2026-10-07T23:02:06Z https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai

oai:figshare.com:article/34008873 2026-09-30T01:01:09Z category_26155 portal_12 item_type_5 month_year_09_2026

Wangying Guo: From Curriculum Aspiration to Classroom Practice: Critical Thinking Reform in Chinese Schools Wangying Guo (17125912) Teacher education and professional development of educators Critical thinking teacher agency curriculum reform professional learning Critical Thinking Rounds Chinese language education China <p dir="ltr">Critical thinking is increasingly promoted in national curricula, but translating policy aspirations into classroom practice is far from straightforward. This study explored how 18 Chinese language teachers across three junior secondary schools understood and taught critical thinking, and how their professional agency shaped their responses to curriculum reform. Teachers participated in Critical Thinking Rounds (CTR), an 11-week collaborative professional learning intervention involving classroom video, peer observation, structured reflection and professional dialogue. Findings revealed a gap between ambitious curriculum expectations and teachers’ everyday classroom realities, shaped by policy ambiguity, examination pressures and uneven professional support. However, CTR created opportunities for teachers to make critical thinking more visible in their practice, question established routines and collaboratively explore alternative approaches. The study highlights that meaningful curriculum change depends not simply on what policy asks teachers to do, but on the professional conditions that enable teachers to interpret, negotiate and enact reform.</p> 2026-09-30T01:01:09Z Image Poster 10.17608/k6.auckland.34008873.v2 https://figshare.com/articles/poster/From_Curriculum_Aspiration_to_Classroom_Practice_Critical_Thinking_Reform_in_Chinese_Schools/34008873 CC BY 4.0