The emergence of liberal ideologies in a period of political change in Hong Kong: A case study of first year student teachers in Hong Kong Institute of Education

This paper examines the perceptions of 250 first year student teachers in HKIEd regarding how their educational ideologies affect the effectiveness of the newly designed and implemented Lifeskills Program. Focused on the rationale and premises of Liberal Ideologies, the program witnesses an emergence of a robust sense of ‘Liberalism’ in a period of political change in Hong Kong. The Lifeskills Program represents a shift from a traditional approach and entails putting liberal learning and teaching theories into practice. The perceptions of the student teachers who have been identified as having distinct educational ideologies toward these changes are to be cautiously investigated to explore the program effectiveness. Equally crucial is to study and draw conclusions from the major findings, particularly concerning the explicit perceptions and beliefs revealed by those student teachers preoccupied with educational ideologies different from the Liberal one, and to place greater emphasis on helping them make the transition to a more liberal orientation.