Evolution education in Hong Kong (1991-2016): A content analysis of the biology textbooks for secondary school graduates

Abstract

This chapter documents the changes of the evolution-related content in the official textbooks during the first 25 years of its introduction in the curriculums for the secondary school graduates' biology examination. Content analysis of 14 sets of biology textbooks published between 1991 and 2016 were performed. Several key trends are observed in the textbooks studied: The depth and breadth of coverage of evolution in the biology textbooks was growing, an increasing variety of learning strategies and activities had been deployed, and more nature of science ideas had been included over the years. Attempts are made to explain the trends above. The material in the textbooks is not solely dependent on the evolution-related specifications in the corresponding official curricula, while the framework-level and subject-level curricular directions are also influential. Second, the public examination questions, local and overseas, are found to have affected the materials found in the textbooks. Also, both the official curriculum guides and textbooks are being shaped by the new understandings of the international science education community.