The Tin Ka Ping P.A.T.H.S. project and basic education curriculum reform in mainland China

Abstract

Youth education is the key to national education, and the future of a country is tied with the holistic development of youth. In mainland China, the reform of the basic education curriculum is rooted in the notion of “Li De Shu Ren” (establishing virtues and cultivating talents). In Hong Kong, the P.A.T.H.S. Project aims to foster youths’ psychosocial competencies and holistic development through curriculabased programs utilizing experiential learning pedagogies. This project has been tested in Hong Kong for years and has proved effective in facilitating the positive development of participants. Based on the success of the P.A.T.H.S. Project in Hong Kong, we have transplanted the project to form the Tin Ka Ping P.A.T.H.S. Project in mainland China. The purpose of this paper is to explore the consistency between the P.A.T.H.S. Project and basic education curriculum reform in mainland China. We argue that the P.A.T.H.S. Project in Hong Kong and mainland China complements the basic principles of basic education reform in mainland China which aims at promoting the holistic development of Chinese youths.