Research Title : Assessing knowledge exchange methodologies and outcomes of a model oyster hatchery: A case study
Research Questions : Is the current knowledge exchange method of the oyster hatchery an effective way to transfer hatchery technology to the stakeholders?
Woo On Kei Phoebe
Supervised by Dr Vengatesen Thiyagarajan
Mentored by Post Doctoral Researcher Kanmani Chandra Rajan
Completed for the Laidlaw Research and Leadership Scholarship August 2023
Content
Abstract
List of Abbreviations
Introduction
Methods
Discussion
Limitation
Future Research
Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References
Abstract
This research assesses the effectiveness of the knowledge exchange (KE) methods employed by the model oyster hatchery under the Hong Kong Oyster Hatchery and Innovation Research Unit (HKO-HIRU). There are three goals of this study: evaluate the learning outcome of KE; transfer hatchery technology to stakeholders; give suggestions to future KE framework in the oyster hatchery. Through hatchery visitation and lectures, these KE methods establish connections with stakeholders, including oyster growers, funding agencies, researchers, as well as the public. The data indicates the effectiveness of the current KE method, with participants demonstrating a confident growth in terms of knowledge and awareness. The study provides insights into the importance of tailoring KE methods to specific stakeholder needs and suggests improvements for future KE initiatives in the oyster hatchery.
List of Abbreviations
Knowledge Exchange = KE
Hong Kong Oyster = HKO
Hong Kong Oyster Hatchery Innovation and Research Unit = HKO-HIRU
The Swire Institute of Marine Sciences = SWIMS
Introduction
The oyster aquaculture industry in Hong Kong holds ecological and cultural significance. (Cheung, 2019) However, the industry faces threats from climate change, ocean acidification, and other environmental stressors, including heavy metal pollution. (Lu et al., 2018; Dang et al., 2023) Since Hong Kong Oyster (HKO) growers rely on oyster spat supply from the mainland, the HKO-HIRU, under the Swire Institute of Marine Science (SWIMS), serves as a model oyster hatchery to produce oyster spat. To effectively transfer hatchery technology to stakeholders, the HKO-HIRU is actively promoting KE between scientists and stakeholders. While there are numerous studies on information sharing between farmers and scientists, there is little to none research on the KE regarding the oyster industry and hatchery. (Tilbrook et al., 2019; Galappaththi et al., 2016) Hence, this research would be able to provide new insight in the KE in this field. This project aims to evaluate the current KE method employed in the oyster hatchery and provide suggestions for improvement to enhance the learning outcomes of hatchery visitation in the future.
Furthermore, by making use of questionnaires, the project aims to identify relevant and useful information to share with oyster growers and local communities. It bridges the gap between hatchery technology and practical application, benefiting the oyster industry and the communities it supports.
In order to establish a strong foundation for the oyster hatchery, this project aims to establish connections with various stakeholders. The KE method can be improved based on the collected data, enabling more effective dissemination of the research conducted in the hatchery to the community. Ultimately, this will benefit both ongoing and future studies in the hatchery and the oyster farming industry. Additionally, the industry can benefit from research innovation and the exchange of knowledge. (Salleh & Omar, 2013) Stakeholders, particularly growers, have the opportunity to communicate their needs to researchers, enabling scientists to gain a better understanding of the challenges they face. This understanding can then drive future projects to address the industry's primary concerns.
Methodology
To assess the learning methodology and outcome, it is essential to have a foundational understanding. One way to enhance this understanding is by shadowing in the hatchery to learn about the hatchery operations and on-going research. Chatting with oyster growers serves as the primary resources of the local oyster industry and its recent development. Shadowling in the HKO-HIRU hatchery and lab located in the Kadoorie Biological Sciences building. This process enables me to acquire a deeper understanding towards the daily operation of hatchery. The experience of interacting with the PhD candidates and postdoctoral students gives me a glance of the latest research conducted in the HKO-HIRU.
