Teacher Professional Development in Hong Kong Compared to Anglosphere: the Role of Confucian Philosophy

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Teacher Professional Development” (aka teacher PD) has garnered research attention in recent years. Scholars seek to understand the teacher PD process, while practitioners are interested in deriving policies to facilitate teacher PD. The consensus emerging from the pool of literature is that teacher PD should be “individualized”: more focused on fostering teachers’ personal growth instead of enforcing “standard practices”. The Anglosphere has been leading in the domain of teacher PD, causing many regions to imitate its practices. Using documentary analysis, this paper reviews teacher PD policies in Hong Kong over the past forty years and compares them with practices typically adopted in the Anglosphere. The paper suggests that the PD policies of Hong Kong progressed from ‘solely teacher training’, to ‘emphasis on generic skills’, to ‘lifelong learning’. The concept of ‘Confucian Heritage Culture’ is used to explain the differences between the Angloshpere and Hong Kong in terms of PD practices. Implications for adapting teacher PD practices cross-culturally are discussed.