Teacher education, agency, and change in a postcolonial Hong Kong: Forms, drivers, and influences

Hong Kong, in its postcolonial era, enjoys a sophisticated teacher education infrastructure. However, this is often reported as being demanding, rigid, and detached from practice (Lu & Author 2021; Pang et al. 2016). Questions remain as to how teacher education is understood, and the reliance it has on hegemonic knowledge, experiences, values, and voices belonging to dominating communities. Drawing upon interpretive policy analysis, this paper (1) examines historical and contemporary contexts of the teacher education infrastructure in Hong Kong through a postcolonial lens, and (2) critically explores the possibilities of teacher agency and change. A framework for agentic career-long teacher education is presented, offering new ways of understanding, challenging and imagining the complex and multi-layered experiences of teacher education. Copyright © 2024 AERA.