With this understanding as the foundation, questionnaires are designed to assess the learning outcomes of the current KE method employed in the HKO-HIRU. Four major stakeholders have been identified, including oyster growers, funding agency staff, researchers, and the public. Different KE methods are employed based on the specific stakeholders involved. Custom-made PowerPoints and pamphlets are created to cater to their respective characteristics.
Pre-visitation questionnaires are distributed to stakeholders before their visitation to the lab. After a short lecture that makes use of tailor-made PowerPoint, a tour of the HKO-HIRU hatchery is held by the hatchery manager and staff. (Figure 1, 2)) After the visitation, participants are invited to fill in a post-visit questionnaire which has the same set of questions as the one they answer before the visitation. This method of KE is focusing on researchers from higher education backgrounds and funding agencies.
For growers, as the research period is conducted in the spawning period. Growers are busy in the oyster rafts and transporting oyster strings. Field visit is conducted to conduct KE because they are not available to visit the Hong Kong Oyster hatchery in person. They filled in questionnaires before and after a short introduction of the HKO-HIRU and explanation of the spawning procedure. In addition, all the materials are translated into Chinese to facilitate the KE and minimize language barrier in the process. (Hardness et al., 2004)
As for the public, this research focuses on tourists visiting Lau Fau Shan. It is believed that people visiting Lau Fau Shan may have more interest in understanding the environment and culture there. (Tam, n.d.) A shortened knowledge exchange method is used. Instead of detailing the HKO-HIRU and illustrating the spawning procedure, the KE just asks them questions related to the local oyster industry and tells them the correct answer directly after each question. By making use of the actual site of Lau Fau Shan, tourists grasp a good understanding of the local oyster industry at an introductory level.
The collected data will be analyzed to measure the performance of the current KE method. The number of correct answers are being compared before and after the KE. The details of how to make use of the data are included in the later part of this essay. A research essay and poster will be published to summarize the findings of this project in a professional and assessable format.
Discussion
Overall
The data reveals a positive impact of the knowledge exchange method, with an average increase of 92%. The largest improvement after KE comes from higher education backgrounds, which are as expected because they are believed to have the highest learning capability and better understanding of the basis of science. (Su, 2010) Nonetheless, the focus should be put on the oyster growers, as the hatchery goal is to encourage growers to set up their own hatchery. (Hatchery goals | Rajan-hku, n.d.)
The general opinion towards HKO-HIRU's contribution to the environment around Lau Fau Shan has risen by over 25%, while the growth in the local oyster industry has climbed by 6%. These findings demonstrate the effectiveness of the current method in transferring hatchery technology to stakeholders. (Figure 3)
Figure 3: 3a) KE efficiency shown as percentage of the growth in knowledge after hatchery visitation; 3b) General opinion change shown as percentage of HKO-HIRU’s contribution on different areas after hatchery visitation.
As this research aims to assess the before and after of KE, the data will be used to compare the efficiency of KE based on the same questions for a group. Eventually, the final percentage change results from each group can be compared.
This project collected a total of 31 questionnaires from the respective four stakeholders. Among the questionnaires, 6 of them are from the local oyster industry; 9 of them are from a funding agency; 6 of them are from higher education backgrounds; 10 of them are the general public visiting Lau Fau Shan.
Oyster growers and industry
With the help of a HKO-HIRU lab researcher, 4 local oyster growers and 2 retailers helped fill in questionnaires. The questions mainly target the simple process of spawning and the advantage of triploid oysters. (Figure 3a)
Among the five questions, two of them are well-acquired by growers before the KE, which are the instrument to sterile sea water, as well as tools to identify sex of collected oyster gametes. As a result, both questions showed little raise after the KE.
