Dr WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell   
Assistant Professor
Department of Education Policy and Leadership
Phone No: (852) 2948 8347
Email: etmwright@eduhk.hk
Contact
ORCiD
0000-0003-2313-6181
Phone
(852) 2948 8347
Email
etmwright@eduhk.hk
Address
10 Lo Ping Road, Tai Po, New Territories, Hong Kong
Website
https://pappl.eduhk.hk/rich/web/person.xhtml?pid=170748&name=WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell
Scopus ID
56054775200
Research Interest
  • International Schools
  • International Baccalaureate
  • Globalisation and education
  • University preparation and admission
  • Inequality in education and social reproduction
Teaching Interest
  • International Perspectives on Educational Reform
  • Sociology of Education
  • International Education
  • Equity and Social Justice
  • Globalisation and Education
  • Qualitative Research Methods
Personal Profile

Ewan Wright is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education and Human Development at the Education University of Hong Kong. He is also a Research Fellow at the Joseph Lau Luen Hung Charitable Trust Asia Pacific Centre for Leadership and Change. He holds a PhD in the Sociology of Education from the Faculty of Education at the University of Hong Kong. His primary research interests are based around the proliferation of international schooling in East Asia. He has been principal investigator for research projects commissioned by the International Baccalaureate and Round Square. His research has been published in well-regarded journals such as British Journal of Sociology of Education, Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, Globalisation, Societies and Education, Higher Education, and Studies in Higher Education.

Research Interest
  • International Schools
  • International Baccalaureate
  • Globalisation and education
  • University preparation and admission
  • Inequality in education and social reproduction
Teaching Interest
  • International Perspectives on Educational Reform
  • Sociology of Education
  • International Education
  • Equity and Social Justice
  • Globalisation and Education
  • Qualitative Research Methods
Selected Output
Journal Publications
Publication in refereed journal
Wright, E., Lin, C., & Lu, J. (2022). The Turning Tide of the International Baccalaureate in China: When Global Dreams Meet National Priorities. Globalisation, Societies and Education https://doi.org/10.1080/14767724.2022.2115342
Wright, E., & Feng, S., & Zheng, Y. (2022). Wright, E., Feng, S., & Zheng, Y. (2022). Unemployed graduate to the next Jack Ma? A counter-narrative to the entrepreneurship movement in higher education. Higher Education, 83(4), 863-880.. Higher Education, 83, 863-880
Wright, E., & Lee, M. (2022). Wright, E., & Lee, M. (2022). Does the international Baccalaureate ‘work’as an alternative to mainstream schooling? Perceptions of university students in Hong Kong. Studies in Higher Education, 47(3), 693-708.. Studies in Higher Education, 47, 693-708 Doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2020.1793929.
Mulvey, B., & Wright, E. (2022). Global and Local Possible Selves: Differentiated Strategies for Positional Competition among Chinese University Students. British Educational Research Journal, Online Publication, online https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3797
Wright, E., & Ma, Ying, & Auld, E. (2022). Wright, E., Ma, Y., & Auld, E. (2022). Experiments in being global: The cosmopolitan nationalism of international schooling in China. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 20(2), 236-249.. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 20, 236-249
Lee, M., Kim, H., & Wright, E. (2022). Lee, M., Kim, H., & Wright, E. (2022). The influx of International Baccalaureate (IB) programmes into local education systems in Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Korea. Educational Review, 74(1), 131-150.. Educational Review, 74, 131-150 Doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2021.1891023.
Ying, M., & Wright, E. (2021). Outsourced concerted cultivation: international schooling and educational consulting in China. International Studies in Sociology of Education, -
Wright, E., & Mulvey, B. (2021). Internships and the graduate labour market: how upper-middle-class students ‘get ahead’. British Journal of Sociology of Education, -
Yu, B., Vyas, L., & Wright E.T.M. (2020). Cross-cultural transitions in a bilingual context: The interplays between bilingual, individual and interpersonal factors and adaptation. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 41(7), 600-619 Doi:10.1080/01434632.2019.1623224.
Wright, E. & Wei, H. (2020). Wright, E., & Wei, H. (2020). The changing value of higher education as a currency of opportunity. Asian Education and Development Studies, 11(1), 42-54.. Asian Education and Development Studies, 11, 42-54
Wright, E & Lee, M. (2019). Re/producing the global middle class: International Baccalaureate alumni at ‘world-class’ universities in Hong Kong.. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 40(5), 682-696
Wright, E., Lee, M., & Feng, S. (2018). Shadowing the International Baccalaureate: private supplementary tutoring for the diploma programme in China. Educational Research for Policy and Practice volume, 17, 127-143
Wright, E., & Horta, H. (2018). Higher education participation in “high-income” universal higher education systems: “Survivalism” in the risk society. Asian Education and Development Studies, 7(2), 184-284
Yu, B., & Wright, E. (2017). Academic adaptation amid internationalisation: The challenges for local, mainland Chinese, and international students at Hong Kong’s universities. Tertiary Education and Management, 23(4), 347-360
Hao, Q., Barnes, B., &, Wright, E., & Branch, R. M. (2017). The influence of achievement goals on online help seeking of computer science students. British Journal of Educational Technology, 48(6), 1273-1283
Postiglione, G. A., & Wright, E. (2017). Strategic alignment of tertiary education and economies in East and Southeast Asia. International Journal of Chinese Education, 5(2), 187-208
Hao, Q., Wright, E., Barnes, B., & Branch, M. B. (2016). What are the most important predictors of computer science students' online help-seeking behaviors?. Computers in Human Behavior, 62, 464-474
Wright, E., Lee, M., Tang, H.H.H., & Tsui, G. C. P. (2016). Why offer the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme? A comparison between schools in Asia-Pacific and other regions.. Journal of Research in International Education, 15(1), 3-17
Lee, M., & Wright, E. (2016). Moving from elite international schools to the world’s elite universities: A critical perspective. International Journal of Comparative Education and Development, 18(2), 120-136
Yu, B. & Wright, E. (2016). Socio-cultural adaptation, academic adaptation and satisfaction of international higher degree research students in Australia. Tertiary Education and Management, 22, 49-64
Wright, E.,& Lee, M. (2014). Elite International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme schools and inter-cultural understanding in China. British Journal of Educational Studies, 62(2), 149-169
Wright, E., & Lee, M. (2014). Developing skills for youth in the 21st century: The role of elite International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme schools in China. International Review of Education, 6(2), 119-216

