Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education

Vol. 40, No. 4, November 2012, 347361

How has recent curriculum reform in China influenced school-based

teacher learning? An ethnographic study of two subject departments
in Shanghai, China
Jocelyn L.N. Wong*
The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
(Received 23 March 2011; final version received 28 July 2012)
Curriculum reforms with a focus on helping students learn to learn are now an
established global educational phenomenon. China has been implementing such curriculum reform and this poses challenges to teachers as they need to develop new
pedagogical skills and knowledge to deal with new educational demands that arise. This
ethnographic study investigates the impacts of current curriculum reform on teacher
learning using two subject departments from two schools in Shanghai, China. It shows
that teachers direct much attention towards searching for good practices and norms of
practice to encounter new curriculum challenges. Findings show that outside experts
who act as boundary brokers are crucial in teacher learning. They also identify two
modes of teacher learning activities: hierarchical, which relies on imported expert
knowledge; and reciprocal, which depends on exploiting local knowledge. Striking a
balance between these two approaches may be the way forward.
Keywords: China; curriculum reform; professional development of teachers; schoolbased teacher development; teacher learning

Introduction
A teacher who knows more teaches better is a truism that requires no explication. Over the
last three decades, calls for improving the quality of teachers have intensified. Curriculum
reforms in particular have accelerated such demands, as these require students to broaden
their skills and knowledge (Fullan, 2001). They also shift teachers mind-sets from the
transmission of knowledge aiming at teach to the test, to the development of students
generic skills by enhancing the stance of inquiry of teachers, based on teamwork. Many
teachers, however, may be reluctant to change and move beyond their comfort zone as
they fear to jump into the unknown. As Guskey (2002) stated, teachers are committed to
the use of new practices only after they have witnessed positive changes to student learning
outcomes. Given this, teacher learning activities may help to equip teachers with sufficient
knowledge and skills to overcome the teething problems of curriculum reforms.
Aiming at helping teachers to cope with new challenges posed by curriculum reforms,
a number of professional learning programmes have arisen. Among these, school-based
learning activities for teachers are an important component as they can enhance teachers capacity for change by developing a shared knowledge (Wohlestetter, 1995). Such
activities afford the opportunity for teachers to interact, work, and learn with others in
order to counter new challenges derived from curriculum reforms.
*Email: jlnwong@cuhk.edu.hk
ISSN 1359-866X print/ISSN 1469-2945 online
2012 Australian Teacher Education Association
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2012.724654
http://www.tandfonline.com

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J.L.N. Wong

Teachers in China have a long tradition of situating their learning in their daily work.
They have always regularly attended school-based learning activities (Ma, 1999; Paine,
1997; Wang, 2001), which have provided them with a context for the cross fertilisation of
ideas in their subject departments within a climate of trust.
However, in China since 2001 the education arena has changed and this has had
a huge impact on teacher education. So far, there has been little attention to how the
present curriculum reform influences or shapes school-based teacher learning. To fill this
gap, this paper attempts to explore how teachers in China learn through their established
school-based teacher learning activities in the context of curriculum reform. Two research
questions are put forward:
(1) How has school-based teacher learning in China been impacted on by current
curriculum reform?
(2) What new characteristics of school-based teacher learning in China have been
developed in the context of curriculum reform?
It is hoped that this study may help teachers regard curriculum reform as facilitating, rather
than being an obstacle to, their professional development and, concurrently, help schools to
find new ways to improve the quality of teachers school-based learning activities.

Background: Current curriculum reform in China (erjikegai)

Prior to the 2000s, Chinas school education was criticised as examination-oriented.
Students received mechanical drilling for high-stake examinations, which consisted of
the delivery of theoretical knowledge designed by central authorities. Around that time,
criticism arose. Curriculum content was deemed difficult, complicated, unpopular and oldfashioned and over-emphasis on textbook knowledge was questioned (Zhongguo Jiaoyubu,
2001, p. 1). To resolve the problem of learn to test and teach to the test (Huang,
2004; Wong, 2008) and to equip students with lifelong learning abilities, the Ministry of
Education promulgated a Draft of Framework of Curriculum Reform in Basic Education
(Zhongguo Jiaoyubu, 2001), which aims to improve teaching effectiveness and nurture
human resources that can enhance the competitiveness of the state (Carney, 2008). This
reform is known as the second phase of curriculum reform (erjikegai). Teachers and students in basic education were required to change to the new curriculum framework and
textbooks by 20042005 (Liu & Qi, 2005).
This new curriculum had four basic features: interactive, integrated, diverse, and situated (Huang, 2004; Liu & Qi, 2005). It was designed to encourage students to have
enquiring minds and to develop problem-solving abilities. It aimed at equipping students
with the necessary skills to learn how to learn. Acquiring research skills, inquiry skills,
and information processing and reasoning skills are key issues, plus helping students
achieve self actualisation through learning by experiencing (Huang, 2004; Liu & Qi,
2005; Sargent, 2009).
This curriculum reform has put a strong emphasis on student learning rather than teaching. Interactive learning and student participation have been emphasised. Student ideas and
opinions have become valued (Sargent, 2009). As a result, teachers are required to take
up new roles such as being facilitators of students learning, and being curriculum designers and developers. Within this context, teachers needed to learn new instructional skills,
for which school-based professional learning activities are vital as they provide interaction

