Project-Based Learning in Chinese Middle-School Students Is More Effective than the Traditional Teaching Method: An Experimental Study

Abstract

This study explores the teaching method of project-based learning (PBL) compared to the traditional teaching method in Chinese schools by investigating the effects of PBL on junior school students. A teaching unit lasting two weeks on inheritance and genetics was used as curriculum and student achievement compared between an experimental group (n = 107) where PBL instruction was used versus the control group (n = 103) where standard traditional classroom instruction was used. Students in the PBL group had significantly higher scores in learning procedure (d = 1.003), achievements (d = 0.566) and students' self-assessment (d = 1.539). The overall effect size for the PBL group was d = 0.989.