Selling constructivism: Chinese parents' perceptions of western teaching methodology.

摘要

This study examined how Western teaching methodology is perceived by mainland Chinese parents with a child 4 to 10 years old who is enrolled in English language learning lessons outside of the regular school day. Samples from this population were recruited primarily over the Internet, and qualifying participants shared their views via a self-facilitated, quantitative survey hosted online. The data collected supports the hypothesis that there is a preference for traditional Chinese style methods for instruction in test preparation. The data also supports the hypothesis that Chinese parents' ages affect their preferences for Chinese or Western style education, as younger parents more often prefer Chinese teaching styles. The hypothesis that Chinese parents prefer a Westerner to be their child's English teacher was also validated. However, this preference was overshadowed by more frequently selected characteristics relating to the teacher's professional experience. The data collected did not validate the hypothesis that parents' preferences for Western or Chinese style teaching methods would be influenced by the age of the child receiving instruction, nor the hypothesis that Western style education would be preferred for the development of social skills. While this study incorrectly hypothesized that the majority of Chinese parents would express a preference for Western methods, it is noteworthy that half of the participants often preferred Western teaching methods over Chinese methods. This and other insights provided by this study may be applied by educators and businesses alike to successfully introduce new education-related ideas, services, and products for Chinese parents and their children. These findings also provide many opportunities for future research endeavors in this field.