Chinese teachers' conceptualization of "what is a good child"

Chinese teachers values;Chinese preschool;Chinese teachers beliefs;Chinese culture changes;Chinese education;Chinese children;Chinese morality

Liu, Wei

关键词: Chinese teachers values;    Chinese preschool;    Chinese teachers beliefs;    Chinese culture changes;    Chinese education;    Chinese children;    Chinese morality;   

Others  :  https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/bitstream/handle/2142/49666/Wei_Liu.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

美国|英语

来源: The Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship

【 摘 要 】

This study examines contemporary Chinese teachers’ beliefs of what constitutes a good child. It explores the meanings that underlie these conceptions and scrutinizes the changes that have transpired in the classrooms as well as in teachers’ beliefs over the past ten years. The study employs a combination of observations, interviews, and a survey to examine the research questions. I identified seven principal attributes in a good child: Individuality, Independence, Optimism, Collaboration, Collectivity, Responsibility, and Honesty. The meaning of these attributes is exemplified through vignettes and interview excerpts. Based on these principal attributes, a survey was developed and distributed to a larger population of teachers in attempt to confirm the findings of the interviews and observations and to further explore the research question. Three hundred and forty nine teachers participated in the survey. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the questionnaires. The overall findings indicate a shift of values and beliefs of Chinese teachers that has simultaneously occurred with changes that have taken place in their classrooms as well as in Chinese society.