{"id":24200,"date":"2026-05-29T10:22:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-29T02:22:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/?page_id=24200"},"modified":"2026-06-23T12:49:40","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T04:49:40","slug":"exploring-the-nexus-of-education","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/impact-cases\/exploring-the-nexus-of-education\/","title":{"rendered":"Exploring the Nexus of Education, Technology and Equity"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"24200\" class=\"elementor elementor-24200\" data-elementor-settings=\"[]\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-section-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"has_eae_slider wavo-column-gap-default elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-6f0ddba elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"6f0ddba\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;jet_parallax_layout_list&quot;:[]}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-cff8cbe\" data-id=\"cff8cbe\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-22fe803 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"22fe803\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Exploring the Nexus of Education, Technology and Equity<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-703b1e7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"703b1e7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"has_eae_slider wavo-column-gap-default elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-68b3783 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"68b3783\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;jet_parallax_layout_list&quot;:[]}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-976da0a\" data-id=\"976da0a\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b3e6127 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"b3e6127\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Key points<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9e9626e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"9e9626e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n \t<li>Early childhood education in Hong Kong has undergone many reforms over the past two decades, most recently with new requirements for both national education and digital literacy in the classroom.<\/li>\n \t<li>Gaps persist between policy intentions and real-world outcomes for educators and parents alike, and there are challenges to ensuring equity, especially for minority ethnic group children.<\/li>\n \t<li>Digital pedagogy tools, including those based on artificial intelligence, have an important role to play in early childhood education and play, but require investment in training and resources, as well as structured guidance and frameworks for responsible engagement.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d6878e2 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d6878e2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h4 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Researcher<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-81c8758 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"81c8758\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><a href=\"https:\/\/scholars.hkmu.edu.hk\/en\/persons\/jessie-ming-sin-wong\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dr Jessie Wong Ming Sin<\/a><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c4207bc elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"c4207bc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8c01ef6 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8c01ef6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h4 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">School<\/h4>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0a745c7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0a745c7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>School of Education and Languages<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6a7183a elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"6a7183a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-368f38a elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"368f38a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"960\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_2-1024x572.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_2-1024x572.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_2-300x167.png 300w, https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_2-768x429.png 768w, https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_2.png 1376w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8ca4319 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"8ca4319\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7a7571b elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"7a7571b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"960\" height=\"535\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_3_Edit-1024x571.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_3_Edit-1024x571.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_3_Edit-300x167.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_3_Edit-768x428.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/06\/Exploring-the-Nexus_3_Edit.jpg 1364w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-1529853\" data-id=\"1529853\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6c1558c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6c1558c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Hong Kong's kindergarten-related statistics reveal an interesting fact about the city: enrolment is over 100%. That means that some children are attending not one but two kindergartens, going to one in the morning and another in the afternoon. Any Hong Kong parent will be able to explain this local anomaly: the choice of pre-school education can have a significant impact on the child's future journey through the city's intensely competitive schooling system.<\/p><p>With education so highly valued in Hong Kong society, the kindergarten sector is a fascinating setting for research. In turn, research findings can have real world impact, and inform education policy and educational practices to improve this foundational stage of a child's learning journey.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0030b46 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"0030b46\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The next generation of early childhood educators<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0cbb830 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0cbb830\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Jessie Wong Ming Sin, assistant professor of education at the School of Education and Languages, Hong Kong Metropolitan University (HKMU) has been looking at early years education in Hong Kong from many angles, and her research offers practical insights for how it can be improved, and better adapt to societal changes. Her impactful research recently led her to become the first and only academic in her School's history to win the University's Outstanding Research Publication Award (Gold Prize), a standard of excellence she sustained with a Bronze Prize and the international Emerald Literati Award in 2025.<\/p><p>As Programme Leader for Early Childhood Education (Distance Learning), Wong oversees a diverse range of programmes and encounters students at all levels, from sub-degree to postgraduate, enrolled as full-time students or through distance learning. This diversity has raised a lot of interesting research questions for Wong: How have multiple government policy reforms directed at the kindergarten sector over the years affected quality? Are kindergarten teachers treated with the respect they deserve for their professional training? How do pre-service and in-service students of early childhood education differ in their attitudes and practices?