Co-hosted by Yew Chung College of Early Childhood Education (YCCECE) and the Institute of Education Research at Shenzhen University (SZU), the inaugural Shenzhen-Hong Kong Early Childhood Education Symposium was successfully held at the International Conference Hall of Shenzhen University's Yuehai Campus on 21 November 2024 .  Renowned scholars, researchers, and educational practitioners in early childhood education from China and abroad gathered to discuss and share insights under the theme Research on Early Childhood Education Curriculum and Teaching. 

Opening Ceremony

Professor Li Chen, Party Secretary of the Faculty of Education of SZU, presided over the opening ceremony. Professor Li Yonghua, Vice President of SZU, delivered an inspiring welcome speech, emphasizing that the forum aligns with educational reform and development trends and holds significant practical implications. He highlighted the importance of education cooperation in the Greater Bay Area as a catalyst for innovation and shared growth in early childhood education.

Professor Kerry Lee, President of YCCECE, remarked that the forum brought together experts from academia and practice to explore cutting-edge topics in the high-quality development of early childhood education. He noted that collaboration and knowledge exchange are key to fostering innovative practices in the field.

Morning Session

The morning session, chaired by Professor Li Shuying, Dean of the Institute of Education Research at SZU, featured notable keynote speeches.

Professor Kathy Sylva, Honorary Fellow and Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Oxford and member of the Board of Governors of YCCECE, delivered a presentation titled "Assessing the Early Childhood Curriculum and Pedagogical Quality". Her talk shared findings from a longitudinal study involving six regions, 141 kindergartens, and 3,000 children, exploring the impact of child, family, and school factors on academic and social behavior outcomes from aged 3 to 18. 

Following this, Professor Liu Guoyan from SZU presented a talk on "Challenges and Opportunities in Collaborative Education under the Background of High-Quality Development". She analyzed survey data on home-kindergarten collaboration, addressing parental guidance needs, kindergarten support, and community involvement. Based on a "teaching alliance" framework, she proposed practical strategies for collaborative education.

Afternoon Session

The afternoon session, co-chaired by Professor Eric Cheng, Vice President (Academic) at YCCECE, and Dr Gao Chunhai, Senior Research Fellow at SZU, offered further insightful discussions.

Dr. Brad Chan from YCCECE introduced the HKJC Coolplay Project, a Jockey Club-funded initiative integrating STEM education into early childhood curricula. He detailed the project's teacher training, classroom trials, and inter-school collaboration, highlighting its success in enhancing children's scientific literacy and creativity.

Dr. Gao Chunhai from SZU cited the Chinese poem Quiet Night Thoughts to explore children’s aesthetic appreciation of poetry through a neuroeducation lens. He presented a three-element model of poetic aesthetics rooted in localized research.

Dr. Rohnii Tse from YCCECE shared findings from the Jockey Club-supported The Bright Start Project, emphasizing the critical role of in-service training in improving infant care quality. She demonstrated how enhanced teacher-child interactions positively impact attachment, fine motor skills, and learning engagement.

Principal Liu Hongli of the Shenzhen Nanshan Government Agency Early Childhood Education Group shared her experiences in designing and implementing inquiry-based curricula under the theme "Igniting Curiosity: Construction and Practice of Kindergarten Inquiry-Based Activity Curriculum System." She emphasized that “Education for the future can take various curricular models, content carriers, and technological paths. A curriculum is never static, definitive, or fixed in its outcomes.”

Professor Shi Ping from YCCECE delivered a keynote report titled "The Cultural Foundations, Theoretical Basis, and Practical Pathways of the Yew Chung Approach to Early Childhood Education." She highlighted the enduring core elements of Yew Chung’s 90-year educational journey, underscoring the importance of educators deeply engaging in practice. Citing Dr. Betty Chan's unwavering dedication to teacher professional development, she called for a relentless pursuit of professional growth. Professor Shi emphasized that education must be rooted in practice, reflection, and improvement to deepen the understanding and application of theory. She described Yew Chung's pedagogy as a culmination of insights drawn from nine decades of experience. Finally, she offered a comprehensive analysis of the pedagogy's cultural foundations, theoretical underpinnings, and its application within an international educational context.

Principal Gan Lu of the Early Childhood Education Group of Longhua District Institute of Education Sciences in Shenzhen presented on "Empowering Children's Learning with Technology." She explored the profound value of technology in education from the perspectives of space, tools, and data empowerment. Principal Gan argued that when technology is seamlessly integrated into every aspect of education, it should become an inherent part of the learning process rather than a separate entity. She stressed that parents and educators should not restrict children’s use of digital media but instead provide thoughtful intervention and support. The focus, she explained, should be on the quality of digital learning content and activities rather than merely limiting screen time.

Dr. Zhang Ye from YCCECE gave a detailed presentation titled "Designing the Chinese Kindergarten Quality Rating Scale (CKQRS): Integrating Cultural Considerations." She provided insights into the project’s background, literature review, research process, outcomes, and its considerations for cultural appropriateness. The CKQRS aims to create an evidence-based quality assessment tool tailored to China’s cultural context, featuring actionable structural and process quality indicators. Dr. Zhang explained that the project involved two stages: development and validation. During the development stage, the research team employed the Delphi method, engaging 18 early childhood education experts in two rounds of revisions to ensure content validity. A pilot study conducted in 40 kindergartens in Shenzhen led to the finalized version of the scale. In the validation stage, the scale was applied to 112 kindergartens across Shenzhen and Jiangsu, undergoing confirmatory factor analysis and tests for criterion-related validity and reliability while being compared against existing scales.

Principal Li Chunling of the Daxin Early Childhood Education Group in Nanshan District, Shenzhen, shared insights into the group’s philosophy, "Embracing Diversity and Embracing Change: The Path of School Management from the Perspective of Adaptability and Flexibility." She outlined the group’s practices and development strategies across various management dimensions:

• A “change-inclusive” management culture that focuses on resource integration to enhance efficiency.
• A curriculum culture aimed at promoting holistic child development.
• An environmental culture fostering open and shared platforms.
• A humanistic culture that advocates for inclusiveness and harmony.
• An organizational culture emphasizing precise strategies for effective collaboration.
• An evaluation culture centered on respecting diversity to support personalized growth.

Lastly, Dr. Crystal Zheng from YCCECE announced the upcoming launch of new undergraduate and master's programs in early childhood education in 2025. These programs will feature bilingual options and flexible study modes to accommodate diverse learners.

Conclusion

The forum highlighted the collaborative contributions of YCCECE and SZU in advancing research and practice in early childhood education. It provided a valuable platform for academic exchange and fostered innovation, injecting fresh momentum into the future development of the field.