BA (summa cum laude), Clark University

PhD, University of Hong Kong 

Associate Professor, Department of Education Studies

 

Previous

(2023 – 2024) Interim Head, Department of Education Studies

(2021 – 2023) Director, Faculty Research Postgraduate Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences

(Jan 2023 – 2023) Director, PGDE Program, Department of Education Studies

(2017 – 2021) Director, Center for Child Development, Faculty of Social Sciences, Hong Kong Baptist University

Research Interests

Thinking and Reasoning in Digital Information Environment; Psychology of Misinformation & Fake news; Critical Thinking; Cognitive Bias; News Literacy Education; Positive Psychology

Teaching

Creative and Critical Thinking; Introduction to Psychology; Positive Psychology; Psychology of Personality; Psychology of Gender; Psychology of Personal Growth; Educational Psychology

External Grants 

As PI

2023 – 2025. General Research Fund, Research Grants Council. Empowering University Students to Debunk Misinformation: Effectiveness of Fact-based VS Logic-based Correction Interventions on Corrective Actions and Misconception Reduction. $764,390. With Celine Song (Journalism, HKBU).

2019 – 2022. Quality Education Fund, Education Bureau. Promoting Smart and Positive News Engagement: News Literacy Education in the Digital Age. $3,278,000. With Celine Song (Journalism, HKBU) and Masato Kajimoto (Journalism, HKU).

2017 – 2018. Public Policy Research Fund, Central Policy Unit. Investigating Hong Kong Students’ Critical News Literacy in the Age of Social Media.$492,982. With Celine Song (Journalism, HKBU), Kang Yi (GIS, HKBU), and Lisa Deng (EDUC, HKBU).

2017 (withdrew). Quality Education Fund, Education Bureau. Promoting Critical Social-thinking Skills for Positive Interpersonal Well-being. $444,700. 

As Co-I

2026 – 2029. General Research Fund, Research Grants Council. Investigating the factors associated with teachers’ feedback literacy: Instrument development and validation. $906,648. PI: Jinxin Zhu (EduU). 

2018 – 2020. Teaching Development Grant (University Level), Hong Kong Education University. Cultivating Students’ Critical Thinking and Creativity through Classroom-based and Web-facilitated Inquiry.$984,440. PIs: Lee, Chi Kin John and Wan Zhi Hong (C&I, EdUHK) .

2018 – 2019. Greenpeace East Asia and World Wide Fund for Nature (HK). Solar Schools in Hong Kong – Potentials and Challenges. $135,000. PI: Daphne Mah (Geography, HKBU).

2017 – 2020. General Research Fund, Research Grants Council. Effects of Mood on Critical Thinking. $642,839. PI: V. Lun (Psychology, HKLN).

2010 – 2013. General Research Fund, Research Grants Council. The Role of Epistemological Understanding in Developmental Changes, Prediction, and Enhancement of Argumentation Performance. $659,120 (Budget share: $505, 440). PI: K. T. Hau (Educational Psychology, CUHK).

Internal Grants 

2022. International Activity Program, Hong Kong Baptist University. $80500. The 9th Global Social Sciences Graduate Students e-Conference. As principle investigator, with Gloria Gan Ling and Shengnan Jiang as co-principal investigators.

2018 – 2019. Faculty Research Grant, Hong Kong Baptist University. Examining Factors Influencing University Students’ Multitasking with Mobile Phone During Class Time. $100,000. As co-investigator; with L. Deng (EDUC, HKBU).

2017 – 2018. Faculty Research Grant, Hong Kong Baptist University. University Students’ Critical News Literacy: Perceived Cognitive Control and Awareness. $98,000. As principal investigator.

2017 – 2018. Faculty Research Grant, Hong Kong Baptist University. Exploring the Roles of Digital Technologies for University Students. $99,000. As co-investigator; with L. Deng (EDUC, HKBU) and L. Lin (University of North Texas).

2014 – 2015. Faculty Research Grant, Hong Kong Baptist University. Chinese Translation and Psychometric Testing of the Humor Styles Questionnaire Child Version. $100,000. As principal investigator.

