Abstract
Whenever education becomes an issue that arouses public concern, the government involved will have to put forward some ideas to improve education. Such ideas will then develop into top-down education reform measures. A number of these measures pertain to new demands in classroom teaching. For such demands to achieve any expected results, it is essential to have coordination from teachers. However, when such measures are put into practice, teachers often find it difficult to make changes in terms of skills or perceptions about teaching. In Shanghai and Hong Kong, implementing project learning in schools illuminates this very well. In this study, difficulties encountered by teachers of the two cities in carrying out project learning were selected as an entry point. Then, using a small-scale comparative case study of the teachers in these two cities, attempts were made to analyze difficulties encountered by teachers in terms of professional development, taking into account factors such as teachers’ knowledge, skills, and beliefs. Through these attempts, reasons for lacking effects for certain implemented reform measures were explained. Finally, suggestions were made on how university can take the role of a change agent in supporting the society, schools, and teachers during the reform, such that the reform ideas can be effectively implemented.
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