Navigating Educational Change in China: Contemporary History and Lived Experiences

129 Pages·2018·1.14 MB·English

by  Fang Wang, Leslie N.K. Lo

“Through the authors’ expert narration, interviews, and analysis,
we glimpse the intellectual histories and present circumstances of
education in China. This thin book is a very large gift to scholars and
students worldwide.” CURRICULUM STUDIES
—William F. Pinar, Canada Research Chair, University of British
WORLDWIDE
Columbia, Canada
Series Editors: William F. Pinar and Janet L. Miller
This book is a reflection on the complexity of educational change in
China through the lens of a senior academic who has occupied many
diverse roles in the academe, from political worker to dean of faculty.
It narrates his journey through different layers of historical, societal,
and institutional transformation while trying to make sense of his own
life and work. In this book, the professor is situated at the intersection
of history, culture, and society where the search for personal identity
becomes a lifelong project. Landmarks in his intellectual journey are
used to elucidate the effects of early influences, significant others,
challenges and opportunities, human agency, and professional capital.
His story illustrates the vicissitudes of a long career that combines
scholarship and administration, and offers lessons for survival,
advancement, and leadership in the fluid environment of Chinese
NAIV AG TIN G
higher education institutions.
EDUCATIONAL
Fang Wang is Associate Professor in Curriculum Studies at the Faculty
of Education at Northeast Normal University in Changchun, China,
CHANEG IN CHINA
where she received a doctorate degree in curriculum and teaching.
Leslie N.K. Lo is Professor at the Faculty of Education and a senior Contemporary
research fellow at the Center for Teacher Education Research at
History and Lived
Beijing Normal University, China.
Experiences
Fang Wang
Leslie N.K. Lo
ISBN 978-3-319-63614-6
9 783319 636146
Fang Wang
Navigating Educational Change in China
Leslie N.K. Lo
Curriculum Studies Worldwide
Series editors
William F. Pinar
Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy
University of British Columbia
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Janet L. Miller
Teachers College
New York, NY, USA
This series supports the internationalization of curriculum studies
worldwide. At this historical moment, curriculum inquiry occurs within
national borders. Like the founders of the International Association for
the Advancement of Curriculum Studies, we do not envision a world-
wide feld of curriculum studies mirroring the standardization the larger
phenomenon of globalization threatens. In establishing this series, our
commitment is to provide support for complicated conversation within
and across national and regional borders regarding the content, context,
and process of education, the organizational and intellectual center of
which is the curriculum.
More information about this series at
http://www.springer.com/series/14948
Fang Wang · Leslie N.K. Lo
Navigating
Educational Change
in China
Contemporary History and Lived Experiences
Fang Wang Leslie N.K. Lo
Northeast Normal University Beijing Normal University
Changchun, China Beijing, China
Curriculum Studies Worldwide
ISBN 978-3-319-63614-6 ISBN 978-3-319-63615-3 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-63615-3
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017948719
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2018
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exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
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Cover illustration: © Melisa Hasan
Printed on acid-free paper
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This book is published under the auspices of the Teacher Studies and
Development Project at the Education University of Hong Kong and
Beijing Normal University.
Acknowledgements
This book is the fruit of conversation, collaboration, and refection
s ustained over a period of 3 years. First conceived as a journal article,
its eventual length warranted publication in book form. The authors’
original intention was to narrate the lived experiences of a senior aca-
demic in the changing milieu of higher education in China but further
thoughts arose on two strands of ideas that emerged from the interviews
with the professor—the relationship between tradition, modernity, and
p ostmodernity and the contrariety between indigenous Chinese values
and practices and those that were imported from the West. It seemed
that an observation on the professor’s treatment of these ideas is essential
to his intellectual history, no matter how briefy it is to be presented.
Professor William Pinar provided the idea of an intellectual history of
the subject’s lived experiences. He also gave critical comments on the
embryonic draft of the essay and suggested a change of course on its
route to publication, which shaped the narrative presented in this book.
We are most grateful for this guidance.
We thank the Tin Ka Ping Foundation in Hong Kong for its gener-
ous support, which created opportunities for the authors to meet for the
planning of this project.
The Center for Teacher Education Research at the Beijing Normal
University facilitated a continuous dialogue between the authors through
a visiting scholarship and its sustained support of the research.
vii
viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Funding of the research and writing of this book come partially
from the Teacher Studies and Development Project at the Education
University of Hong Kong and Beijing Normal University.
Mr. John Cable has provided expert editorial guidance for this book.
We are indebted to him for his timely advice and critical suggestions that
have helped us make necessary improvements to the book manuscript.
We offer our special thanks to Prof. Teacher Yu for sharing his experi-
ences and insights in delightful conversations. His readiness to enlighten
is inspiring, and his trust in our constancy of purpose is deeply appreci-
ated.
From the conceptualization of this book to the choice of its topics,
we have tapped the wisdom of generations of scholars, both Chinese and
Western. Colleagues and students in Changchun, Beijing, and Hong
Kong have helped us to give voice to the lived experiences of the profes-
sor, from conversation and critique to voice recording and transcription.
However, the faults in this book remain our own.
contents
1 Introduction 1
2 Memories and Imageries 17
3 Sifting Through the Enigma of Tradition and Modernity 53
4 Balancing the Indigenous and the Foreign 69
5 Navigating Educational Change 93
Bibliography 117
Index 119
ix
About the Authors
Fang Wang is Associate Professor in Curriculum Studies at the Faculty
of Education at Northeast Normal University in Changchun, China,
where she received a doctorate degree in curriculum and teaching.
Leslie N.K. Lo is Professor at the Faculty of Education and a senior
research fellow at the Center for Teacher Education Research at Beijing
Normal University, China.
xi