Teaching and Learning Experience Sharing (TALES) Seminar Series (2019/20 Semester 1)

Facilitator(s):

Dr Rabbi Abraham COOPER
Associate Dean, Simon Wiesenthal Center, Los Angeles
Rabbi Abraham Cooper is the associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a leading Jewish human rights organization with over 400,000 family members. Born in New York in 1950, Abraham Cooper has been a longtime activist for Jewish and human rights causes on five continents. For three decades, Rabbi Cooper has overseen the Wiesenthal Center’s international social action agenda and worldwide promotion of tolerance education. He is widely recognized as a pioneer and international authority on issues related to Digital Hate and Terrorism. Rabbi Cooper’s trailblazing work in Asia has helped counter negative stereotypes about Jews and open new venues in dialogue and intergroup relations in Japan, South Korea, The People’s Republic of China, India, and Indonesia. His editorials have appeared in The Washington Post on Faith, the Huffington Post, Foxnews.com and have also been published in newspapers around the world.

Abstract:

Can aggrieved parties torn apart by ideology and historical difficulties reconcile? Yes, through hard work and a sustained commitment to honesty, mutual respect and a commitment to looking towards the future while not forgetting the lessons of history.       

Enter the role of tolerance education

Tolerance education can help enlighten aggrieved parties of one another’s concerns, fears and aspirations. It can challenge relevant actors to understand the positions and unique circumstances of the “other side” while also observing their dignity and universal rights.

Grasping the historic and contemporary contexts of disputes can help feuding groups confront their own prejudices and break down barriers to understanding between peoples.

Tolerance education also reminds us of the consequences of intolerance and of the failure to confront discrimination in all its forms.

A devotion to continued learning and a search for the truth also plays a role in the promotion of tolerance and understanding. This requires both learning from the past and committing to act to address the challenges of our time.

Disputes between groups at loggerheads involve human beings, and each person must learn to challenge their assumptions and prejudices while also taking responsibility for their actions.

Tolerance education takes us back to first principles, giving different groups the tools they need to work and live peacefully among one another.

By raising awareness and building the skills to work through disputes and discord, tolerance education can help each of us see one another differently than before, re-examine our roles and recommit to transcending differences peacefully. In our increasingly diverse and complex global society, tolerance education is as important as ever in strengthening our ethical foundations, leadership practices, bias-free decision making and conflict resolution skills.

Facilitator(s):

Dr Ping Yui KU (SCM)
Mr Henry, Tsz Yeung FUNG (COMS)
Professor Mee Ping LEUNG (AVA)

Award-winning student representatives:

Ms Sally, Rui Ze GAO & Mr Pakho, Beijia HUANG (SCM)
Ms Dorothy, Nga Him FUNG & Ms Sophie, Hiu Lam PO (COMS)
Ms Tiffany, Tze Ching CHEUNG & Mr Sin Man YEUNG (AVA)

About the Series:

Pedagogic approaches that foster partnership help create supportive learning relationships between teachers, students and even members of the public. The formation of sustainable and reciprocal learning communities can also enhance the development of generic and subject-specific attributes (Crawford, Horsley, Hagyard, & Derricot, 2015; Pauli, Raymond-Barker, & Worrell, 2016). Aspiring to support colleagues in delivering the best student experience as stipulated in the University’s Institutional Strategic Plan (ISP), the CHTL, CISL, and GEO jointly developed this workshop series to explore the multiple facets of teaching and learning partnership at HKBU. Facilitators from diverse disciplines and departments will share how engaging experiential learning, service-learning, and interdisciplinary learning experience can be delivered by making innovative collaborations with students, academics, alumni, secondary schools, and NGOs.

Abstract:

The “Discipline × Healthy Lifestyle” project is an initiative sponsored by Jiangsu Hong Kong Cultural Association; developed by the CHTL in AY2018/19 to engage HKBU students in promoting healthy lifestyles to younger students using their subject knowledge. About 200 undergraduate and postgraduate students spanning across 6 academic disciplines brought their creative learning activities in teams to 16 local secondary schools with around 1700 secondary school students involved during SEM 2, AY2018/19 and submitted activity journals for reflection. This workshop invites outstanding student participants in the initiative who demonstrated exemplarily the spirit of positive peer influence and “learning through teaching” in their award-winning activities for sharing. Specifically, 3 teachers with their winning students will recount the trajectories of success, from in-class training, on-site delivery, to self-evaluation of the learning outcomes.

Facilitator(s):

Dr CHOW Yiu Fai (HMW)
WONG Ka Wa (Presenting students)
YUM Wing Ting (Presenting students)

About the Series:

Pedagogic approaches that foster partnership help create supportive learning relationships between teachers, students and even members of the public. The formation of sustainable and reciprocal learning communities can also enhance the development of generic and subject-specific attributes (Crawford, Horsley, Hagyard, & Derricot, 2015; Pauli, Raymond-Barker, & Worrell, 2016). Aspiring to support colleagues in delivering the best student experience as stipulated in the University’s Institutional Strategic Plan (ISP), the CHTL, CISL, and GEO jointly developed this workshop series to explore the multiple facets of teaching and learning partnership at HKBU. Facilitators from diverse disciplines and departments will share how engaging experiential learning, service-learning, and interdisciplinary learning experience can be delivered by making innovative collaborations with students, academics, alumni, secondary schools, and NGOs.

