A Case Study On Curriculum Quality Evaluation For Project-based Learning

More and more countries are thinking about how to cultivate students’ core competencies to better adapt to future work and life of the 21 century.Project-based learning is regarded as an important approach to achieve this purpose because it is student-centered and is based on real-problem situations.As curriculum quality is a key factor in ensuring the effectiveness of curriculum implementation,much more attention should be paid to the project-based learning process itself.Taking the "2020 project" of Shanghai as a concrete case,this study tries to explore the evaluation mode and techniques of the quality analysis of project-based learning,and to find out the problems of current project-based learning and its key influential factors.Based on the "Golden Standard" of the Buck Institute of Education,this study develops the evaluation framework of project learning.The specific data collection scheme is also determined according to the dimensions of project-based learning evaluation.Through the analysis and summary of these data,this study draws the following conclusions:the central problems raised by the project are real and meaningful,yet it falls short of continuous inquiry;the opportunities of autonomy were provided by teachers for students in the teaching process,but the right to speak and the chances for selection are still inadequate;this project’s goals were ambiguous in terms of targeted competencies to cultivate and sections of reflection,critique and revision were missing;the artifact exhibition contains a certain degree of openness,but the students fail to demonstrate the knowledge and skills they learned from the project.Considering the conclusions in case of "2020 project" of Shanghai,this study proposes that a high-quality project-based learning needs to identify clear core competency goals,to have an authentic question that corresponds to the target of the goals and is suitable for student interest and levels,to give students enough time and opportunity to explore,express and choose and to include timely reflection,critiques and revisions.