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with colleagues based on authentic classroom experiences. Studies show that teachers generally have had positive receptiveness to the curriculum reform and have readiness to put
the reform initiatives into practice; however, whether there are sufficient learning activities
to help teachers perform their new roles has been called into question (Halstead & Zhu,
2009; Ma et al., 2009; Sargent, 2009; Sargent & Hannum, 2009).
Given this, this study attempts to answer the research questions by seeking teachers
views on how they are renewing their instructional practices and making changes in their
collaborative learning practice in the context of curriculum reform.

Literature review
Teacher learning through practice and participation in school-based context
Teacher learning should include collaboration between colleagues and peers to enable cross
fertilisation of ideas and learning in an authentic context that allows people to try out their
new ideas (Cassidy et al., 2008; Hoban, 2002). It should be situated in an environment
where teachers are actually teaching (Wang, 2001). This is an interactive process in which
teachers can create local knowledge in and for their own communities (Lytle & CochranSmith, 1992; Servage, 2009). With a mindset of the use of stance of inquiry (CochranSmith & Lytle, 2001), teachers can gain better understanding of their role through practice,
the application of empirical knowledge, the relationship between inquiry and practice, and
learning from fellow colleagues within their teacher communities. Teachers are able to
deepen their expertise and enhance collective inquiry by learning in and from their daily
practice (Little & Horn, 2007).
School-based teacher learning should be collaborative, coordinated, interdependent,
and focused foremost on students performance by open discussion of teaching problems
(Andrews & Lewis, 2000; Darling-Hammond, 1996; Hord, 2009; Kwakman, 2003; Leo &
DEtte, 2000; McLaughlin & Talbert, 2001; Smylie, 1995; Wallace, 1999). This is a process
of normalizing problems of practice in which teaching becomes an object of collective
attention (Little & Horn, 2007, p. 82). Teachers can articulate and share explicitly what
went well and badly in their teaching based on individual and group reflection with others (Hargreaves, 2003). Such school-based learning activities provide a context in which
teachers are able to share and disseminate their communal experience within actual classrooms and then spread the dynamic interactions of such classroom activities to the school
community. They create self-perpetuating and self-sustaining communities that allow the
development of professional norms among the participants involved (Servage, 2009).
Importantly, teachers are able to take the initiative to construct and generate their own
knowledge about teaching and learning that meets their own needs and interests (Borko,
2004). They will be able to negotiate the content of learning based on authentic classroom
experience and develop a shared repertoire of teaching and learning for themselves (Ball &
Cohen, 1999; Wenger, 1998). New learning content is constructed based on group practices
through the process of participation and reification. Participation means members have
active involvement in the process in which they can translate and recontextualise their experiences and understandings. Reification refers to the process of practice in which abstract
ideas and views can be translated and made accessible in different forms, such as instruments, monuments, documents, and projection. It is also a process that transmits outside
knowledge into local context (Wenger, 1998).
Given this, members can assimilate new ideas and knowledge in the process of participating and practicing. They therefore can develop collective inquiry and innovative practice

