Prof. Luo Xingkai

Director, Research Institute of Science Education, Guangxi Normal University

Executive Director, MOE Granted Center at GXNU for School Curriculum & Development

Self Introduction:

Luo Xingkai is a professor in Faculty of Physics and Electronics; and Director in Research Institution of Science Education in Guangxi Normal University where he has worked for pre-service and in-service teacher education since 1988. Prior to that, he taught Physics at the high-school level, Science and Mathematics at the primary level in Hunan . He received his Master degree of Physics Education in 1988 from Suzhou University and Ph. D in 1999 from Beijing Normal University.

Because of his long time effective innovations in physics teacher education program, Prof Luo has received many awards and the latest are "Distinguished University Professor Award" granted by the Guangxi Provincial Education Administration as until now one of the two awardees acquiring such a great honor in his university.

Prof Luo is a member of the International Commission on Physics Education and education committee member of the Chinese Physical Society. He has for many year active in physics education both domestically and internationally. In 1999 in Guilin, he organized the '99 ICPT, the largest international physics education conference ever hold in China.

Since 2000, He has worked as a director and chief investigator for a MOE financed project "Inquiry-based Science Learning & Teaching in the Framework of the New National Curriculum" and was recently awarded a prize in "The Third National Selection of the Educational Research Excellence".

Presentation Topic:  
Inquiry-based Science Teaching Promoted by New National Curriculum in China：A Platform for Bridging the Gaps

Abstract:  
Inquiry-based science teaching at school levels driven by the new national curriculum in China has been widely recognized as a big challenge to most practicing school science teachers who have not been taught in such a way in their own school years. High quality professional support becomes a key factor for the effectiveness and sustainable development of the reform. Such demand motivated the authors to focus their research attention onto the practicing science classrooms in implementing the new national curriculum. This talk presents a systematic effort in this respect. It includes classroom visits and consequently discovering some interesting and curiosity-provoking specific students’ interpretation and understanding; further investigation on the students understanding from a perspective of students’ cognitive development to pursue a more reasonable, solid, and research-based explanation on it; developing and implementing innovative way and resource for training pre-and-in-service school teachers based on the research findings. Insights see the promise to closing the gaps between research and classroom practices.