In Hong Kong, kindergarten education is considered the first stage of the formal education system, providing three-year pre-primary education to children aged 3–6 years. Kindergarten education exists at the intersection of local mindsets and global influences. Teaching practices in Hong Kong kindergartens have predominantly been teacher-centered, reflecting Chinese values and norms and the influence of Confucianism. However, due to globalization, there has been a push to incorporate Western pedagogical approaches in the classroom, which has created important tensions and contradictions for educators, as certain tenets of Western pedagogies do not align well with the preferences and priorities of Hong Kong parents and families. Drawing on the theoretical notion of glocalization, this edited book presents and discusses quality pedagogies situated in Hong Kong kindergartens. The pedagogies featured are both consistent with globally accepted discourses and aligned with local cultural values. By following the “foreground-middle ground-background” theoretical framework proposed by Chen (2022), the book showcases theoretically grounded examples of glocal pedagogies in the various learning areas of the official kindergarten curriculum framework. The target audience of this book is kindergarten practitioners (from teachers to principals), teacher educators, and curriculum designers in Hong Kong and other Asian societies with similar socio-cultural characteristics. The book also aims to inform the international research community on what glocal pedagogies look like in Hong Kong kindergartens. This chapter begins by offering an overview of the Hong Kong kindergarten education system, tracing the evolution of kindergarten curriculum frameworks in the territory. We discuss the impact of globalization and colonization on Hong Kong’s kindergarten education system, which has led to the adoption of Western educational notion in policy documents and official curriculum frameworks. The chapter explores the clash between traditional teaching practices rooted in Confucianism and the influence of globalization in education, highlighting the challenges of directly borrowing educational notions without considering the cultural context of Hong Kong. In response to these challenges, the concept of glocalization is proposed to adapt Western pedagogies and approaches in ways that are socio-culturally appropriate. This chapter concludes by outlining the structure of the various contributions included in the book and summarizing the main features of the glocal pedagogies proposed. We argue that such features are essential characteristics of culturally situated pedagogies in Hong Kong kindergartens, depicting the middle ground theorized by Chen (2022).

错误:搜索内容不能为空,请输入英文关键词
错误:关键词超出字数限制,请精简
高级检索

Culturally Situated Pedagogies in Hong Kong Kindergarten Education

  • Alfredo Bautista,
  • Thomas Fan,
  • Xuanyi Eliza Wu

摘要

In Hong Kong, kindergarten education is considered the first stage of the formal education system, providing three-year pre-primary education to children aged 3–6 years. Kindergarten education exists at the intersection of local mindsets and global influences. Teaching practices in Hong Kong kindergartens have predominantly been teacher-centered, reflecting Chinese values and norms and the influence of Confucianism. However, due to globalization, there has been a push to incorporate Western pedagogical approaches in the classroom, which has created important tensions and contradictions for educators, as certain tenets of Western pedagogies do not align well with the preferences and priorities of Hong Kong parents and families. Drawing on the theoretical notion of glocalization, this edited book presents and discusses quality pedagogies situated in Hong Kong kindergartens. The pedagogies featured are both consistent with globally accepted discourses and aligned with local cultural values. By following the “foreground-middle ground-background” theoretical framework proposed by Chen (2022), the book showcases theoretically grounded examples of glocal pedagogies in the various learning areas of the official kindergarten curriculum framework. The target audience of this book is kindergarten practitioners (from teachers to principals), teacher educators, and curriculum designers in Hong Kong and other Asian societies with similar socio-cultural characteristics. The book also aims to inform the international research community on what glocal pedagogies look like in Hong Kong kindergartens. This chapter begins by offering an overview of the Hong Kong kindergarten education system, tracing the evolution of kindergarten curriculum frameworks in the territory. We discuss the impact of globalization and colonization on Hong Kong’s kindergarten education system, which has led to the adoption of Western educational notion in policy documents and official curriculum frameworks. The chapter explores the clash between traditional teaching practices rooted in Confucianism and the influence of globalization in education, highlighting the challenges of directly borrowing educational notions without considering the cultural context of Hong Kong. In response to these challenges, the concept of glocalization is proposed to adapt Western pedagogies and approaches in ways that are socio-culturally appropriate. This chapter concludes by outlining the structure of the various contributions included in the book and summarizing the main features of the glocal pedagogies proposed. We argue that such features are essential characteristics of culturally situated pedagogies in Hong Kong kindergartens, depicting the middle ground theorized by Chen (2022).