Hatchery knowledge is successfully transferred in terms of the benefit of triploid oysters and the life stages of oysters. It is suggested that triploid oyster development is one of the oyster growers’ interests because it has high economic value and successful implementations in other parts of China. (Li, H., Yu, R., Li, Q., & Ma, P., 2022; Qin et al., 2019) As for the life stage of the oysters, it is believed that oyster growers are already familiarized with this context. On that account, future KE may not highlight these two aspects.
However, KE should be strengthened in teaching oyster growers how to measure sperm quality immediately after the collection of gametes as it scored the lowest and showed limited improvement after the KE. The common misconceptions of growers, including but not limited to the better the gene, better the sperm quality, may attribute to the poorly performed outcome. As a matter of fact, the fastest way to identify sperm quality is much easier than they thought. Therefore, it is advised that the KE on measuring sperm quality should be reformed or emphasized in the future.
Higher education background
Researchers from tertiary institutions are invited to visit the HKO-HIRU on 10th and 19th August, 2023 respectively. Questions focus on practical and technical detail of fertilizations and their view on the oyster industry. (Figure 3b)
Overall, this group of stakeholders perform better after the KE when compared to other groups. Nevertheless, they shared similar patterns with the oyster growers in which they acquired the knowledge in the benefit of triploid oysters and the life stages of oysters successfully. It is proposed that they were more interested in research-based topics, which are the triploid oysters, and have learnt about life stages of various organisms. These factors enable them to grasp the two KE content firmly and accurately. Similar to oyster growers, they also demonstrated a rather poor learning outcome regarding identifying quality of oyster sperms. The suggested reason is much the same to the oysters’ growers.
In addition, higher educators showed regression in terms of the first water changed date after fertilization. One possible reason could be there are too many dates and duration mentioned during the KE, thus future KE should pay more attention in presenting the timeline of spawning procedures.
Funding agency
A grand visitation was held on the 19th August, 2023 to show staff from a major funding agency of the HKO-HIRU. A total of 13 visitors participated in the event. 10 pre and post questionnaire data were collected. The questionnaire is about the general information of the oyster industry and the HKO-HIRU. (Figure 3c)
The greatest growth is found at the salinity used for culturing HKO larvae. Additionally, this group of stakeholders also illustrates excellent learning outcomes when it comes to number related questions, such as the number of oyster rafts in Deep Bay, sperm to egg ratio in fertilization, and the salinity used for culturing. The reason behind this result remains uncertain. A larger sample group would be needed to further confirm with this outcome and predict the reason behind. (Deems et al., 2019) Lastly, they have a good understanding of the species the hatchery is focusing on. Hence, future KE may not necessarily focus on introducing HKO to this group of stakeholders.
General Public
A small-scale public survey is conducted at the seaside of Lau Fau Shan in the evening period. One-off face-to-face questionnaires were conducted to collect first handed public opinion regarding the local oyster industry and knowledge on oysters. The data are illustrated in the table below (Figure 3d).
The first four questions focus on collecting first-handed public opinion towards edible oysters. Half of the subjects prefer consuming raw oysters. The top two oyster selection criteria are the origin(40%) and safety(40%) of oysters. Although a larger proportion(60%) had heard of the unique oyster in Hong Kong, none of them could name the species and a significant proportion were not aware of HKO. The vast majority is conscious about the local oyster safety in which people only consume cooked oysters.
The last two questions are more challenging. Instead of simply collecting their general opinion, the questions aim to transfer introductory oyster knowledge to them by triggering thinking and providing the correct answers afterwards.
Figure 4: 4a-c) Comparison of the pre-KE and post-KE knowledge level of oyster growers, higher educated background, and funding agency in terms of actual score; 4d) Table of documenting the raw data collected from the general public.
Limitation
In terms of the physical limitations of the research, it may not be comprehensive enough as the research only lasts for six weeks and may not cover the full picture of the issue. Hence, it is hardly representable or conclusive but rather serves as a basis for further research. The target groups may not be big enough which may not be comprehensive enough to include all stakeholders opinions. Since a wide range of audience is involved, the summary is difficult and may fail to include all data into analysis. The data size is relatively small which may not be able to represent the stakeholders’ general opinions.
