Transformation of Higher Education in China: A Teaching Methods Perspective

Abstract

Facilitated by the explosion of technologies, globalization is the catalyst for many changes in society and its workings. Higher education is no exception. In the present chapter from a teaching methods perspective, the authors consider China's higher education system and the transformations it is undergoing, largely as a response to globalization. Given that the employment capabilities of graduates are influenced by teaching methods they experienced throughout their education, and in turn, once gaining employment graduates' capabilities make some on the nation, it is appropriate and useful to adopt a teaching methods perspective on educational transformation. Thus, to further understanding of the status of teaching methods in China, the chapter reports on a study comparing Chinese adult education methods with Western educational methods. A conceptual framework of the principles of andragogy is used. The study results, consistent with other literature of adult education in China, indicate that some andragogical elements are used by Chinese educators.