2013 – 2014. Teaching Development Grant, Hong Kong Baptist University. Cross-cultural Blended Teaching and Learning. $196, 000. As co-investigator; with L. Deng (EDUC, HKBU) and N. Commander (Educational Psychology, Georgia State University).

2011 – 2012. Faculty Research Grant, Hong Kong Baptist University. The Role of Epistemic Goals in Personal Epistemology. $100,000. As principal investigator.

2011 – 2012. Faculty Start-up Fund, Hong Kong Baptist University. International Colloquium: Constructing Academic Achievement from Sociocultural Framework. $100,000. As co-chair; with S. Phillipson (Educational Psychology, Monash University)

Publications (Peer-reviewed journal articles, edited books and book chapters)

ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6592-1941

Cited by: 2342 (Google Scholar Citations Index)

Song Y., Lu Y., Tsang, S. J. & Ku, K. Y. L. (accepted). When corrections fail: Effects of misinformation targets, repeated exposure, and Partisanship on misinformation beliefs. International Journal of Communication. (SJR; Q1)

Ku, K. Y. L., Fung, T. M. Y., Au, A. C. Y., Choy, A. E. O., Kajimoto M. & Song Y., (2023). Helping young students cope with the threats of fake news: Efficacy of news literacy training for junior-secondary school students in Hong Kong. Educational Studies. https://doi.org/10.1080/0305698.2023.2296345.(Scopus Q1)

Lun, M.C. V., Yeung, J. C., & Ku, K. Y. L. (2023). Effects of mood on critical thinking. Thinking Skills and Creativity, Online First. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2023.101247. (Scopus top 10%) 

Deng, L., Liu, Y., Ku, K. Y. L., & Lin, L. (2022). In-class multitasking with smartphones and Laptops: Exploring student experiences and perceptions. College Teaching. DOI: 10.1080/87567555.2021.1973947. 

Ku, K. Y. L., Au, R. H. Y., Choy, A. E. O., Au, A. C. Y., & Tong, T. M. Y. (2021). The threats of optimism bias to thinking critically under COVID-19 (pp.137-154). In J. C. Sanders (Ed.). Perspectives on Critical Thinking. Hauppauge, N.Y.: Nova Science Publishers. (Scopus indexed)

Choy, A. E. O., Ku, K. Y. L., Au, A. C. Y., & Tong, T. M. Y. (2021). Critical thinking in the age of a COVID-19 and Infodemic-filled media (pp.115-136). In Perspectives on Critical Thinking. In J. C. Sanders (Ed.). Perspectives on Critical Thinking. Hauppauge, N.Y.: Nova Science Publishers. (Scopus indexed)

Ku, K. Y. L. & Au, R. H. Y. (2021) Exploring university students’ perceived values of knowledge and critical thinking using triple-response mode assessment. Anatolian Journal of Education, 6(2), 1 – 12. 

Kong, Q., Ku, K. Y. L., Deng, L., & Au, A. C. Y. (2021). Motivation and perception of Hong Kong university students about social media news. Comunicar, 67, 35-45. (Scopus top 1%) 

Ku, K. Y. L., Kong, Q., Song Y., Deng, L., Kang, Y., & Hu, A. (2019). What predicts adolescents’ critical thinking about real-life news? The roles of social media news consumption and news media literacy. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2019.05.004 (Scopus top 10%) 

Deng, L., Ku, K. Y. L. & Kong, Q. (2019). Examining predictive factors and effects of in-class multitasking with mobile phones. Interactive Technology and Smart Education, 16(1), 49 – 58.  (Scopus Q1)

Deng, L., Ku, K. Y. L., Li, S., GU, X., Chen, Y. H., Commander, N. & Gallagher, P. (2018). Cross-cultural blended teaching and learning: Fostering critical thinking and collaborative learning. Studies on Teaching and Learning (Vol. 4).

