, it is also argued that such an approach require...
TL;DR: The authors explored these aspects through interviews and email correspondence with Thinh, a highly accomplished TESOL professional who pursued a Master's degree as an international student in Australia and found that when she was in Australia, she displayed strong agency as she changed some aspects of her identity in order to adapt to studying and living in the country.
Abstract: Many TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) programmes focus on providing professional knowledge to Asian teachers who are pursuing their degrees in English-speaking countries. However, not much attention is given to their expectations, personal lived experiences and identity construction while studying in these countries. These aspects are important in their development as users and teachers of English. This article explores these aspects through interviews and email correspondence with Thinh, a highly accomplished TESOL professional who pursued a Master of TESOL degree as an international student in Australia. Findings suggest that when she was in Australia, she displayed strong agency as she changed some aspects of her identity in order to adapt to studying and living in the country. Nevertheless, there is also continuity in her identity construction, as she maintained other aspects of the identity that she brought from her home country. Her identity construction is best seen in the co...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors consider the gap between national level minority education policies and local implementation in Japan, and consider this gap as a "soft middle" whereby local communities and schools have considerable leeway in how they implement policies.
Abstract: Examining the gap between national level minority education policies and local implementation in Japan, this paper considers this gap as a “soft middle” whereby local communities and schools have considerable leeway in how they implement policies. In particular, this paper focuses on Japan's largest minority group, the burakumin and their educational experiences. It traces the origins of educational policies targeting burakumin and how these policies were designed with this soft middle in mind. Following this, the paper considers two different localized approaches, both under policies directed at the burakumin and after the termination of such policies. It argues that schools can selectively implement policies while still fitting within the parameters of the law. Finally, it demonstrates that considering the soft middle provides for a richer, more nuanced understanding of educational systems, beyond monolithic assumptions of national systems.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine two "functional capabilities" that participants discussed in relation to their post-study experiences: having economic opportunities and developing a sense of affiliation, and highlight some barriers to each capability.
Abstract: In 2008 the Asia New Zealand Foundation commissioned a three-year project examining Asia-born New Zealand-educated business graduates' study to work transitions. Data were collected through annual online surveys and in-depth interviews. Graduates were asked to discuss their post-study experiences, reflections on studying in New Zealand, and perceptions of their New Zealand business education. Participants included 171 (phase one), 76 (phase two) and 41 (phase three) students and recent graduates. All except one were based in New Zealand or the Asia region. In this paper we draw on “engaged pedagogy” and “functional capabilities” perspectives to consider phase two and three participants' accounts of their study to work transition pathways. Specifically, we examine two “functional capabilities” that participants discussed in relation to their post-study experiences: having economic opportunities and developing a sense of affiliation. We highlight some barriers to each “capability” that emerged in participan...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an analytical framework for developing students' sexual literacy through popular culture to respond to these issues, which enables teachers to shift from analysing popular culture itself to understanding the lessons regarding sexuality and gender that students derive from it.
Abstract: Although most teachers realize the potential of using popular culture within the sexuality education classroom, incorporating it successfully is complex. Especially, how can teachers critically analyse the ideology contained in popular culture without lapsing into moralizing and design motivating activities? For teachers in Taiwan, whose training has involved abstinence-only sex education and discourse, avoiding such activities is an even greater challenge. This study attempts to present an analytical framework for development students' sexual literacy through popular culture to respond to these issues. The framework for using popular culture sexual literacy as a pedagogical tool enables teachers to shift from analysing popular culture itself to understanding the lessons regarding sexuality and gender that students derive from it. Using this analytic framework, teachers can establish an interesting and meaningful method to discuss sex and intimacy relationship issues and facilitate students' inquiry into ...