Abstract:

Dr Chow Yiu Fai, prominent lyricist and Associate Professor from Humanities and Creative Writing, will share his experience in engaging students in his course “Chinese Song Lyric Writing” as active learners and contributors. Dr Chow’s students interviewed socially marginalized figures and unsung heroes and wrote lyrics about them, and Dr Chow empowered these students by cultivating their leadership and letting them plan and organize two concerts in which they performed their own songs and invited the interviewees to attend. The concerts were well attended with 800 audiences from HKBU and the general public and received positive feedback from the media, showing the enormous success of the “students as partners” model. In this session, Dr Chow will share with participants his expertise in developing creative partnerships with students and his passion in exploring the boundless possibilities of teaching and learning.

Facilitator(s):

Professor Fu Rong ZHU (PHYS)
Mr Kingsley NG (AVA)

About the Series: 

Pedagogic approaches that foster partnership help create supportive learning relationships between teachers, students and even members of the public. The formation of sustainable and reciprocal learning communities can also enhance the development of generic and subject-specific attributes (Crawford, Horsley, Hagyard, & Derricot, 2015; Pauli, Raymond-Barker, & Worrell, 2016). Aspiring to support colleagues in delivering the best student experience as stipulated in the University’s Institutional Strategic Plan (ISP), the CHTL, CISL, and GEO jointly developed this workshop series to explore the multiple facets of teaching and learning partnership at HKBU. Facilitators from diverse disciplines and departments will share how engaging experiential learning, service-learning, and interdisciplinary learning experience can be delivered by making innovative collaborations with students, academics, alumni, secondary schools, and NGOs.

Abstract:

The new General Education (GE) curriculum is a timely response to the growing call for interdisciplinary studies to meet the dynamic needs of todays’ students as global citizens in a highly interconnected world. The course Seeing the World from Artistic and Scientific Perspectives, a Level 2 Interdisciplinary Thematic Course (Science, Technology and Society) offered by Professor Zhu and Mr Kingsley Ng, is one of the notable GE courses designed and delivered through cross-faculty partnership. Professor Zhu and Mr Kingsley Ng will share their vision and experience in crossing the traditional faculty line and bringing together the art and science, as well as the gains and challenges encountered in course design and delivery, and ways to address them. A talk not to be missed by colleagues who are interested in the fast-growing interdisciplinary field in both teaching and research on teaching and learning.

Facilitator(s):

CHTL Colleagues

Abstract:

Following the recent announcements made by the Vice-President (Teaching and Learning) on guidelines and arrangements for end of semester assessment, we received quite a lot of queries from colleagues about online assessments and online teaching arrangements in the coming Semester of AY2019/20.       

The purpose of this ZOOM meeting is to address some of the concerns that colleagues may have with e-Assessment during the period of no face-to-face classes. We will also share the experience of conducting online classes with ZOOM.

This online session can accommodate up to 100 colleagues. After your registration, we will send the invitation link and other details to you for joining the session.

Facilitator(s):

Professor Kara CHAN (COMS)
Dr Ken LEUNG (CHEM)

Abstract:

To most research postgraduate (RPg) students, the few years of research studies and independent learning experience in the University is of vital importance to their future and career. To this end, HKBU endeavours to assure that our RPg students receive the best student experience and research supervision.       

In this workshop, we have invited two experienced academic supervisors who have received the President’s Award for Outstanding Performance in Research Supervision, to share their good practices of supervising postgraduate researchers. Our facilitators will talk through the ways they adopted different strategies to personalise their coaching approaches to individual students. Also, they will elaborate on how they guide their students at different stages, from proposal writing to career planning after project completion, to make the most out of their research projects, and attain high-achieving learning goals.

Facilitator(s):

Professor Jiming LIU
Chair, Research Ethics Committee
Associate Vice-President (Research) and Chair Professor,
Department of Computer Science
Dr Odalia WONG
Chair, Human (Non-clinical) Research Ethics Panel,
Principal Lecturer, Department of Sociology
CHTL Colleagues

Abstract:

To steer HKBU towards a research-led liberal arts University of global significance, colleagues are encouraged to conduct research and teaching development projects with an acute awareness of the latest research-ethics policies when applying for ethical clearance.       

This session brings together experienced academics and administrative colleagues who also, in their capacities, chair/administrator of research committees/panels to refresh us the governance and good practices for carrying out research and teaching development projects at HKBU. By the end of the session, participants are expected to be able to outline the roles and responsibilities of each research committee under the structure of the Research Ethics Committee (REC) and the respective panels. They will also develop a better idea on how to fulfil the requirements on ethical clearance for the various types of teaching development grant (TDG) projects.

Facilitator(s):

Dr Wai Luen KWOK (REL)
Dr Gloria LEE (TIIS)
Dr Stephanie Jean TSANG (JOUR)

Abstract:

The unexpected class suspension in Semester 1 AY2019/20 resulted from social activities has drawn our attention to the needs of harnessing online teaching, learning and assessment. The University is expected to have a big increase in the use of both synchronous and asynchronous online teaching and assessment in the next semester. To better prepare colleagues for the transition, a series of TALES workshops will be delivered to familiarise colleagues with different e-tools that facilitate online learning.       

This workshop focuses on the use of the online meeting tool, ZOOM in teaching, learning and assessment. Three experienced ZOOM users from various departments will share their experience of conducting interactive online classes with the platform, tips on keeping the students as engaged as attending a face-to-face lesson, and things to observe in designing assessment when conducting teaching and learning online.