Metacognitive strategies that enhance critical thinking

The need to cultivate students’ use of metacognitive strategies in critical thinking has been emphasized in the related literature. The present study aimed at examining the role of metacognitive strategies in critical thinking. Ten university students with comparable cognitive ability, thinking disposition and academic achievement but with different levels of critical thinking performance participated in the study (five in the high-performing group and five in the low-performing group). They were tested on six thinking tasks using think-aloud procedures. Results showed that good critical thinkers engaged in more metacognitive activities, especially high-level planning and high-level evaluating strategies. The importance of metacognitive knowledge as a supporting factor for effective metacognitive regulation was also revealed. The contribution of metacognitive strategies to critical thinking and implications for instructional practice are discussed.     

Rapid and cost-effective fabrication of selectively permeable calcium-alginate microfluidic device using "modified" embedded template method

In this paper, we have presented a non-lithographic embedded template method for rapid and cost-effective fabrication of a selectively permeable calcium-alginate (Ca-alginate) based microfluidic device with long serpentine delay channel. To demonstrate the versatility of the presented method, we have demonstrated two different strategies to fabricate serpentine long delay channels without using any sophisticated microfabrication techniques, in formal lab atmosphere. The procedure presented here, also, enables the preparation of a multilayered microfluidic device with channels of varying dimensions, in a single device without using any sophisticated micromachining instrumentation. In addition, we have also qualitatively studied the diffusion of small and large molecules from a Ca-alginate based microfluidic device and proposed a method to effectively control the out-flow of macro biomolecules from the crosslinked Ca-alginate matrix to create a selectively permeable matrix required for various biological and biomimetic applications, as mentioned in the Introduction section of this work.     

Stabilization of discrete-time stochastic systems via sliding mode technique

This paper considers the problem of sliding mode control for discrete-time stochastic systems with parameter uncertainties and state-dependent noise perturbation. An integral-like sliding surface is chosen and a discrete-time sliding mode controller is designed. The key feature in this work is that both the reachability of the quasi-sliding mode and the stability of system states are simultaneously analyzed, due to the existence of state-dependent noise perturbation. By utilizing an Lyapunov function involving system states and sliding mode variables, the sufficient condition for reachability is obtained. Finally, numerical simulation results are provided.     

The relationship between teacher stress and burnout in Hong Kong: positive humour and gender as moderators

In this study, we report on the relationship between positive humour and burnout among 379 secondary school teachers in Hong Kong, and explore whether the relationship varies according to gender. The moderating effects of both affiliative and self-enhancing humour on each burnout component were then examined. High affiliative and self-enhancing humour were found to be associated with lower emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation but higher personal accomplishment. Further, the results indicated that low levels of affiliative and self-enhancing humour were related to more depersonalisation among females than among males. The results also partially supported the stress-moderating hypothesis, as affiliative humour was found to buffer the stress–depersonalisation relationship in this sample. These findings suggest that schools can design continuing education programmes based on the use of positive humour in helping teachers to cope with burnout.     

Enhancing Quality of Higher Education for World-Class Status

Aspiring to become an international city in Asia, the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) has been investing more in higher education. In order to enhance its global competitiveness, all public universities in Hong Kong have gone through different forms of quality assurance exercises, including teaching and learning processes reviews, research assessment exercises, management and governance reviews, as well as quality assurance council reviews. In the context of the significant emphasis placed by Hong Kong on the internationalization of higher education, this article examines the major approaches and strategies that the HKSAR has adopted in enhancing quality in teaching, learning, and research in higher education, and also discusses the major challenges for quality assurance confronted by the city-state.     

Uncertainty analysis for peer assessment: oral presentation skills for final year project

Peer assessment plays an important role in engineering education for an active involvement in the assessment process, developing autonomy, enhancing reflection, and understanding of how to achieve the learning outcomes. Peer assessment uncertainty for oral presentation skills as part of the FYP assessment is studied. Validity and reliability for complex assessments were conceptualised in the context of quantification, hierarchical system of uncertainties, aleatory uncertainty, and epistemic uncertainty. Systems as assessment methods were also conceptualised to define elements (i.e. examiner, examinee, and difficulty) as variables or/and constants, and to study the uncertainty behaviour of the peer assessment within the framework of the parametric uncertainty model. As a result, a singularity, at which the hierarchical structure of uncertainties breaks down, and its related behaviour were theoretically predicted and experimentally verified. Also, a validity paradox, when the ‘difficulty’ level is sufficiently lowered, was found to be possible and verified for oral presentation skills. It may be useful for understanding fundamental characteristics of the peer assessment in which epistemic uncertainties are dependent on how the assessment is close to the singularity point.     

Emerging education hubs: the case of Singapore

In anticipation of a globalising post-Fordist political economy, countries and universities are increasingly pursuing strategic transnational education and research alliances. This article analyses the Global Schoolhouse, a key education policy platform that aims to transform Singapore into a knowledge and innovation hub by establishing networks and collaborations with foreign universities. Two Global Schoolhouse initiatives are examined—the alliance between Singapore and MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), and the institutional restructuring aimed at re-modelling the National University of Singapore into a ‘leading global university centred in Asia’. We outline some of the complexities and unanticipated outcomes which emerge when nations and their education institutions seek to globalise.     

Explaining Chinese students' academic motivation: filial piety and self‐determination

This study investigated the relevance of filial piety and the three components of self‐determination, namely, competence, autonomy and relatedness, on academic motivation among Hong Kong Chinese secondary school students. A total of 461 students completed the questionnaire which consisted of five scales assessing attitudes towards filial piety, perceived scholastic competence, perceived autonomous support from parents, relatedness with parents and academic motivation. By using structural equation modelling, a predictive model of academic motivation, with filial piety, competence, autonomy, relatedness, age and gender as antecedents, was developed. All variables explained the prediction of academic motivation, with competence acted as the strongest effect, followed by relatedness and filial piety. The findings highlight the important contribution of the three self‐determination theory (SDT) components and the value of filial piety for Chinese adolescents' academic motivation. The implications of the findings for future research and educational practice were discussed.