Programme Information

Certificate in Professional Development Programme on Strategies for Promoting Children's Development: 
Working with Diverse Families (FULL)

[Previous programme code: (BWP107)]

(Part-time)
Programme Code: CWP007

Programme Aims

This course aims to equip early childhood education practitioners with effective home-school collaboration strategies to enhance the learning and development of children with diverse family backgrounds. Participants will develop a critical understanding of the impact of different family factors on children’s learning from a socio-ecological perspective. Participants will also acquire a thorough understanding and examination of the partnerships between home and school during the early years in Hong Kong. Finally, participants will explore strategies in identifying resources for supporting children’s learning and development through home-school collaboration.

Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be able to

1. Examine the issues and challenges facing diverse families in a changing society
2. Understand the impact of the diverse family needs on children’s learning and development
3. Reconceptualise the role of home-school partnership in supporting children’s learning
4. Employ effective home-school collaboration strategies at different levels to support children’s learning and development

Programme Structure

The programme consists of one 3-credit-point course with a total of 39 contact hours.

Strategies for Promoting Children's Development: Working with Diverse Families (3 credit points)

1. Theoretical perspectives on home-school collaboration in a changing context
2. Relations between home-school collaboration and children’s learning and development
3. Needs and difficulties of children with diverse family backgrounds (e.g. low-income families, immigrant families, families with special education needs children, families with domestic violence, single-parent families and non-Cantonese speaking families)
4. Impact of the challenges facing diverse families on home-school collaboration
5. Categories at different levels (home, school, community) to enhance children’s learning and development through home-school collaboration

Medium of Instruction

The medium of instruction is Chinese (Cantonese).

Programme Duration

(FULL)

The 5-full day programme is tentatively offered once a year as follow:

27 February 2021 (Saturday)
6 March 2021 (Saturday)
13 March 2021 (Saturday)
20 March 2021 (Saturday)
27 March 2021 (Saturday)

Entrance Requirements

To be eligible for admission, applicants should be:

1. in-service teachers from all pre-primary settings taking up different levels of leadership posts in schools; and
2. recommended by school principals/supervisors.

Award

To be awarded a Certificate of Completion, participants must obtain a pass in all assessment tasks required and successfully fulfill the attendance and/or assessment requirements as stipulated by the programme.

Participants who complete our PDPs are eligible to apply for credit transfer if they enroll in our postgraduate programmes. Their applications will be considered on an individual basis.