<\/p><p>Wong is interested in the role that technology plays in pre-school education. For example, she's been looking at how newly trained and existing kindergarten teachers engage with artificial intelligence (AI) and other aspects of digital pedagogy. She's also turned her attention to parents, who have intertwined and at times conflicting attitudes, aspiring for their children to be tech-savvy, yet being deeply concerned about the effects of digital technology on their children's education and development. The salience of her research is reflected in the more than HK$3 million in grant support she has been awarded, including through the highly competitive Hong Kong Research Grant Council Faculty Development Scheme (FDS), as well as from the Equal Opportunities Commission and the Quality Education Fund.<\/p><p>\u201cRight now, I&#8217;m combining my longstanding interest in early childhood education with a newer interest in information technology, especially AI, which is playing a big part in the reform of early childhood education around the world,\u201d says Wong.<\/p><p>To do this, Wong first started by looking at her own early childhood education students, to see how they are engaging with digital technology in their studies. The disruption to education caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 created a natural experiment in hybrid education that leaned heavily on technology. Wong <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1108\/AAOUJ-02-2024-0017\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">investigated<\/a> how her masters-level early childhood research students responded to the agile-blended learning (ABL) approach implemented during the pandemic. She found that whilst ABL and integration of technology gave students flexibility, convenience and learner autonomy, it detracted from the social and personal interaction that they desired. On balance, Wong is a proponent of ABL though. \u201cTo get the best of both worlds, it really comes down to having strong, continuous support from the institution,\u201d she says.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-546fd88 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"546fd88\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Artificial intelligence is here, for better or worse<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-80882ac elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"80882ac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>When Wong started noticing that her students were using (and misusing) AI, she decided to investigate their use more deeply, to inform how they can be better guided to use AI tools. She fully expected to find that her students were using these tools, but was surprised when the data came in: \u201chalf of the students use AI, but they don&#8217;t really have the literacy to know how to use it wisely, and the other half don&#8217;t use AI at all, which was quite interesting to me,\u201d Wong says. Her <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1108\/AAOUJ-10-2025-0159\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">research<\/a> underlined the need for training on how to use AI tools, and how the critically appraise the output of large language models.<\/p><p>Wong was interested to know whether there is also a marked difference between critical AI literacy among HKMU's full-time early childhood education students, who are typically pre-service, and the distance learning students, who are usually already working, for example as kindergarten teachers. \u201cFor the in-service kindergarten teachers in Hong Kong, most of them got into the field before the government finally recognized that early child education warranted university-level training,\u201d says Wong. \u201cAs a result, their backgrounds are very different to the new generation of early childhood education students, and probably the mindset is going to be different too. When the new students and the existing teachers are all faced with the global wave of AI, I wanted to see how they deal with it, because they have to deal with it sooner or later anyway.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"has_eae_slider wavo-column-gap-default elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-3bea005 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"3bea005\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;jet_parallax_layout_list&quot;:[]}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-563c1b4\" data-id=\"563c1b4\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-881ec7a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"881ec7a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>With grant funding from HKMU's Teaching and Learning Research Fund, study participants from both groups are assigned an education policy analysis to see how well they can critically assess AI writing, whether they can detect fabrications, whether they can do their own research on policy documents. \u201cThis critical analysis is something that AI can't do for you, at least for now,\u201d says Wong. \u201cI always felt that kindergarten teachers are not quite keen on using AI technologies, but the surprising thing is that it's also the case for a lot of our early childhood education major full-time students too.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3240d7f wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3240d7f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Professionalism is not enough<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-944cf67 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"944cf67\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>As a professor so actively involved in the upgrading and education of Hong Kong's kindergarten teachers, there's a palpable sense of dismay that so many new graduates start their careers in early childhood education, but frequently rotate out of it into something else entirely after only one or two years. Given that government policy towards kindergarten education has focused on increasing the professionalism of teachers, underscoring the importance of early childhood education, Wong wanted to know why teachers leave. From 2019 to 2021 with HK$785,000 in FDS funding, Wong led a research project, The Development of Kindergarten Practitioners&#8217; Professional Identity under the Free Kindergarten Education Policy in Hong Kong.<\/p><p>\u201cWe <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/09575146.2021.1954604\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">surveyed<\/a> students from seven teacher education institutions, and most of them perceived that they were professionals. They had all the training they needed. They'd learned all about psychological theories, management, and policy, but they feel that the general public still do not see them as professionals,\u201d Wong says. This was also reflected in the salary scale, which had increased as government policy towards early childhood education changed, but was still well below the pay scale for fresh graduate primary and secondary school teachers.<\/p><p>Continuing this work on the dissonance between education policy and kindergarten teacher's real-world experience, Wong is currently collecting data from students on their perceptions of kindergarten education in Hong Kong is like, and how they assess its quality. \u201cWe then compare with the government&#8217;s quality reviews written by early childhood education experts, to see if there&#8217;s a discrepancy,\u201d she explains. \u201cThe government has their own assessment criteria, but for our students, what they focus on may be different, and I want to see how they define good quality.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7a90269 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"7a90269\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Advocating for the rights of the child<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-51c0d60 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"51c0d60\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Alongside her interests in early childhood education policy, pedagogy, and curriculum management, and educational technology, as a dedicated advocate for children&#8217;s rights, Wong is also very much interested in equity, cultural comparisons, and inclusive education.<\/p><p>With <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eoc.org.hk\/Upload\/files\/funding programme\/1_R-202021-116_Research Report_with Executive Summary_Final_update_v.