Eric C. K. Cheng

Knowledge strategies for enhancing school learning capacity

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the knowledge strategies applied in aided secondary schools in Hong Kong and to explore the predictive relationship between knowledge strategies and school learning capacity.Design/methodology/approach – A cross‐sectional quantitative survey was designed to collect data from 427 teachers at 15 aided secondary schools in Hong Kong. Exploratory factor analysis and a structural equation model were applied to explore the factor structure of the latent variables and their relationships.Findings – The results showed that the schools use interpersonal interactive knowledge sharing as their major knowledge strategy. Knowledge retrieval, utilisation and sharing were identified as the predictive factors for individual learning capacity and organisation learning capacity.Practical implications – School administrators could consider the knowledge strategy of cultivating a community of practices in school organisation to develop teacher teaching competency and to enha...

Learning Study: nurturing the instructional design and teaching competency of pre-service teachers

This paper presents an evaluation study of an innovative and theory-based initial teacher education course entitled Learning Study, the aim of which is to develop the instructional design and teaching competency of pre-service teachers in Hong Kong. The Learning Study course is offered to all second year students as part of the Bachelor of Education programme of the biggest teacher education institute in Hong Kong. The course comprises a series of theory-based tutorials, supportive consultation meetings, and a research lesson practicum. To assess the effectiveness of the course, a framework of representation, decomposition, and approximation of practices was adopted to describe and analyse the teaching of practice. A total of 341 pre-service teachers participated in a quasi-experimental design questionnaire survey. A structural equation model was applied to explore the relationship between the activities of their learning process and their learning outcomes. Theory-based tutorials, consultative support, and research practicums are confirmed to be the predictors of learning outcomes which include instructional design skills, teaching competency, and clinical experience. This paper proposes Learning Study as a model to help pre-service teachers develop their instructional design skills and teaching competency.

Developing strategies for communities of practice

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore strategies to develop communities of practice (CoP) to improve teaching in a school context. Design/methodology/approach – A cross-sectional questionnaire is developed to collect data from participants in a project that aims to cultivate a CoP to improve their small class teaching skills. A total of 125 teachers from 35 primary schools participated in the survey. A structural equation model is used to explore the predictive power of the strategies on all three of the CoP elements. Findings – Content strategy is confirmed as the predictor of all the CoP elements, while process strategy is a predictor only for joint enterprise and shared repertoire. Practical implications – The application of these strategies to develop a CoP in schools involves designing a reflective and collaborative learning content, as well as monitoring, regulating and streamlining the learning process. Originality/value – The study contributes an empirical framework to the research of ...

Managing records and archives in a Hong Kong school: a case study

Purpose This study aims to explore the principles and practices for managing records with the lens of functional analysis and knowledge management by using a case study that focuses on the experience of implementing records management at a public high school in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach A single case study is chosen as the research method for this paper. A series of qualitative interviews and documentary analysis were used to collect and triangulate the qualitative data. Findings The results show that the case school adopted a hybrid top-down and bottom-up approach to record management, facilitate decision-making and manage knowledge. The school adopted the taxonomy provided by the quality assurance framework as the functional classification in a digital archive in the records management system. Practical implications This study provides a set of taxonomy and a hybrid top-down and bottom-up approach to schools for ensuring that accurate information of all school activities is kept and can facilitate an effective and evidence-based, decision-making process. Social implications Identifying taxonomy and management practices for effective documentation in public schools can support planning, assist with organising the continuity of improvement plans and increase reporting and accountability to society. Originality/value This study offers a taxonomy and management approach to the literature of records management and the practices for promoting and improving records management in school.

Knowledge management strategies for capitalising on school knowledge

Purpose This paper aims to explore the extent to which knowledge management practices, that is the process of developing and sharing organisational knowledge, can enhance intellectual capital (IC) in the context of school education. Design/methodology/approach A mixed-method approach was adopted as the research strategy. A cross-sectional quantitative survey was conducted to collect data from 445 teachers at 13 primary schools in Hong Kong. A structural equation model (SEM) was applied to confirm the predictive effective of knowledge strategies on school IC. Interviews were conducted in a case school to explore the process for capitalising the knowledge by Lesson Study. Findings The result of the SEM shows that personalisation and codification strategies are predictors of human capital and structural capital at schools. The findings from interviews with the principals and teachers show that personalisation and codification strategies could be put into operation as a Lesson Study to leverage knowledge for school development. Originality/value This paper contributes to the management practices of school organisation for enhancing their IC by conducting Lesson Study for the development of their schools effectively.

Managing school-based professional development activities

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a model to assist school leaders in managing the professional development activities of teachers. The model illustrates the important role of principals in promoting continuing professional development (CPD), chiefly by cultivating a collaborative learning culture and formulating policy. Design/methodology/approach This study tested a framework based on the input of 103 CPD coordinators in Hong Kong, who participated in a quasi-experimental design questionnaire survey. Factor analysis and reliability tests were applied to verify the constructed validity and reliability of a self-developed instrument. A Structural Equation Model (SEM) was then applied to confirm the model. Findings The result of the SEM shows that principal support has a predictive effect on CPD policy and a collaborative learning culture, while the effectiveness of a CPD plan is predicted by collaborative culture and management strategy. Originality/value This study contributes theoretically to existing literature and practically to school leaders, by supplying a model for managing teacher CPD.

Knowledge Management for School Development

This chapter critically reviews essential concepts, theories and practices of knowledge management and explores the feasibility of applying KM to school education. It addresses the nature of knowledge and the definition of KM. It articulates the application of Nonaka and Takeuchi’s knowledge conversion model at individual, group and organisational levels in schools to manage knowledge, and describes how school culture, knowledge strategies and processes, staff competencies and information technology affect the implementation of KM.

Challenges for Schools in a Knowledge Society

This chapter articulates the challenges facing schools from education and curriculum reforms undertaken to meet the demands of a knowledge society. The challenges include the failure of schools to conduct strategic planning in order to develop student learning capacity for the knowledge society within the competitive global economy. This chapter supports the claims that schools should conduct knowledge management for sustainable development and develop the competency of teachers in personal knowledge management in order to leverage teachers’ pedagogical knowledge.

Conceptualizing Lesson Study from International Literature

Lesson Study developed in Japan as a form of collaborative teacher training, and in resistance to restrictions on teacher professional autonomy as the government imposed a bureaucratically controlled national curriculum. This chapter summarizes the development of, and critical literature on, Lesson Study. It also identifies the gap between theory and practice in school development from the perspective of knowledge management, with particular reference to issues in transplanting Lesson Study to other countries.

Rotating PDCA Cycles Through SECI Processes for Curriculum Management

As previously mentioned, we can apply the SECI model as an analytical lens to examine the knowledge-conversion process in the PDCA cycles of Lesson Study and the KJ method for knowledge creation. Using this model, this chapter examines how the PDCA cycle of Lesson Study can be adopted at individual, departmental and organizational levels to address knowledge gaps for curriculum implementation. This chapter explains the knowledge creation process at the subject (departmental) level and school-level PDCA cycle of Lesson Study. It goes on to discuss the interrelatedness of subject and school-level Lesson study from a curriculum management perspective.