Explanations for the transition of the junior secondary school chemistry curriculum in the people's republic of china during the period from 1978 to 2001

Abstract

Taking the Junior Secondary School Chemistry Curriculum (JSSCC) in the People's Republic of China as a case, this paper approaches the issue of the tension between elite and future citizenry orientations in science curriculum. The changes in the JSSCC over the period from 1978 to 2001 are explained from three viewpoints: sociopolitical, individual, and international influences. Based on the data collected from curriculum documents, and interviews with people involved in designing the JSSCC over the period under study, a model is established in terms of the tension between the two curriculum orientations. In this model, it is argued that the elite and future citizenry curriculum orientations are influenced by different forces. For the elite orientation, the forces are the "science for the minority" policy released by the nation, the subject matter centered input from the West, and a dominant role

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“…In the eyes of many Westerners, the classroom in Asia is usually seen as being dominated by transmissive teaching methods and minimal students' participation (e.g., Stigler & Stevenson, 1999). Such kind of teaching methods is also commonly criticized by Chinese scholars (e.g., Z. X. Liu, 2005; Yu, 2002), so transforming traditional science teaching methods is considered as an important and valuable undertaking in China (Gao, 1998; Wei & Thomas, 2005). All but one educator in the present study shared the same view on the need to transform the traditional science teaching methods, and they saw NOS teaching as a good means to the move.…”

“…These include investing in education that can nurture and prepare the future generations for the competitive global economy at the turn of the 21st century. Within science education in China, in parallel with the international trend, there is a transition from a more elite to a more future citizenry–oriented school science curriculum coupled with the emphasis on scientific literacy as the objective of Chinese school science education (Wei & Thomas, 2005; Wong, Yung, Guo, Lederman, & Lederman, 2009; Yung, Lo, Wong, & Fu, 2010). NOS, as one of the components of scientific literacy, has also begun to find its place in science education in China as it appears in the goals of Chinese science curriculum reform documents (e.g., Ministry of Education, 2001a–2001d).…”

Internationalisation and Globalisation in Mathematics and Science Education

“…We explore the changes in the JSSCC from 1978 to 2001 in relation to international influences. Previously we identified a shifting tendency from elite to future citizenry orientations in the JSSCC during the period from 1978 to 2001 and provided sociological explanations for such a shift (Wei, 2003;Wei & Thomas, 2005). This chapter differs from our previous work as we now explore the processes by which the post-Mao JSSCC curriculum was developed with reference to domestic conditions existing since 1978 and how these conditions influenced the use of ideas from outside the PRC in the development of the curriculum by those involved in the development and revisions of the JSSCC.…”

“…We have deliberately omitted substantial detail regarding the specific changes to the curriculum and have instead decided to highlight those changes that are most relevant to the theme of internationalization. Readers interested in a specific and detailed account of the changes to the JSSCC might refer to Wei (2003) and Wei (2005). The following represents our construction of the narrative account/s of the internationalization of the JSSCC.…”

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“…NOS has been mentioned in science curriculum documents in relation to scientific literacy for the past 20 years. Chinese science-based curricula emphasize a shift from knowledge to scientific literacy (Wei and Thomas, 2005), and some aspects of NOS are explicitly or implicitly represented in science textbooks (Zhuang et al, 2021). NOS is emphasized in official curriculum documents, though senior high schools adopt a separate science curriculum (MOE, 2017).…”