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J.L.N. Wong

based on their interactions with mutual sharing. Furthermore, new ideas can be generated, which continuously thrive on a collective body of knowledge to counter emerging
problems or challenges. This constitutes knowledge in practice, which refers to knowledge created through reflection, inquiry, and practice by members of teacher communities
(Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 1993).
Although scholars basically agree on the tenets stated above, they have paid little attention to the effects of school-based teacher learning within the context of curriculum reform.
As teachers in China have been experiencing a series of changes brought about by new curriculum requirements, it is important to examine how they shift their norms of practice as
a response to the current curriculum reform. This study therefore attempts to examine the
issue of school-based teacher learning in China as an interplay of utilising internal expertise
and outside knowledge based on the availability of resource allocation of schools. Outside
experts, however, have been an influential factor in the quality of these teacher learning
activities.
Situated teacher learning in China
The professional development of teachers in China has a long tradition of being embedded in their workplace practices and being highly dependent on the communal spirit of
colleagues. The construction and operation of school-based teacher learning activities are
primarily on the basis of subject-based Teaching Research Groups (TRGs [jiayanzu]).
In China, TRGs were first introduced from the Soviet Union in the early-1950s (Paine
& Ma, 1993). The function of TRGs is to invigorate the teaching competence and working
morality of teachers through orchestrating a wide range of learning activities. In normal
practice, each subject in each school has its own TRG. Each TRG consists of various grade
levels of Collective Lesson Preparation Groups (CLPGs [beikezu]), which are the smallest
unit of each TRG. In-service teacher learning in China has been institutionalized based
on these so-called contrived teaching organization(s) (Wang, 2002, p. 346). Each TRG
organizes its teachers to have at least weekly learning activities in a fixed timeslot (Paine &
Ma, 1993).
Teachers in China normally share matters related to instructional contexts. Textbooks,
curriculum matters and pedagogical issues are their common interests and these provide the
foundation for developing their shared repertoire. Subject matter knowledge and classroom
practice remain the foundation for teachers to reflect (Lee & Feng, 2007; Peng, 2007). Textdriven and classroom-oriented learning is the basis on which teachers share their knowledge
about not only what and how to teach, but also why to teach in such a way (Tsui &
Wong, 2009). Classrooms seem to be laboratories for teachers to experiment with new
ideas. Teachers then become researchers who strive to improve the teaching quality with
team support.
To understand how teachers in China are coping with new demands, the study focused
on how teachers encounter the new educational challenges in the TRGs using collaborative
support and how they construct their new knowledge and practice to meet students needs
in subject-based teacher learning activities.
Methodology
The study aimed to investigate how teachers perceive changes in their school-based
learning within their subject-focused TRGs in the implementation of curriculum reform.
It analyzed data gathered from six Mathematics teachers from DongMei Secondary School

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(pseudonym) and five Chinese language teachers from TianWei School (pseudonym) with
the aim of exploring their experiences of and perceptions towards the impacts of learning
activities organized by their subject TRGs from 2004 to 2007.
This study sought to understand the learning journeys of teachers at both individual
and group levels with an emic perspective (Pole & Morrison, 2003, p. 4). The researcher
is closely involved with the informants over a period in their everyday lives in order to
understand their culture and its meaning (Taft, 1997). Thus an ethnographic study research
method is applied for this study.
Both DongMei Secondary School and TianWei School are managed by the same
District Education Department in Shanghai. DongMei Secondary School offers education from Grade 5 to Grade 9, whereas TianWei School provides education from Grade
1 to Grade 9. School administrators of these two schools have been making concerted
efforts to nurture a strong learning culture for teachers to work within as a way to improve
teaching effectiveness in response to new curriculum requirements and increase their
competitiveness in the education community.
Demographic information of the 11 interviewees is shown in Table 1.
All interviewees were chosen by the researcher from a pool of teachers recommended
by school administrators based on the availability of teachers. The recruitment of interviewees was a convenience sample in the sense that they agreed to participate in the study on
a voluntary basis. Therefore, informed consent for the informants was granted before data
collection. Ethics clearance was obtained before the first stage of fieldwork. For the purpose of confidentiality, pseudonyms are used for all teachers in this study. As a small-scale

Table 1. Demographic information about the 11 interviewees.

School
Mathematics
Department of
DongMei Secondary
School

Chinese Language
Department of
TianWei School

Name

Years of teaching
experience

Rui

11

Lan

10

Xu
Liao
Yang

7
18
8

Fu

25

Li

23

Jin

Qin

13

Shi

Yuan

28

Functional position in the school

Subject headteacher and a coordinator
of a Collective Lesson Preparation
Group
Class teacher and grade coordinator of
student affairs
Class teacher
Class teacher
Class teacher and coordinator of a
Collective Lesson Preparation Group
in 2006
Senior school administrator and
responsible for student affairs and the
professional development of teachers
Subject panel head teacher at
elementary level and coordinator of a
Collective Lesson Preparation Group
Class teacher and grade coordinator of
student affairs
Class teacher and grade coordinator of a
Collective Lesson Preparation Group
Class teacher and coordinator of a
Collective Lesson Preparation Group
Head of academic affairs of the primary
school section