Conference Papers
Invited conference paper
Wright, E. (2022, 6). The Transformation of International Schooling: Emerging Trends in China’s Greater Bay Area. Paper presented at English Schools Foundation Research Conference, Virtual
Wright, E. & Lee, M. (2022, 4). Decoding the IB Teacher Professional: A Comparative Study of IB and TALIS Teachers. Paper presented at International Baccalaureate, Virtual
Wright, E., Mulvey, B., Yang, P., & Liang, Z. (2022, 4). Positional Competition among Chinese University Graduates. Paper presented at Centre for Global Higher Education, Virtual https://www.researchcghe.org/events/cghe-seminar/positional-competition-among-chinese-university-graduates/
Refereed conference paper
Wright, E., & Fedorov, A. (2022, 5). Promoting Student Voice in Educational Research: Promises and Pitfalls in an International Study. Paper presented at Comparative Education Society of Hong Kong Annual Conference, Virtual https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-FCT5q__JBWOvtzmSXs7BEA41w7kKuY/view
Wright, E., & Fedorov, A. (2022, 4). Reflections on Promoting Student Voice in an International Research Project. Paper presented at Comparative and International Education Society (CIES) focal meeting, Minneapolis, United States
Wright, E., & Hassan, S.K. (2022, 4). Student Voice and Gender Inclusivity: A Global Study of Students at Round Square Secondary Schools. Paper presented at American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting (AERA 2022), San Diego, United States
Wright, E. & Lee, M. (2021, 4). University Preparation in Hong Kong: Is the International Baccalaureate the Cadillac of College-Prep Programs?. American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, USA (virtual conference)
Wright, E., Walker, A., Lee, M., Bryant, D. A., & Hassan, S. K. (2021, 4). How do students build leadership skills? A global study of Round Square schools. American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting 2021, USA. (virtual conference), USA

Creative and Literary Works, Consulting Reports and Case Studies
Consulting or contract research report
Wright, E., Walker, A., Bryant, A. D., Hassan, S. K., & Choi, S. (2021). A Cross-cultural Study of Student Leadership in Round Square Schools. Research Report submitted to the Round Square. Hong Kong

All Other Outputs
Journal editor ('editorial membership' should be excluded)
M Yemini, M Lee, E Wright (2022). Straddling the global and national: The emerging roles of international schooling. publisher Doi:10.1080/00131911.2022.2030959.

