Teachers’ perspective of their role and student autonomy in the PBL context in China

Abstract

The traditional role of the teacher confronts many challenges by an increasing number of educational initiatives that highlight student-centered learning in China, since the teacher’s role is in great need of transformation from instructor to facilitator. Therefore, it is quite necessary to examine how the teachers perceive their role within a context in the process of making educational innovations. This study relies on two Chinese universities which are changing their educational approach from lecture-based learning to PBL (Problem Based Learning). We examine how the teachers perceive their role in a PBL context. In particular, we are mainly concerned with how the teachers support student learning autonomy in PBL classes. It can be noted that the Chinese teachers have a tendency to maintain high interference in student learning process even though they admit the value of giving student learning autonomy. This study further implies a dilemma between teachers’ intention to encourage students to learn on their own and their tendency to maintain their directive role in the educational processes.