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J.L.N. Wong

qualitative study, there is no attempt to draw any generalization regarding school-based

teacher learning within the context of curriculum reform from the collected data.
Semi-structured interviews were used during the data collection process. When all interviews were transcribed, synthesis, and organisation of the preliminary information into
several categories was done as a reference point for further analysis. Analysis of the data
source included reading and re-reading interview transcripts, while giving the data initial
codes. The coding process involved three steps: open coding, axial coding, and selective
coding (Strauss & Corbin, 1998) by using Altas.ti qualitative software programme. The
researcher then further grouped different interviewees views into different themes.
The researcher also applied a non-participant observation approach to attend subjectbased learning activities and discussion sessions with teachers and outside experts.
Observations were recorded in the form of written notes and organized into field notes,
which were also coded and analysed. Field notes were compiled based on observations and
informal conversations. Analysis of the data was an ongoing procedure throughout the data
collection phase of the research. Note that there is no attempt to claim that these perspectives are the only possible interpretation of events, as the research then brings a history to
the analysis and interpretation of findings that ensures the accuracy of the collected data.

Findings
Curriculum reform requires teachers to use inquiry-based and student-oriented teaching,
all of which are not only completely new to the teachers studied but also add to the burden of their already exam-focused workloads. In order to cope with the new educational
needs, the school leaders of both DongMei and TianWei have invited external experts from
District Education Colleges to guide the professional development of teachers. Despite similar arrangements, teachers from these two TRGs reported different types of school-based
teacher learning approaches. The following section sets out the results of the enquiry into
the impacts of curriculum reform on teacher learning in these two TRGs. Each quotation
below is followed by the interview sequence of individual interviewees.

Teacher learning in the Mathematics TRG of DongMei Secondary School: importing

expert knowledge
With the aim of dealing with the new demands derived from curriculum reform, Mr. Huang
(pseudonym), who is a retired Teaching Consultant and a well-known Mathematics education expert in the District, has been invited to be the regular outside coach and the master
teacher of the Mathematics TRG since 2002. He has a bi-weekly visit to the department
and joins the regular subject-based learning activities in order to keep track of the teacher
learning of the whole TRG. He firstly introduced the idea of mathematising (shuxuehua),
which refers to nurturing students problem solving ability rather than memorising mathematical formulas for examinations. With his help, all members of the Mathematics TRG
started to view their teaching in a broader context rather than being bounded by examination requirements. Lan reflected on her learning experience from observing Yangs Open
lesson led by Mr. Huang:
I had experience teaching Pythagorass Theorem but only based on textbooks and following
the normal teaching schedule. It was different from the open lesson conducted by Yang. Yangs
way to teach can cultivate students generic skills. . . . Now the new curriculum requires our
students having hands-on experience in their learning process. . . . Yangs design demanded

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students use an experimental approach to discover the key idea of this topic. This required high
order thinking skills and students needed to take the initiative to learn. I will try to adopt this
approach to teach and let my students have group discussions, using the Internet to explore the
knowledge. (Lans interview-3)

