Project-Based Learning: an Effective Approach to Link Teacher Professional Development and Students Learning

Professional development for teachers is a key mechanism for improving classroom instruction and student achievement, yet there is little empirical evidence upon which to damonstrate the connection between teachers’ professional development and students’ achievement. This paper presents a pilot research which adopts project-based teaching and learning(PjBL) as an approch to link teahcer professional development and student learning. In our longitudinal study, a resource-rich school in urban areas and a less developed school in outlying areas join hands to carry out a research project. Study groups were composed of 2-3 teachers and 10-15 students in each school. The groups from different regions then collaboratively carried out a learning project with the support of an online learning community. The data is collected from focus groups and interviews with stakeholders, online surveys and paper-based questionnaires, computer proficiency tests, observations from site visits, and an analysis of the students\u27 artificial product. Research findings show that project-based collaborative inquiry activity provides the greatest support for teachers and students to develop their comprehensive capacity