Sabrina's e-portfolio

Community learning is a new concept in Taiwan which switches the class focus from teachers to learners and develops learning autonomy of students. The role of teachers becomes a facilitator rather than just an instructor. Teachers provide some basic and important concepts for students in the beginning of the class and then divide them into several groups to discuss and exchange ideas or experiences with each other. Through this way, students will not escape from learning and low-achievers have chances to promote their abilities or sense of achievement by cooperating with others. In addition, schools are shared by students, teachers and even parents. Learning community puts more emphasis on interactions between peers to form a dynamic learning process.


PISA ( Programme for International Student Assessment ) is a cross countries assessment that takes place every three years to evaluate worldwide of 15-year-old students in the field of reading, mathematics and sciences. The purpose of the assessment is to test students’ abilities to deal with problems and to incorporate what they have learned into authentic situations. The results are provided for countries to reflect their own educational systems and effectiveness.


Community learning provides us some implications about teaching. Teachers should give more space to students for problem-solving and critical thinking not just showing them principles to follow. Education can create a variety of possibilities so teacher-centered instruction may confine learners’ creativity and innovation. For teachers, interaction with students is another way of learning. With regard to PISA, it is a way for us to reflect our teaching including materials, methods and assessment. Most of students in Taiwan just study for exams, not actually thinking about what they have learned and what should be learned.