Lans comment has two implications. Firstly, within the context of curriculum reform,
inquiry-based and student-oriented approaches of teaching now become new norms of
practice. They act as the new direction of teacher learning which guides TRG members
to develop a shared repertoire of good practices. Teachers in the Mathematics TRG use an
action experimental approach to enhance their skills and improve their professional practice
based on the support from the school and the close guidance of Mr. Huang.
Secondly, it is apparent that inputs from an outside coach have shifted the Mathematics
TRGs firm commitment to teaching to the test towards the establishment of a learning
community with strong support and collegial culture. In this case, the development of a
new focus of teacher learning and the construction of new pedagogical knowledge for the
Mathematics teachers studied were an outside-in approach with new inputs and ideas
mostly provided by the outside expert. The Mathematics teachers studied have made a
serious attempt to contextualize expert knowledge to guide their local practice.
The Mathematics TRG then participated in two important teacher learning research
projects, which were initiated and have been led by the Shanghai Academy of Educational
Sciences since 2004. One project, called Pythagorass Theorem, aimed to promote the
idea of teaching Mathematics using an interactive approach, encouraging students to use
imagination in the learning process. The experiment achieved a fine result based on student performance, feedback from their fellow colleagues and academics from the Shanghai
Academy of Educational Sciences. It gave them a sense of satisfaction (Fus interview-3;
Liaos interview-2; Yangs interview-4). The success of this research project was a joint
effort of the TRG members. More importantly, a shared repertoire was developed during
the process of how teachers contextualise and recontextualise the idea into an authentic
classroom and a search for possible solutions.
After the success of teaching Pythagorass Theorem, the Mathematics TRG joined
another research project, entitled the Premise of Mathematics, one year later. This project
attempted to help students gain an in-depth understanding of the nature of Mathematics.
Throughout the process, the Mathematics TRG used an experimental approach to improve
teachers pedagogical knowledge and practices based on students performance. This was
also a process of reification in which participants in the projects shared their views on ways
to put the idea of inquiry-based student learning into practice and demonstrated what went
wrong and what was successful to fellow colleagues.
Such a data-driven approach is a powerful tool to inform the daily practice of teachers.
Xu explained what the changes to her pedagogical strategies to teach Grade 6 arithmetic
meant during her participation in the research project:
In the past, I only referred to the pedagogical methods stated in our teachers manual, plus
my personal understanding of the topic to teach. . . . After I participated in the project [the
Premise of Mathematics], I always reflect on the following issues: What do I want to teach?
What is the prior knowledge of my students? We need to take students knowledge and experience into consideration when we decide how to teach. I redesigned my lesson based on my
personal experience plus others [colleagues] feedback. . . . They were divided into groups
for discussion. After that, they discovered the answer and made conclusions. I allowed them to
share their findings in the class. This is completely new to me. . . . [Now] I have a strong sense
of satisfaction. So do my students. (Xus interview-6)

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Xu acknowledged that this new shift was a shared repertoire developed together with other
experienced TRG members and outside experts through a process of recontextualising her
problems of practice. Xu also shared her experience with her other TRG members and
presented her work at a district-wide Mathematics conference in May 2006. It was an opportunity for the reification of good practices in which the members of the Mathematics TRG
were able to share their knowledge in practice publicly with the education community.
To sum up, teacher learning in the Mathematics TRG is very much led and supported
by an outside coach who brings in innovative ideas in pedagogical skills and the rationale
of teaching. Ideas such as mathematision, student-inquiry, and interaction have been
internalised and embedded in teachers minds through the process of participating in various research projects. The classroom practice of the Mathematics teachers studied seems
to incorporate concerted efforts to put these ideas into practice.
Teacher learning of the Chinese TRG in TianWei School: generating internal expertise
Similarly to the Mathematics TRG, the ability driven Chinese language teaching approach
constitutes a new direction for teacher learning that is completely new to members of the
Chinese TRG.
Owing to resource considerations, the practice of having the support of outside experts
in TianWei was on an irregular basis and focused only on a group of selected teachers rather
than the whole subject department. Among the five Chinese language interviewees studied,
three (Jin, Qin, and Shi) were selected to get extra support from outside coaches from the
District Education Colleges. Jin, for example, got some instruction regarding appropriate
practice that matched the new curriculum requirements from two Teaching Consultants
performing as master teachers from two different District Education Colleges arranged by
the school (Jin-interview-1). Both Shi and Qin explained how they had been inspired by
these outside coaches to tackle the new demands. Their experience, however, was only
at an individual rather than at a group level. Shi, for example, mentioned that she was
inspired by the idea of yikeyide (one lesson, one gain: This refers to how students should
be able to learn one knowledge point in each lesson) learnt from her outside coach (Shis
interview-4). This idea, therefore, has become a guiding principle of her work. It, however,
has not been widely shared with the other Chinese Language TRG members of the TianWei
School owing to the issue of seniority. As a young and less experienced TRG member, she
dared not take the initiative to share her views and challenge the usual practice of veteran
teachers. Such behaviour was deemed inappropriate and disrespectful of old wisdom and
might jeopardize the harmonious working climate of the team (Shis interview-4).
Consequently, teacher learning in this TRG presents as an inside-out approach,
being a mixture of irregular external input mixed with considerable internal expertise.
Learning and sharing very much depended on individual judgments of teachers. Because
of this, the injection of new knowledge and ideas of practice into the Chinese language TRG tends to be more individualist, focused only on a small group of selected
teachers.
Teachers in the Chinese TRG also engaged in research projects with the aim of improving their teaching competency. A bottom up approach was used and it was very much
school-focused. Selection and design of the research projects were based on teachers views
on students common leaning difficulties rather than being based on a completed adaption of experts views and ideas. Since 2005, the research focus of junior levels has been
on strengthening spoken skills, whereas for senior levels the research focus has been on
developing writing skills. The writing project was suggested and initiated by the teachers

