A triangulation method which will involve undertaking

• More than 400 sets of questionnaire were collected from cross-border school children and their parents/guardians;
• Organizational interviews with 8 stakeholders; and
• 32 in-depth interviews with school children and their parents/guardians.

• This study has found that cross-border students and their families regarded their schooling experiences positive and preferred studying in Hong Kong than on the mainland. They also exhibited a stronger identification with Hong Kong than with mainland, despite the length of residence in Shenzhen or mothers’ background. Our findings also showed that children’s positive schooling experience was related to the support provided by schools, the presence of significant numbers of cross-border; students in the same school, and whether HK schooling was received earlier than later.
• However, longer traveling time, difficulties in learning traditional Chinese and inadequate knowledge of Hong Kong and mainland would mitigate their positive schooling experience and sense of belonging;
• Our findings also found that cross-border families are diverse in configurations, who are differentiated by marital status, residency status and degree of (im)mobility;
• We also found that the involvement in children’s education and perception of difficulties in HK schooling varied among cross-border families. Specifically, parents who were more educated, had higher monthly household income, or worked as managers, administrators and professionals involved more in their child’s schooling and identified less difficulties than parents who were less educated, had lower monthly household income, or were not living together. Nevertheless, despite fewer difficulties, families of higher socio-economic status appeared to be less certain about their children’s future settlement in Hong Kong.

• This research is vitally important as it alerts us to the particular issues and challenges faced by cross-border students when pursing schooling in Hong Kong;
• Understanding the levels of social integration of children and their sense of identity will enable HK government and schools to develop inclusionary policies and practices as an important means of maintaining and cultivating social cohesion;
• Recognizing the diverse forms and needs of cross-border families allows HK government to develop the right support to those needy families and find ways to attract families and children of better backgrounds to stay or work in the city; and
• Academically, our research will contribute to a growing body of knowledge about young people who struggle or flourish through their possession of “hybrid identities”. The issues emerge from this research, such as politics and inequalities of mobility or transnational family strategies, will also have transnational resonance.

Anita K.W. Chan, Lucille Ngan, Anthony Wong and Chan Wing-sun (under review) The Politics of Cross-border Students in Hong Kong.
Lucille Ngan, Anita K.W. Chan, Anthony Wong and Chan Wing-sun (under review) Border Crossing and Hybridity: Cross-border Students in Hong Kong.
陳潔華、顏樂燊、陳永新(2014)，跨境學童的就學經驗和歸屬感，《跨境家庭論壇》，第二期，頁13—25 http://webcontent.hkcss.org.hk/FAMILY_wellness/download/Cross-border_Families_Forum_Issue2_Final.pdf
Chan Kit Wa, Anita, Lucille Ngan and Anthony Wong (2013) HKIEd Study on School Experience of Cross-border Students, http://www.ied.edu.hk/web/news.php?glang=tc, press release on 18th December, 2013.