Towards the third wave of school effectiveness and improvement in Hong Kong: Internal, interface and future

This presentation reports on three waves of reform efforts for school effectiveness and improvement in Hong Kong, and analyzes related challenges and issues with the hope of drawing international implications for ongoing research and reform efforts in different parts of the world. These three waves represent paradigm shifts and different strategies in facing challenges and pursuing education effectiveness in changing local and international contexts. In the 1970s, the first wave emphasized internal effectiveness focusing on internal process improvement through external intervention or input approaches. In the 1990s, the second wave pursued interface effectiveness in terms of school-based management, quality assurance, accountability, and stakeholders' satisfaction. Research on the second wave often focused on interface improvement through various types of quality inspection and assurance. In facing the challenges of globalization, information technology, and the knowledge-driven economy in the new century, the third wave of school effectiveness and improvement in Hong Kong is moving towards future effectiveness. Research on the third wave is concerned with not only value-addedness but also value-createdness in school effectiveness through enhancing educational relevance and creating new goals. This paper discusses how the research conceptions and concerns of the third wave in school effectiveness and improvement are completely different from traditional thinking. Implications are discussed for future research.