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themselves rather than being a research project brought by an outside expert. Yuan, Li, and
Qin explained that the selection of the topic was inspired by the Open Lesson conducted
by Shi earlier. Shis idea was to provide an environment that was conducive to students
accomplishing their writing tasks:
Yes, [the Open Lesson from Shi] inspired me. . . . She mainly helped her students to learn how
to observe and use data such as peoples behavior and facial expressions from observation as
the foundation to complete a descriptive writing task [of weather in spring]. After that, she
inserted music to help her students to imagine and feel the scene that the protagonist has been
facing. Afterwards, she showed the text for her students to evaluate with the purpose to help
them get a clear sense of the topic. The last part of the lesson was to let her students start
writing. . . . Shis work is an example which shows us how to help our students put their real
experience, real feeling and real thought in writing. (Yuans interview-4)

Yuan, Qin, and Li witnessed the active engagement of the students in the lesson. They
admitted that the success of Shis open lesson became an instance of how to apply an
inquiry-based approach to teaching. It influenced their pedagogical design of teaching
a similar topic. However, not all members of the TRG accepted and internalised this
pedagogical approach as part of their norms of practice (Yuans interview-4).
In the case of the Chinese Language TRG the research project was an impetus that
provided an opportunity for its members to rethink and reflect on their usual practice, in particular, issues related to what to teach and how in relation to the ideas of inquiry-based
and student-oriented approaches, as suggested by curriculum reform. In-depth reflection on
what went well and what went badly in their writing lessons and finding ways to improve
it is evident in their sharing of their results. However, their learning focus seems to be on
adjusting problems of their daily practice to meet the requirements of curriculum reform.
Student-centred practice, springing mainly from internal initiatives, has not yet widely
influenced all the TRG members and become deeply embedded in their souls. Only a very
limited number of Chinese Language TRG members have been attempting to apply this
innovative approach to guide their practice. The impact of research-oriented practice seems
to be more at the individual level (Shis interview-5).
To sum up, teacher learning in the Chinese TRG is very much a local concern with
limited outside support. Engaging in research activities is a reification process in which
teachers are able to generate local knowledge by modifying expert inputs, student feedback and performance, and internal expertise shared by fellow colleagues in schools. The
impact of these newly emerged pedagogical views and knowledge not only tends to be at
an individual level but also impacts only on a selected group of teachers rather than being
transferred as a learning focus for the whole team.

Discussion
Both TRGs studied have attempted to align local practice with external requirements and
facilitate teachers searching for local solutions to new problems and challenges. Both of
them have been engaged in a process of negotiating what good practice is and reconstructing their ideas of knowledge in practice based on collective inquiry in response to new
curriculum requirements. Two influential factors, namely, the role of outside experts and
evidence-based teacher learning, are crucial in developing school-based teacher learning.
Details are explained as follows.

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Impacts of outside experts on the clarification of new objects of teacher learning

