Engaging students as partners (SaP) in teaching and learning is a growing arena of practice that shapes the mutually beneficial student-teacher relationship. Redefining student-teacher identities in pedagogical practice is one of the key implications of SaP. In the past decade, Chinese higher education institutions have paid increasing attention to student-centred pedagogies. Understanding and investigating new interpretations of student-teacher identities underpins the shift toward such pedagogical practices. In this theoretical discussion paper, based on the recent trends associated with Chinese higher education reform efforts revealed by large-scale and systematic survey results, we interrogate the concept of Chinese student-teacher identities as a learning partnership by drawing on the theorisations of SaP. Our intention is to contribute to the ongoing process of identity transformation within Chinese higher education. By calling for adapting SaP to the unique Chinese educational and cultural features, we provide a future vision for the cultivation of the teacher-student relationship.
There is a small but growing body of literature about engaging students as partners (SaP) in Asian countries. To further collective understanding of learner-teacher partnership practices in China, we invited undergraduate students and academics from three Chinese universities to complete a survey on their involvement in, and sense of importance of, 17 practices that align with SaP activities. The 402 students and 85 academic staff who engaged in the survey reported high levels of agreement about the importance of such practices that foster learner-teacher interactions although levels of involvement were lower. The findings demonstrate that SaP practices are unfolding in Chinese universities with evidence of a desire for growth of such activities. Our findings reveal potentials and possibilities for growing such practices in Chinese universities while raising questions about the underlying drivers and values motivating increased interest in learner-teacher interactions that warrant further qualitative research.
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