Abstract
Until the 1970s, the notion of professionalism was weakly conceptualized among teachers in Hong Kong. There were also very minimal autonomous organizing efforts in professionalising the teaching profession. Nevertheless, within a short period of time, and through one single incident, teachers were able to mobilize themselves to an extent that went beyond government control. This led to them becoming eventually the most powerful opposition force to government decision making. How can we explain the effectiveness of such a collective action based on loosely organized interests in a colonial setting? How can we explain the origin of such a phenomenon where the powerless gained subtle power through professionalisation?
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© 1997 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
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Cheng, KM., Wong, SY. (1997). Empowerment of the Powerless Through the Politics of the Apolitical: Teacher Professionalisation in Hong Kong. In: Biddle, B.J., Good, T.L., Goodson, I.F. (eds) International Handbook of Teachers and Teaching. Springer International Handbooks of Education, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4942-6_11
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4942-6_11
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