One key problem of teacher learning is that teachers rarely draw from a shared knowledge base alone to improve their practice (Hiebert, Gallimore, & Stigler, 2002). As Guskey
(2002) stated, teachers need to receive regular input into the effects of their efforts and
increase their professional competence. This study shows that early intervention with
regular feedback from outside experts can make a big difference to teacher learning.
Importantly, these experts are identified as brokers who are able to connect with different communities by introducing new ideas and practices from one community to
another (Wenger, 1998). Therefore, teacher learning can be across different contexts
(Fuller, 2007). In this process, good brokers can enhance teacher learning as they are
able to create connections across communities, negotiate meaning with members of different communities and facilitate transactions among communities (Law & Tsui, 2009,
p. 112).
From what has been presented above, the two schools have had a very different experience regarding outsiders. Outside experts act as boundary brokers who bring in new
curriculum ideas and bridge learning activities across different communities by translating, coordinating and aligning various perspectives and ideas (Cobb, McClain, Lamberg, &
Dean, 2003).
The Mathematics TRG had been well prepared for the changes as Mr. Huang brought
in the idea of mathematising before the full swing of curriculum reform (e.g. Ruis
interview-3; Liaos interview-2, Lans interview-3, Fus interview-3). With such early
preparation, the mind-set of those teachers shifted towards effective teaching as teachers have to make good use of daily examples which can be a stimulus to arouse students
and let them solve the problem in a Mathematical way (Ruis interview-8). That early
intervention from an outside expert helped the Mathematics teachers to understand and
refine the new common goal of helping students to learn. It became their norm of practice, a common tool for the TRG members to communicate about and a focal point around
which to organise various activities in different communities (Cobb et al., 2003). Given
this, the Mathematics teachers are relatively more confident to handle new challenges and
pursue more systematic and theoretical approaches to teacher learning. More importantly,
having research collaboration with the Shanghai Academy of Educational Sciences to conduct two research projects proves that inputs from outside experts are crucial for shaping
the key learning focus of teachers. Mr. Huang is perceived as a good broker as he helps
to create connections between schools and the local Mathematics education community,
facilitates how Mathematics teachers negotiate new meanings and understandings of teaching and learning, and helps them develop a shared repertoire to work on in the context of
curriculum reform.
By contrast, the role of outside experts in the teacher learning of the Chinese TRG
is relatively unstructured. Their involvement is more on an individual rather than a team
basis. Inputs from outside experts were varied. Shi learnt the idea of yikeyide (each lesson has one main focus for students to learn) and Qin learnt the idea of jizhongishizi
(learning Chinese words based on similar components of different words) from individual outside experts. Jin also learnt the objectives required by curriculum reform from her
outside coaches. However, such a practice of teacher learning is highly dependent on the
expertise of different outside coaches. New objects of teacher learning are various and random so are unlikely to develop into a common goal and norms of practice for the whole
team to achieve. Furthermore, although language learning research projects in the Chinese
TRG were conducted, they were highly dependent on internal expertise and consensus.

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357

Consequently, influences on teacher learning and practice seemed to be on an individual

and small-scale level. Indeed, negotiation of learning content for the Chinese teachers was
very much reliant on internal expertise. At the current stage, the development of a shared
repertoire for the whole team has not yet been widely accomplished. This is in contrast to
the case of the Mathematics TRG, in which an outside coach acts as a driving force to lead
the professional development of the whole team by developing a culture of inquiry and a
common norm of practice (Day, 2002).

Evidence-based teacher learning in schools

This study shows that school-based teacher learning activities serve as the site and the
source of teacher learning. They provide a context for the teachers to practice, clarify, and
disseminate their experiences regarding putting abstract ideas, such as innovative teaching, inquiry-based learning, and student-oriented, into practice, either at the micro level
(e.g., the Chinese TRG to subject teachers) or at the macro level (e.g., the Mathematics
TRG to the education community).
Teacher learning in both TRGs, however, tends to be evidence-based, which means
teachers adopt new practices or procedures only when they witness positive student learning outcomes (Guskey, 1995). The development of new objects of teacher learning in both
TRGs very much relies on the successful experience of their colleagues. Teacher learning in the Mathematics TRG, for example, was firstly led by Mr. Huang using the idea
of mathematising; this was followed by the exemplary lesson of teaching Pythagorass
Theorem conducted by Yang. Similarly, teacher learning in the Chinese TRG was based
on encouraging feedback and a high level of student engagement observed in the Open
Lesson of Spring, which demonstrated the implementation of the inquiry approach and
student oriented pedagogical practices. That students actively engaged in the above two
lessons was deemed an indicator of the successful application of the inquiry approach
to pedagogical skills. After that, teachers were more confident about the new approach
and were motivated to learn new pedagogical skills and change their classroom practices
based on evidence. The teacher learning techniques studied were data driven and applied
a think big, start small approach (Guskey, 1995) in which changes start from a small
scale with significant improvement on normal practices. Revising and refining their pedagogical practices based on results derived from small-scale studies helped teachers to gain
an in-depth understanding of new curriculum requirements and put theoretical views and
ideas into practice. Feedback and performance from students are a kind of reflection that
also helps teachers to reflect on what went wrong and what went well in their teaching
(Imants, 2002). It was clear that, with evidence-based teacher learning practice, teachers
are more confident to develop an inquiry mind-set to guide their new practices. This is
particularly important for the Chinese teachers studied who have less support from outside
coaches.

Implications
Striking a balance between the hierarchical approach and the reciprocal approach to
teacher learning
This study has shown that a strong network with outside research and teaching institutions provided connections and a platform for members of the Mathematics TRG to share
their views and reflect on their individual practice at a more academic and holistic level.