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-wplink-url-error=\"true\">grant funding<\/a> from Hong Kong's Equal Opportunity Commission, Wong looked at the government's efforts to encourage kindergartens to enroll students from minority ethnic backgrounds by offering financial incentives. These incentives could be used for pedagogical and resource support. The aim was to enable minority ethnic group students to start Chinese language learning early, to help them cope with Chinese medium of instruction in primary school.<\/p><p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cogitatiopress.com\/socialinclusion\/article\/view\/10831\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">study<\/a> found that the incentives were successful in increasing enrollment of ethnic minority children in Chinese-language kindergartens, and also made recommendations for how this work could be extended and improved. \u201cWe found that, of course, money plays a part for them to take the first step, but we also found that after a while, as they got to know the parents, they saw them as partners,\u201d Wong says. \u201cFor the kindergartens with more experience in admitting ethnic minority students, regardless of subsidies, they still very much hoped to admit these students. It&#8217;s a very encouraging message to send to all our kindergartens and everyone in Hong Kong.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d7f3510 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d7f3510\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">New demands on kindergartens <\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-594d175 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"594d175\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Wong has been researching how kindergartens are responding to the government's requirement, introduced in 2022, to include national education into the curriculum. Wong has also investigated the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tandfonline.com\/doi\/full\/10.1080\/03057925.2022.2093159\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pedagogical challenges<\/a> faced by preschool teachers as they grappled with the new policy directive. From 2022 to 2024, with a HK$647,000 FDS grant, Wong led a study, Developing a National Identity in Young Children: Values and Practices of Kindergartens, Local Chinese and Non-Chinese Families of Different Backgrounds in Hong Kong. Given that minority ethnic groups account for more than 8% of Hong Kong's population and growing, the call for national identity education is nuanced. \u201cIn Hong Kong, we have a lot of international schools, and we have local schools admitting ethnic minority children,\u201d says Wong. \u201cI wanted to see if the schools are really just focusing on Chinese national identity, or national identities in the larger sense, and how they would encourage development of national identity in children, and how to work with parents on this.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-04f20a0 wavo-transform transform-type-translate elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"04f20a0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">At the nexus of three research interests<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8e8600e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"8e8600e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>More recently, she has been able to combine all three of her core research interests, and work at the nexus of education policy, equity, and educational technology, with a study on the perceptions of parents and educators of national identity, technology, and collaboration in Hong Kong kindergartens. Her research was based on thematic analysis of focus group discussions with parents and educators from four diverse Hong Kong kindergartens. She found that both parents and teachers shared common ground, both espousing the benefits of learning through play, for example. However, their views diverged on who should be responsible for teaching concepts of national identity. They also had mismatched views on managing the emergence of AI in children's learning and play. \u201cEducators are deeply wary of introducing screen-based learning too early, due to pragmatic concerns over inadequate resources, training, and pedagogical suitability, yet parents are increasingly turning to platforms like YouTube to fill gaps,\u201d says Wong.<\/p><p>AI continues to increase its presence in the education system, and in wider society, and Wong sees plenty of scope for her research to help inform early childhood education policy and practice, both locally and internationally. She recently wrote a white paper, The Algorithm in the Toybox: Navigating AI, Play, and Culture on how to help parents and educators navigate AI in the playroom while protecting the integrity of play. Wong notes that AI is a powerful new force in the world of play, with potential to offer children personalized, engaging, and educational experiences, but if it lacks careful guidance and critical oversight, these same technologies risk promoting a homogenized global culture, replacing vital human relationships, and compromising a child's fundamental right to privacy.<\/p><p>\u201cThis is a conceptual paper, proposing a roadmap combined with classic theories of developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood education, and then a framework to bring in some practical guidelines,\u201d says Wong. The path forward is not to ban these new tools, but to engage with them wisely. As always her focus is on the rights of the child. \u201cWe must shift the conversation from what a toy can do to what it ought to do in the service of a child's holistic development,\u201d she says. As Vice President (International Affairs) of the World Organisation for Early Childhood Education \u2013 Hong Kong (OMEP-Hong Kong) and a guest editor for leading international journals, Wong continues to drive the strategic growth of her field, ensuring that the integration of technology in early years education remains both equitable and profoundly human.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"has_eae_slider wavo-column-gap-default elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-5a77686 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"5a77686\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;jet_parallax_layout_list&quot;:[]}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-2f43d4d\" data-id=\"2f43d4d\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exploring the Nexus of Education, Technology and Equity Key points Early childhood education in Hong Kong has undergone many reforms over the past two decades, most recently with new requirements for both national education and digital literacy in the classroom. Gaps persist between policy intentions and real-world outcomes for educators and parents alike, and there...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":172,"featured_media":0,"parent":24357,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_expiration-date-status":"","_expiration-date":0,"_expiration-date-type":"","_expiration-date-categories":[],"_expiration-date-options":[]},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v17.3 (Yoast SEO v21.2) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Exploring the Nexus of Education, Technology and Equity - Office of Research Affairs and Knowledge Transfer - Hong Kong Metropolitan University<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/impact-cases\/exploring-the-nexus-of-education\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Exploring the Nexus of Education, Technology and Equity\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Exploring the Nexus of Education, Technology and Equity Key points Early childhood education in Hong Kong has undergone many reforms over the past two\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hkmu.edu.hk\/ora\/impact-cases\/exploring-the-nexus-of-education\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Office of Research Affairs and Knowledge Transfer - 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