Centre News

Grant Success for APCLC/FEHD Research Team

A research team based at the Asia Pacific Centre for Leadership and Change (APCLC) consisting of Dr Ewan Wright, Prof Allan Walker, Dr Darren Bryant and Prof Moosung Lee have been awarded a grant for a cross-cultural study on student leadership. The funding body, Round Square, is an international network of schools across 50 countries with a shared belief in the educational ideals of internationalisation, democracy, environmentalism, adventure, leadership, and services.

The research will focus on student leadership in Round Square schools in diverse cross-cultural contexts worldwide - from China to India to the United States.

“The rise of prominence of student leaders such as Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old environmental activist, clearly shows how young people can be change-agents to highlight problems and drive change where adults have failed. At the same time, international research on student leadership in schools is thin on the ground as most leadership research has focused on adults” Dr Wright said.

An online survey at 200 schools and in-depth interviews at 12 schools worldwide will be conducted to investigate (i) how students understand leadership, (ii) who, how, and why students build leadership skills, and (iii) how students experience and reflect on leadership opportunities.

The findings will lead to recommendations for how schools can develop student leadership in their context. The research is expected to be completed in December 2020.

The research illustrates how APCLC and FEHD promote innovative research across cross-cultural contexts and takes education leadership to the next level.

For more information about the research, please visit:
http://www.eduhk.hk/apclc/research_57.html .