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The research project entitled the Premise of Mathematics, for example, inspired teachers not only to sharpen their pedagogical skills, but also to rethink their subject content.
Collaborative research with outside experts brought along new ideas of teaching, which
provided a context for teachers to reflect on their practice. Teachers therefore attempted to
contextualise expert knowledge into their classroom context. Equipped with this outside
knowledge, the Mathematics teachers developed their knowledge in practice and linked
this to the broader social context. This practice was based on the hierarchical approach as
it largely relied on an outside coach.
More importantly, the outside coach brought in new ideas and good practices from
other schools in order to widen teachers views on teaching and learning. He further helped
the team to refine their problems and clarify hypotheses of teaching within a curriculum
reform context by locating research information (Hiebert et al., 2002, p. 9). All of these
helped the Mathematics TRG develop a shared knowledge base and helped teacher learning
move beyond their school boundary to develop teacher knowledge in other schools in the
community.
Such a teacher learning approach, however, has its limitations. A key disadvantage of
this was that outside experts served as a symbol of authority to teachers. Teachers involved
in the research projects tended to follow rather than challenge tasks and ideas delivered
by experts. The teachers studied normally uncritically accepted the shared goals as the
common ground for them to work towards. This echoed research findings from the study of
Zhang and Ng (2011), which found that the authoritarian oriented of school management
practice. Teachers in China, in general, are inclined to obey and respect authority. They
tend to accept decisions from outside authority or government. A high level of conformity
to authority may limit the development of the internal expertise or the views of teachers
studied.
Comparatively, the Chinese Language TRG did not have a strong and regular tie with
external experts. Learning and negotiating the new pedagogical practices of the Chinese
language teachers depended largely on their internal efforts. Such an approach to teacher
learning is situation- and content-specific. Objects of teacher learning arise in response
to specific problems of practice and an attempt to search for local solutions (Hiebert
et al., 2002). This shaped the working climate of the Chinese teachers studied to be
more self-actualised than team oriented. One advantage of this reciprocal approach may
be that it helps teachers to have more flexibility to innovate their teaching in relation to
local situations. This approach also helps teachers involved develop their sense of ownership of what they decide to learn based on the professional judgments of teachers.
However, such an approach makes teacher learning loosely structured and less consistent.
Whether different levels of the professional competency of teachers would be influential
on the development and quality of school-based teacher learning programmes is another
question.
In conclusion, both hierarchical and reciprocal approaches have their own strengths and
limitations. Searching for a third space to strike a balance between the two approaches is
possibly a useful research direction (Servage, 2009). Ways might be found to contextualise
knowledge from external sources as well as incorporating internal expertise as the key
to state-of-the-art teacher learning. Such a direction would help schools to utilize expertise
from both outside experts and teachers to meet local needs and current requirements. In line
with this, the idea of school-university partnerships with the aim to nurture a group of good
brokers to support the professional development of teachers may be a way forward for
further discussion on how to merge external support and internal expertise as the foundation
of teacher learning.

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359

Conclusion
Several findings emerged from this ethnographic study. Curriculum reform has encouraged
a new inquiry-orientated approach that has become the foundation of teacher learning. Both
TRGs studied have adopted an experimental approach to teacher learning and were able
to share their classroom practices and experiences with their colleagues. However, there
were some differences. The Chinese Language TRG is still at the stage of assimilating the
innovative ideas in teaching brought about by curriculum reform. Only a limited number
of teachers are taking a leading role to guide the development of the TRG. It seems this
is because its teacher learning relies on a reciprocal approach. The learning is very much
dependent on internal expertise, with relatively less input from outside experts. By contrast,
the Mathematics TRG adopts a hierarchical approach to teacher learning. External advice
has been leading the learning content of the whole TRG. Given this, the Mathematics teachers studied, created, and publicly shared their knowledge in practice, disseminating their
good practices and research results not only to their fellow colleagues but also to the local
education community.
Striking a balance between these two approaches and searching for a third space to
develop a more appropriate approach to teacher learning in China may be the way forward.
Apart from that, a strategic plan to develop good brokers is equally important to enhance
the professional knowledge and competency of teachers in China, and may be a useful
strategy for any context where teacher learning has been a focus of discussion.

Notes on contributor
Jocelyn Wong is Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education, the Chinese University of
Hong Kong. Her research interests are teacher learning and education in China.

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