Introducing Participatory Curriculum Development in China's Higher Education: The Case of Community-Based Natural Resource Management

Abstract

This article describes and reflects on a novel course developed at China Agricultural University to introduce Community-Based Natural Resource Management at the postgraduate level. This course, part of a larger educational renewal initiative addressing the current reform of China's higher education system, was developed through a participatory curriculum development methodology bringing together teachers and researchers from five different organizations, as well as a dynamic group of MSc and PhD students. The course development process and the actual delivery in the classroom and in the field were guided by insights from adult teaching and learning theory. These were adapted to the Chinese reality. Results assessed to date from the experimentation with this completely new approach in China encompass conceptual, attitudinal, methodological, and practical changes. The experiences and insights accumulated so far serve as entry points for the expansion of participatory curriculum development practice in China. They also provide a ground for deepening learning theory.

Keywords:

• Adult education
• China
• Community-based natural resource management
• Education reform
• Participatory curriculum development

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all the students who took the first CBNRM course for their enthusiasm, involvement, and willingness to explore new roads. We also are grateful to the farmers, extension agents, and government officials in Ningxia, Guizhou and Guangxi who received us with open arms and patiently answered our many questions. The course and larger initiative described here receive financial and technical support from the International Development Research Centre of Canada, for which we are very grateful. We acknowledge the very useful comments received from two anonymous reviewers.