A Transformative Pedagogy for Myanmar?

A Transformative Pedagogy for Myanmar? The paper addresses the theme of how pedagogy and assessment can support learning in the context of ongoing research in Myanmar. The polarisation of child-centred approaches (CCA) and... [ view full abstract ]

A Transformative Pedagogy for Myanmar?

The paper addresses the theme of how pedagogy and assessment can support learning in the context of ongoing research in Myanmar.

The polarisation of child-centred approaches (CCA) and teacher-centred approaches (TCA) has been questioned in the context of pedagogical reform in the developing world. Structural and cultural barriers to the implementation of CCA have been identified and the importance of valuing local pedagogical knowledge stressed. A recent review of developing world teachers finds best outcomes associated with authoritative teachers within a performance model using a combination of CCA and TCA.

The CCA model presented to developing world stakeholders as uncontested is anything but and reviews of pedagogical effectiveness in the developed world find ‘direct instruction’, or whole class teaching, broadly more effective than discovery-based pedagogy, if undertaken in an engaging and interactive way which responds to the needs of individual students.

In the Myanmar context choral chanting and rote memorisation are ubiquitous within a tradition of whole-class teaching and the exam system rewards rote memorisation, but teachers are highly respected and students often show a joy of learning regardless of the pedagogical approach taken.

The paper explores attempts to move beyond the polarisation of CCA and TCA in Myanmar, building on local values and traditions of whole class teaching while negotiating changes in assessment acceptable to parents and communities in the context of the Myanmar reform process as a whole and a large scale project working with 1,500 of the country’s teacher educators.