A group of 20 students and staff from the School of Continuing Education (SCE) of HKBU participated in the 68th Organisation Mondiale pour l’Education Préscolaire (OMEP) World Assembly and International Conference held in Seoul, South Korea. The delegation delivered eight paper and poster presentations about early childhood education. In addition, they visited local kindergartens and early childhood facilities.

This year, renowned education scholars from the US, Australia and Sweden delivered keynote speeches at the Conference which had the theme of “Transforming Early Childhood Systems for Future Generations”. Dr Sam Cheung, Assistant Professor and Dr Janice Poon, Lecturer of SCE led 10  SCE students to deliver eight research reports which examined the development of young children’s creativity, as well as language teaching, gifted education and pre-service kindergarten teachers’ attitudes towards inclusive education.

Dr Amelia Lee, Head of Early Childhood and Elementary Education of SCE and OMEP National President of Hong Kong, China, said that the tour provided an excellent opportunity for students to exchange ideas with early childhood educators and scholars from around the world at a major international conference, enhancing the students’ research standards and confidence. Student participant Li Zhiyu said that the trip broadened her horizons through the exchange of ideas related to early childhood education policies, beliefs and practices with participants from other countries.

The OMEP Conference aims at bringing together experts, scholars and education practitioners to deliver reports and discuss issues on early childhood education and care. The next Asia-Pacific conference will be supported by the SCE in April 2017.