NGAI-YING WONG, CHI-CHUNG LAM,

As a part of a commissioned research to investigate views of various stakeholders on the existing mathematics curriculum in Hong Kong, a ques-tionnaire survey was administered to a random sample of 9,696 primary and secondary students to study their conceptions of mathematics, their attitude toward and habits of learning mathematics, and the perceived dif-ficulty level of various mathematics topics. The data collected showed a clear picture of students ’ perception of mathematics learning with regard to categories of interest, preference for understanding, confidence and competence, textbooks, classroom learning and outside-class learning, and learning habits. It also depicted substantial trends of changing views and attitudes toward mathematics learning across grade levels. Students’ responses to the Conception of Mathematics Scale were consistent with previous studies of a much smaller scale, and demonstrated some specific characteristics of their views of mathematics. This survey has provided useful background information regarding students ’ needs and aspirations in mathematics learning for curriculum planners and frontline teachers in future curriculum reform and implementation