A Cross-National Comparison of curricula in China and the US in Terms of Team Education: The Case of One-Dimensional Equation

Abstract

Based on the STEAM concept, researchers study the two representative secondary school mathematics textbooks in China and America by using a quantitative analysis method and get the following conclusions: similarities: both textbooks embody the concept of STEAM education, focusing on the breadth of knowledge covered by the textbooks; both textbooks focus on the integration of disciplines, especially on the integration of mathematics and science and technology. Differences: The focus of the two countries’ textbooks is different. The Chinese PEP textbook emphasizes the knowledge of history and environmental engineering, while the American GMH textbook is more diversified and covers a wider range of knowledge and culture, reflecting the distinctive national characteristics of the two countries; the Chinese PEP textbook has a deeper depth of knowledge as a whole, while the depth of knowledge of the American GMH textbook about engineering is deeper than that of the PEP textbook; the Chinese PEP textbook pays more attention to the integration of technology in the mathematics textbook. China's PEP materials place more emphasis on the integration of technical subject knowledge in math materials, while American materials place more emphasis on the integration of engineering knowledge and art knowledge in math materials. By analyzing and evaluating the integration of STEAM concepts into junior high school mathematics textbooks in two countries, this study provides implications for mathematics education researchers and workers, especially textbook developers and writers, in this direction of research.