The Gap Between 'Theory' and 'Practice' in International Education

A Centre for International Education Research seminar

Presented by Dr Cathy Ping XIE, Beijing Normal University

Abstract

The gap between theory and practice, which is considered as a barrier to improvement in educational practices, has been discussed in the literature for years. This is particularly the case when international education theories (normally western-oriented) are translated into local practices in non-western contexts such as China. Student teachers often find it difficult to truly apply what they have learned in the books to their teaching. Also, the teachers might not understand how the theories that they are trained with by academic 'experts' could be effective in their classrooms. This presentation will therefore explore how we, as practitioners/teachers/education-majored postgraduate students, could make good sense of the gap between theory and practice - aiming at achieving excellence of evidence-based and research-informed teaching. 

Biography

Dr Cathy Ping XIE is Dean of Huiyan International College (HIC), Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University. Cathy obtained her PhD in Educational Leadership and Management at the University of Nottingham, UK. She used to work in Peking University, China, specializing in research on school leadership, international education and school change. She has been a (Co)Principal Investigator of several international, national, provincial projects in and outside China. She has several publications in China and the United States. Cathy has also been involved in teaching and leadership practices in K-12 state and private schools in China for almost 20 years.