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K-State Today

Division of Communications and Marketing
Kansas State University
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November 21, 2019

Kang publishes on international innovations in education, leadership

Submitted by Patrice Scott

Haijun Kang, associate professor of educational leadership, co-authored a journal article and co-edited a book publication in anticipation of International Education Week Nov. 18-22. 

Working with a former visiting scholar from China and a colleague from another American institution, Kang published "Learning to Transform Through Interplay Between the Confucian and Western Cultural Heritages: A Case Study of School Leadership Development in Beijing, China" in the Journal of Transformative Education, a premier journal in the field of lifelong learning and adult education. Kang's co-authors are Qi Sun, associate professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Lei Lyu, associate professor at Beijing Institute of Education in China and director of rural education research center at Beijing Institute of Education. 

"Education is facing many challenges, which urges educators to proactively look for unconventional ways of developing and delivering quality education and training development programs," Kang said. "It is imperative to learn from other countries and explore their innovations in the context of global education." 

In 2016, Kang and Donna Augustine-Shaw, associate professor of educational leadership, published "Preparing and Developing Educational Leaders in International Contexts," a special journal issue that highlighted the preparation of quality educational leaders and the development of educational leadership capacity in different and across socio-cultural contexts. 

More recently, Kang co-edited the book "The New Vistas of Adult and Continuing Education for Change in Asian Context: Themes and Implications." It introduces several Eastern culture-infused education and training programs, such as learning society movement in Thailand, learning city initiatives in China, grassroots learning community development in South Korea, Kominkan and social education in Japan, and innovative gerontology education programs in Taiwan and Mainland China. 

The book's chapters address a variety of topics such as the impact of national policy on education, lifelong learning and citizenship education, educational leadership development, social education, mobile learning and digital badges and credentials, learning community/city/societal development, civic engagement, cultural learning and older/senior education. 

"The education landscape is rapidly changing but a clear theme has emerged in regard to my research on international innovations in education and leadership and that is we need to think globally and act locally," Kang said. "Today's student populations are more closely connected to the global workforce market than ever before, and they arrive in our classrooms expecting to receive the knowledge and skills that will make them globally competitive." 

Kang has been an active member of the Comparative and International Education Society for many years and is co-chair of its Information Communication Technology for Development special interest group. In 2019, he was also voted as co-chair of the society's oversight committee special interest group.