Action Research On Potential Development Of Higher Vocational Students Based On The PPCT Model

At present,higher vocational education is ushering in unprecedented opportunities for development as China has attached great importance to higher vocational education.However,the quality of talent cultivation in higher vocational colleges fails to meet the developmental needs of the country due to the historical and realistic reasons.Driven by technical rationality,higher vocational education tends to focus on the cultivation of skills rather than competencies,directly leading to the monotonous knowledge structure of students,and the neglect of students‘ potential so that students take on a tendency of one-dimensional development.The philosophy of the student-related work in higher vocational colleges lags behind which focuses on the uniformity,but ignores individuality,resulting in the suppression of students‘ growth needs and the dominant role of students is missing in higher vocational education.As the society is deeply influenced by the inertia of the traditional elite education mentality,higher vocational students are labeled as ?poor academic students?.As a result,they lack self-confidence and sufficient development impetus.It is an urgent issue to arouse the initiative of higher vocational students for autonomous development,in order to meet their growth needs,and promote the display of their potential.This study intends to explore the above issue by adopting the action research method.Although an action research is oriented to practice,it also calls for theoretical guidance.Through literature review,it is found that ?potential development? and ?growth needs? are not clearly defined,and there is no empirical research combining these two concepts.This paper analyzes and generalizes the connotation and extension of ?growth needs? and ?potential development?,the coreconcept in this study,and clarifies the internal logical relationship between them.Based on the relevant theories of student development,psychology,pedagogy and philosophy,this study introduces the PPCT model of Bronfenbrenner‘s bioecology,namely,?person-Process-Context-Time?,into higher vocational education context,analyzes its appropriateness in China‘s higher vocational education,and further elucidates the concrete connotation of ?Person-Process-Context-Time? in the action research on the potential development of higher vocational students.This paper puts forward the idea that potential development should start from and be based on the growth needs of students,and emphasizes the dynamic features of the personal characteristics in the model--growth needs drive the resource characteristics as the driving force--potential or ability is constantly displayed or strengthened,forming a preliminary model for PPCT action research on potential development based on growth needs.This study employs the action research to verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the model.The primary issue that action research needs to address is what is the structure of the growth needs of higher vocational students? What is the current situation of growth needs? What potentials of students are identified for development? this study adopts the questionnaire method.On the basis of a pre-survey,eight dimensions for the growth needs structure of higher vocational students are identified,namely,campus adaptation,interpersonal communication,collective identity,autonomous learning,self-understanding,self-control,emotion regulation,innovative development through exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis.And the self-designed questionnaire has good reliability and validity upon examination.Then the questionnaire is used to investigate students in H Vocational and Technical College.The results show that higher vocational students have very intense growth needs,as they are eager to get attentions and hope to better develop themselves.There are significant differences in the growth needs between students of different grades,genders and places of origin.Combined with the analysis of the survey,results of the growth needs of higher vocational students and employing units,this paper has generated a list of the potential development for higher vocational students,i.e.,eight core competencies list,they are environmental adaptation,interpersonal communication,team cooperation,autonomous learning,self-cognition,self-control,emotional management,and innovative practical ability;Three personality traits meanssunshine mentality,habit of gratitude,and innovation awareness.Guided by the PPCT action model,a three-stage process of student potential development has been developed through three rounds of the action research,namely,?planning--action--observation--reflection--replanning?.Meanwhile,the newly arising issues are actively dealt with.Modifications are made for timely adjustment in the process of the study.The action research has achieved good results: The students in the experimental group have effectively tapped eight kinds of potential through participating in extracurricular learning activities designed for potential development course;Their academic achievements have been improved simultaneously;Their personality is becoming increasingly consummate and mature;and they are more confident and graceful.This has also laid a foundation for the application and promotion of the potential development project in the whole school.Through further optimizing the training program,a ?growth-driven and potential development? training mode has been constructed for the action research and promoted to the whole school.The training pathway of ?adopting six measures simultaneously,coordinating departmental actions? has been adopted to establish a long-term collaborative education mechanism integrating ?teaching and student work,in-class and extracurricular activities,commonness and individuality?.A system of activity curricula has been developed,which promotes the school‘s teaching reform and student work transformation,so that teaching benefits teachers as well as students.Through the review and reflection on the action research,and its promotion and application process,it is found that this study,taking the PPCT model of Bronfenbrenner‘s bioecology as the prototype,has formed a localized PPCT action model for the potential development of higher vocational students after a situational transformation.It shows the new model is feasible and effective in practice.Through the implicit and explicit positive changes from potential development to students,the study reveals the internal mechanism of potential development process to students‘ growth and development,that is,?internal drive,unity of knowledge and action?,?two-way interaction,construction and development?,?continuous cultivation,growth mentality?.According to the environmental system structure of the PPCT model,this study also discusses and analyzes the limitations of the potential development of higher vocational students.Relevant suggestions are put forward to promote the growth and development of higher vocational students in view of individuals and factors in different levels of environmental system,i.e.,growing higher vocational students,higher vocational student affairs workers,higher vocational colleges,students‘ parents,and construction of social and cultural environment.It is proven that the action research model for potential development of higher vocational students based on the growth needs provides strong support for the reform of higher vocational students‘ affairs,and verifies good applicability of Bronfenbrenner‘s PPCT model in Chinese educational practice.