HKU Bulletin April 2010 (Vol. 11 No. 2)

06545"/%*/( 5&"$)*/( "8"3% Dr Chris Chan Wai-hong School of Business Mutual respect lies at the heart of Dr Chan’s approach to teaching: respect between teacher and students, and among the students themselves. That respect starts with the teacher setting an example. “I believe respect begets respect, profession- alism begets professionalism, and a smile is reciprocated with a smile,” he said. MBA student James Huff said Dr Chan “embodied the kind of management professional that we were trying to become by enrolling in the MBA programme. Although he was very busy, he was the one teacher that learned all of our names. He was extremely clear on what he expected, but kept communication channels open. And students respected him for his commitment to excellence.” Dr Chan sees himself as a motivate and stimulator, who gets students to think but does not overtake their discussions. “[Class] discussions were rarely between Dr Chan and the students, but among students themselves. Very often, these discussions allowed students to voice their opinions and challenge one another,” BBA(IBGM) student Sabrina Jensen said. Dr Chan also welcomes students to challenge him and believes their criticisms can help him to improve: “My ultimate aim is to creatively shape and re-shape thinking and change minds. But I must first re-shape mine.” 5IJT "XBSE MBVODIFE JO SFDPHOJ[FT UFBDIFST XIP IBWF JNQSFTTFE UIFJS TUVEFOUT BOE DPMMFBHVFT XJUI UIFJS DPNNJUNFOU UP FYDFMMFODF JO UIF UFBDIJOH BOE MFBSOJOH QSPDFTT Professor Sophia Chan Siu-chee Department of Nursing Studies Professor Chan has a clear vision of her role as a teacher. She is there to facilitate learning, encourage lifelong learning and prepare nurses for the future. “I believe learners are not an empty vase and my goal is to facilitate the students’ learning rather than just dispensing knowledge and information,” she said. “With the advancement of medical and information technology, knowledge expansion and globalization, the scope and science of nurses’ practice is changing and expanding in response to the rapid changes. Nurses must be equipped with knowledge and skills … and be motivated to learn the philosophy of science. The nursing curriculum is thus designed to strike a careful balance to nurture students with scientific minds, caring hearts, and skilful hands.” Professor Chan, who is Head of Department, has introduced new teaching techniques – for example, clinical PBL to improve nurses’ critical thinking and problem solving in clinical settings – and sets an example with her caring attitude to students. “She acts like a beacon whenever her students feel lost, she takes care of the feelings of her students and she provides encouragement and support to let us achieve our goals. I am deeply impressed by her spirit of never giving up,” PhD candidate David Wong Chung-ngok said. Professor David Lung Ping-yee Department of Architecture Professor David Lung Ping-yee is a Professor in the Department of Architecture where he says learning how to teach and learning how to be innovative in teaching is a continual process. One of his former students Chan Leung-choi, (MArch 1988), now Managing Director of Aedas, recalls “David sometimes received ‘criticism’ from students who were still fond of rigid and sterile pedagogy like handouts, slide show by overhead projector etc. However for those students who were willing to learn out of the box, he was popular. He did not teach architecture by sketch paper, instead he used a piece of music by Vivaldi, a piece of painting by Picasso, for example, to explain the abstract architectural concept about theme and variation, structure and rhythm, order and mutation.” Professor Lung explains his philosophy in a 2000-year-old quote from Xueji : “One discovers one’s deficiencies through learning; one finds out one’s difficulties through teaching. In recognizing deficiencies, one is able to reflect on oneself; in overcoming difficulties, one is able to develop oneself. Therefore, it is said that teaching and learning are mutually enhancing.” He adds, “My role as a teacher is not only to disseminate knowledge, but to set an exemplary role model for students, to encourage them to be civic minded and ready to make contributions to society.” Dr Yiu Siu-ming Department of Computer Science Dr Yiu Siu-ming, an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science, has garnered respect from many of his students who describe him as a “lecturer who cares a lot about the learning process.” As a PhD graduate from the Department in which he now teaches he says he was inspired by his own teachers to excel in his role as lecturer. He is devoted to motivating students, teaching them how to self-educate and deal with issues within and beyond the classroom. He also takes an active role in curriculum design exploring different teaching methodologies such as problem-based learning and outcome-based learning. One of his former students Chim Tat-wing, (PhD 2008), says, “While he is presenting course materials, he keeps on monitoring students’ progress. Once he finds any student is lagging behind, he slows down the pace or even repeats the previously presented materials with the addition of daily-life and easy-to-understand examples.” Another, Cheung Tang-lung, [BEng(CompSc) 2007] adds, “Dr Yiu is an energetic lecturer with a delightful sense of humour. He is willing to put himself into the students’ shoes and is good at teaching from their perspectives. He seems to know exactly the difficulties students face, and is always helpful.” Professor David Lung Ping-yee Professor Sophia Chan Siu-chee Dr Yiu Siu-ming Mr Jason Carlow Department of Architecture Fostering students’ critical thinking, curiosity and ability to address ill-defined problems are core goals for Jason Carlow. He believes this can be achieved by engaging in open conversation and careful questioning with students, encouraging them to take risks and accept challenges to their opinions, and recognizing the strongest ideas in their work. “Architectural problems are often open- ended and have no exact solution or ‘correct’ answer,” he said. “A student should not be afraid to make mistakes, for in mistakes there are opportunities. I try to encourage students to find mistakes with potential and then capitalize upon them in the development of a project.” MArch student Christine Ng Pui-yee has experienced Mr Carlow’s teaching approach first-hand, and found him to be keen for students to learn from each other and from other cultures. He arranged a joint design studio with Columbia University in New York and took students there and to Shanghai, turning the cities themselves into their classroom. “The thing about these trips that impressed me most was during our free time, he brought us to visit precious places and introduced their historical background to us. We visited many important buildings. His passion for teaching shows in all aspects,” she said. Mr Jason Carlow Dr Chris Chan Wai-hong 26 The University of Hong Kong Bulletin 27 April 2010 5FBDIJOH "OE 3FTFBSDI "XBSET 5FBDIJOH "OE 3FTFBSDI "XBSET