Project
International Schooling and the Re/production of A 'Global Middle-class' in China's Greater Bay Area
The research has four objectives:

1. Identify what is driving the proliferation of international schooling in the Greater Bay Area. The research will reveal the types of families pursuing international schooling and how their school choice is related to aspirations to join a 'global middle-class' or if there are alternative reasons.

2. Determine what constitutes ‘international’ schooling beyond the English language and international programmes from the perspective of school leaders, teachers, parents, and students in a range of international schools in the Greater Bay Area.

3. Demonstrate if and how international schooling in its different types serves as a pipeline to a ‘global middle-class’ in the Greater Bay Area. The research will identify how international schooling is re/producing worldviews, lifestyles, and post-high school trajectories associated with a 'global middle-class'. It will also identify the advantages of international schooling for education and career trajectories of a 'global middle-class'.

4. Uncover the potential disruptions caused by international schooling for societies in the Greater Bay Area. The research will identify if and how international schooling is exacerbating educational inequalities or creating identities among students that are disconnected from local communities.
Project Start Year: 2022, Principal Investigator(s): WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell null
 
Personal Project: How Does the IB Middle Years Programme’s Capstone Experience Impact Students, Educators, and School Communities? (Research Matching Grant)
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Project Start Year: 2021, Principal Investigator(s): WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell null
 
International School Choice: New Identities and Mobiliites in China’s Greater Bay Area
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Project Start Year: 2021, Principal Investigator(s): WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell null
 
Personal Project: How Does the IB Middle Years Programme’s Capstone Experience Impact Students, Educators, and School Communities?
A multi-cultural research team based at the APCLC consisting of Dr Darren Bryant, Prof Allan Walker, Dr Ewan Wright, Dr Chrysa Keung, Prof Sylvia Tang and Dr Gail Yuen have been awarded a competitive International Baccalaureate (IB) research grant to investigate the impact of the IB Middle Years Programme’s capstone experience on students, educators, and school communities. More specifically, the research will:1. Use extant IB data to examine how IB Middle Years Programme students’ Personal Project completion associates with subsequent performance in the IB Diploma Programme. The academic performance of IB and non-IB students will be examined to assess the impact of Personal Project experience.

2. Gather interview data from six schools across six jurisdictions that cover the IB’s three regions: (i) Africa, Europe and the Middle East, (ii) The Americas, and (iii) Asia Pacific. In-depth interviews and focus groups will be conducted with principals/vice-principals, IB coordinators, Personal Project supervisors and coordinators, Extended Essay supervisors and coordinators, students who recently completed the Personal Project, and Diploma Programme students taking the Extended Essay. Thematic and cross-case analyses will explore the impacts of the Personal Project experience on students, educators, and school communities.

3. Compare quantitative and qualitative datasets to investigate context-specific nuances that impact PP outcomes and the generalisability or transferability of study findings.
Project Start Year: 2021, Principal Investigator(s): WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell null, BRYANT, Darren Anthony null
 
A Cross-cultural Study of Student Leadership in Round Square Schools
In this study, we are examining how young people perceive, experience, and build leadership across different cultures, and what approaches are most effective in developing student leadership in Round Square schools.
Project Start Year: 2020, Principal Investigator(s): WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell null
 
A Cross-cultural Study of Student Leadership in Round Square Schools
In this study, we are examining how young people perceive, experience, and build leadership across different cultures, and what approaches are most effective in developing student leadership in Round Square schools.
Project Start Year: 2019, Principal Investigator(s): WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell
 
Decoding the IB Teacher Professional: A Comparative Study of Australia, Austria, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, Denmark, South Korea, and Turkey
The research is investigating professional characteristics and pedagogical practices of International Baccalaureate teachers around the world. Specifically, the research is investigating who IB teachers are, what common (or distinctive) traits they have, how they enact their professional practices, how they perceive their professional capacity, and whether they are satisfied with their profession and organisational support.
Project Start Year: 2019, Principal Investigator(s): LEE MOO SUNG 李武成 (WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell as Co-Principal Investigator)
 
The Emerging Landscape of the International Baccalaureate in China's Greater Bay Area: How Do Schools Engage with a Globalised Education?
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Project Start Year: 2019, Principal Investigator(s): WRIGHT, Ewan Thomas Mansell