University general education (GE), a unique feature of CUHK, provides students with a broad intellectual perspective, instils in them an understanding of the values of different academic disciplines, and nurtures them to appreciate broad issues of concern to humanity and modern society. As students who take GE courses come from different disciplines and are not familiar with the subject matter, it is sometimes a challenge for teachers to arouse students' interest that can be sustained. Prof. Ho Chi-ming of the Department of Japanese Studies and Prof. Gordon Mathews of the Department of Anthropology definitely know a thing or two, as they were recipients of the Exemplary Teaching Award in General Education 2014.

The Exemplary Teaching Award in General Education was launched in 2006 to recognize dedicated and outstanding GE teachers of CUHK. Candidates are put through a stringent selection process. Nominations are invited from all some 200 teachers offering GE courses and undergraduate students. The nominations are then reviewed by the Standing Committee of the Senate Committee on General Education based on their course design, teaching method, and instruction performance.

Their Words

Prof. Ho Chi-ming said, 'It is a great honour to receive the Exemplary Teaching Award in General Education 2014. This award not only recognizes my past efforts, it also brings me great encouragement and confidence to continue pursuing my future endeavours in teaching. There are many dedicated and outstanding GE teachers in CUHK. I consider GE is something not only to furnish students with a broad intellectual perspective for dealing with unfamiliar questions, but it can serve as a key motivator for students to explore something new in a particular field which may influence their lives in future. I aim to develop an attitude of professionalism for students to the acquisition of new knowledge through my course. The ideas of my teaching are reflected in the course design and pedagogy in my course. Perhaps this might contribute to the winning of this award.'

Prof. Gordon Mathews believes course evaluation scores are very important in the exercise. 'It so happens that I was lucky enough to get good scores for two years running. The nominations were also reviewed by the committee based on syllabuses. I'm always curious about the scores because some classes of mine work better than others. I tend to find the latter more interesting because they push me to try harder.' Professor Mathews is happy to get the award but thinks it means less than what actually goes on in the classroom.

Teaching Styles

Professor Ho aims at generating enthusiasm for learning among his students by going through current affair topics from the Japanese media which mimic the daily information consumption of Japanese people. He uses selected news video clips from various broadcasters in Japan and documentaries relevant to the course syllabus (with Chinese subtitles provided by his colleagues and himself). 'In turn, a platform conducive to interaction and analytical discussion among my students will be built up. I encourage students to think critically and comment on the characteristics of Japanese culture and develop their own comparative analyses of cross-cultural understanding by both Japanese and Hong Kong speakers; and apply what they have learnt from the course materials to different scenarios and make their own judgments in various contexts and scenarios. Knowing others' culture means knowing more about ourselves.'

Professor Mathews emphasizes discussion and debate in the classroom. 'I would describe my teaching style as Socratic. I never lecture for over 20 minutes. I ask challenging questions dealing not only with lecture and reading materials, but also with larger issues relating to the lecture and readings. I am also very careful not to provide any "answers" or even my own opinion: the purpose of these questions is to get students to think for themselves.

'I don't want to teach students to hold a particular opinion but rather to be able to think clearly, logically, imaginatively, and fearlessly in arriving at their own opinion, whatever that opinion may be. What's important is that anthropology trains you to think and see the world in new and exciting ways.'

Professor Mathews doesn't ask students to raise their hands if they want to speak—he simply calls on those who look at him. That said, he believes this approach to teaching is easier in anthropology than in some other disciplines such as science where students need to learn a lot of facts. He remarked, 'Students need to learn facts in anthropology too and I do teach a framework of factual knowledge, but in every class there will be about half a dozen Socratic moments. I have a very passionate teaching style because I love the subjects I teach.'

GE Course vs Non-GE Course

Is there any difference in the approach to the teaching of GE and non-GE courses? What have been the main challenges in teaching GE? Professor Ho says he does teaching GE and non-GE courses differently. 'My GE course explores the relationship between Japanese language and culture. It is designed for students who are interested in knowing more about Japan but who have very limited or no knowledge of the Japanese language. At the beginning, I found it challenging to teach students without any language background the culture of a society through the language perspective. I received comments from students that some of the topics which I considered important in the course were not stimulating and interesting enough. At that time, I realized that I should change my strategy on the course design and my presentation style. For example, I started to employ various multimedia resources as supplementary teaching materials. I believe that besides textual materials, it is important for the students to have direct access to Japan's mass media platforms, including the visual aspect as well, so that they may experience and develop their own interest-driven ideas of what Japan is.'

Professor Mathews says the challenges of teaching GE have been none too great. 'The hardest of the three classes I teach is "Meanings of Life". This is because there are people who are there because they're seeking their own meanings in life. I have to be sure that the class environment is comfortable for all present and that students do not just engage in intellectual discussions with no regard for those who may be seeking solutions to an upsetting personal problem.'

Expectations

Though they have been teaching for years, both exemplary teachers are still enthusiastic about their vocation. Professor Ho hopes his students can take away the understanding of the complex nuances of culture through communication in the human society and the world around us, and remember how to appreciate the values and cultures in different societies.

Professor Mathews's aim is that decades from now, when students are in the midst of a dilemma in their careers or lives, they will remember the ideas they discussed and for those to be helpful in gaining an understanding. 'If someone remembers something they learned in my class 10 to 30 years earlier, and uses it to more fully comprehend their lives and the world, then my teaching will have been a success. I want my influence to transcend subject matters.'