Unlocking Potential: A Combined Situated and Project-Based Learning Approach to Foster Reading and Analytical Thinking Abilities in Primary Chinese Classrooms

Abstract

This study developed and examined an integrated instructional framework that combines Situated Learning (SL) and Project-Based Learning (PjBL) to enhance primary students' reading comprehension and analytical thinking skills in Chinese language education. Drawing on a comprehensive literature review of relevant studies from 2018 to 2024, the framework was structured into five key pedagogical modules. To evaluate its effectiveness, a one-group pre-test and post-test quasi-experimental design was implemented with 42 fifth-grade students from a primary school in Binzhou, China. Over the course of a one-month intervention, students engaged in contextualized, inquiry-based learning activities aligned with the proposed model. The results indicated statistically significant improvements in both reading comprehension and analytical thinking following the intervention. These findings suggest that the integrated SL-PjBL approach can effectively foster higher-order cognitive skills in primary education. However, limitations such as the absence of a control group and the preliminary nature of the framework warrant further refinement and validation in future research.