Ku, K. Y. L., Lee, S. L. & Ellis, J. W. (2017). Using artwork as problem context in generic critical thinking instruction: A strategy for thoughts. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 25, 53-59. (Scopus top 10%)

Commander, N., Ku, K. Y. L., Gallagher, P., Ashong, C., Deng, L., & Li, S. (2016). Cross-national online discussions with U. S. and Hong Kong education students. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 24(4), 383-413. (journal ranked 1st in Teacher Education and Technology H-Index)

Ku, K. Y. L., Ho, S. K., Chan, S. S., Chik, M. P. Y., & Chan, D. W. K.(2016). Chinese translation and psychometric testing of the Humor Styles Questionnaire Children Version (C-HSQC) among Hong Kong Chinese primary-school students.  European Journal of Humor Research, 4 (3), 61-75. (Scopus Q2)

Ku, K. Y. L. (2016). Measuring individual differences in epistemological beliefs (pp. 123 – 131). In Jhangiani, R., Legg, A., Fleck, B., Troisi, J., Stiegler-Balfour, J., & Hussey, H. (Ed.) A compendium of scales for use in the scholarship of teaching and learning. Washington, DC: Society for the Teaching of Psychology, American Psychological Association.

Ku, K. Y. L., Phillipson, S., & Phillipson, S. N., (2015). Education learning theory (pp. 238 – 245). In J. D. Wright. (Ed.) International encyclopedia of social and behavioral sciences (2nd edition, vol 7). Oxford, UK: Elsevier. (the volume received the PROSE award for Excellence in Reference Works and for Multivolume Reference – Humanities & Social Sciences)

Deng, L., Connelly, J., Lau, M., & Ku, K. Y. L. (2015). Exploring Hong Kong Youth’s engagement with digital technologies outside school. In W. W. K. Ma, A. H. K. Yuen, J. Park, W. W. F. Lau, & L. Deng (Eds.), New media, knowledge practices and multiliteracies. Hong Kong: Springer.

Ku, K. Y. L., Lai, C. M., & Hau, K. T. (2014). Epistemological beliefs and the effect of authority on argument-counterargument integration: An experiment. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 13, 67-79. (Scopus top 10%)

Ku, K. Y. L., Ho, I. T., Hau, K. T., & Lai, C. M. (2014). Integrating direct and inquiry-based instruction in the teaching of critical thinking: An intervention study. Instructional Science, 42(2),251-269. (Scopus top 10%)

Ku, K. Y. L. (2013). Role of verbal reasoning in critical thinking. In Phillipson, S., Ku, K. Y. L., & Phillipson, S. N., (Ed.) Constructing achievement: A sociocultural perspective. Oxford, UK: Routledge.

Phillipson, S., Ku, K. Y. L., & Phillipson, S. N., (2013). Constructing achievement: A sociocultural perspective. Oxford, UK: Routledge.

Chan, N. M., Ho, I. T., & Ku, K. Y. L. (2011). Epistemic beliefs and critical thinking of Chinese students. Learning and Individual Differences, 21, 67-77. (Scopus top 10%)

Ku, K. Y. L., & Ho, I. T. (2010). Metacognitive strategies that enhance critical thinking. Metacognition and Learning, 5(3), 251-267. (Scopus top 10%) 

Ku, K. Y. L., & Ho, I. T. (2010). Dispositional factors predicting Chinese students’ critical thinking performance. Personality and Individual Differences, 48, 54-58. (Scopus Q1)

Ku, K. Y. L., Ho, I. T., & Hau, K. T. (2010). Enhancing Chinese students’ critical thinking: A comparison of methods. Education Journal, 38, 61-70.

Ku, K. Y. L. (2009). Assessing students’ critical thinking performance: Urging for measurements using multi-response format. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 4, 70-76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2009.02.001 (Published as Keynote. Scopus top 10%)

 

Publications (Others)

Choy, A. Y. O, Ku, K. Y. L., Au, A. C. Y. & Au, R. H. Y. (2022). Teaching news literacy and critical thinking in the digital age. Center for Child Development, Hong Kong Baptist University.

Ku, K. Y. L., Ho, I. T., & Hau, K. T. (2010). Teaching critical thinking through issue enquiry under the NSS curriculums. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Education Bureau.

Ku, K. Y. L., Ho, I. T., & Hau, K. T. (2009). Critical thinking teaching package for senior secondary school students. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Education Bureau.

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):