「單元教學研究」（lesson study）源於日本的中小學，是結合課程改革、教學創新和教師專業發展的校本研修方式。2003年，Bill Cerbin教授等在威斯康辛大學進行「單元教學研究」實驗和試辦後，加以推廣，現在已成為美國大學教學改革的一個新典範，值得研究者關注。本文的主要目的在探討美國大學改革新典範的運作情形，特色，及其在建構大學教、學學術上的意義。全文分為三部份，首先，分析日本單元教學研究的理念，探討它如何協助教師改進教學；其次，闡述美國大學如何實施單元教學研究，說明其特點和問題；最後，呼籲建構新的大學教、學學術，作為大學教學研究和改進的參考。

Originated from middle and elementary schools in Japan, lesson study was promoted and undertaken by a group led by Professor Bill Cerbin and his colleagues at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in 2003. As a school-base in-service training model, lesson study combined curriculum reform, instructional innovation and professional development. It has become a new paradigm of instructional innovation in American higher education. The aims of this study were three-fold. First of all, it was to explore the methodology of Japanese lesson study and analyze how it improved instructional practice. Secondly, it was to examine how the lesson study was applied at the university in American and analyze its process, characteristics and problems. Finally, the study pointed to a need to construct a new scholarship of teaching and learning as a reference for improving teaching and instructional research in higher education.