The questions may not be able to reflect the learning outcome of KE. On the other hand, they may acquire knowledge outside those being asked in the questionnaire which cannot be assessed in this study. On the one hand, participants are given the same set of questions before and after the KE. They may put more focus on the respective content without understanding the other hatchery skills. (Kirk-Smith, 1998)
As for challenges derived from human factors are as follows. Some participants cannot join the full period of KE. The fairness of research is affected when they join in late and early leave as participants may not receive a comprehensive set of KE when compared to other subjects. The prejudice of researchers to certain parties may make the result unfair.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the current KE method employed by the oyster hatchery has been effective in transferring hatchery technology to stakeholders. Through the implementation of hatchery visitation and lectures, the oyster hatchery has successfully disseminated valuable knowledge and information to various groups of stakeholders, including oyster growers, funding agency staff, researchers, and the public.
The findings of this research project indicate that the KE efforts have resulted in a significant increase in participants' understanding and knowledge of hatchery operations, oyster spawning procedures, and the overall oyster industry. The data analysis reveals a positive impact of the KE, with an average increase of 92% in participants' knowledge and awareness.
Furthermore, the research highlights the importance of establishing strong connections with stakeholders and tailoring the KE methods to suit their specific needs and backgrounds. By involving oyster growers, funding agencies, researchers, and the public in the KE process, the hatchery has successfully fostered collaboration, communication, and understanding between different stakeholders, ultimately benefiting the oyster industry and the communities it supports.
While this research project has provided valuable insights into the effectiveness of the current KE method, it is important to acknowledge the limitations. The research duration was relatively short, and the sample size may not be fully representative of all stakeholders' opinions. Future research should aim to include a larger and more diverse sample to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of the effectiveness of KE efforts.
Overall, this research project provides a valuable framework for evaluating KE efforts in the oyster hatchery and lays the foundation for future designs and improvements. By continuously improving KE initiatives, the hatchery can support oyster growers, promote sustainable oyster farming practices, and contribute to the growth and development of the oyster industry in Hong Kong.
Future research
This project creates a framework for evaluating the KE conducted in HKO-HIRU. According to the result in this research, the hatchery can improve their KE format and content. It would provide a base for future hatchery KE designs to engage various stakeholders.
Nonetheless, it is only a short research that covers the surface of the KE’s effectiveness. Future investigation can target oyster growers, who are the major stakeholders the hatchery wants to benefit. By creating better KE content, oysters growers can understand the benefits and details of setting up the hatchery, giving them more incentives to start their own.
In addition, larger scale questionnaire-based study can also be conducted in the HKO-HIRU. (Perneger et al., 2017) If data can be collected in future the conference, kick-off meetings, which have a greater number of participants, a more thorough report can be generated for future evaluation.
Acknowledgment
I could not have undertaken this journey without my supervisor, Dr. Rajan, who took me to the HKO-HIRU for this research project and helped me come up with my research topic. Furthermore, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my mentor, Kanmani, for her invaluable guidance and feedback. This endeavor would not have been possible without the Laidlaw Foundation, which provided us with a wonderful opportunity and scholarship.
Special thanks to HKO-HIRU lab technician, Mr. Leung, who helped me contact the oyster growers and provided me with a comprehensive understanding of the history and foundation of the local oyster industry. Thanks should also go to the HKO-HIRU team members, including, but not limited to, PhD candidate Fazil, who generously taught me about the current development of triploid oysters and laboratory skills. I am grateful to lab manager Jessie for arranging logistics during the visit, to senior technician Hari for accompanying me, and to PhD candidate David for providing guidance and sharing his personal experience with questionnaire-based research.
Lastly, I would like to mention my friends and family who have supported me emotionally and inspired me throughout this summer research program.
References
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