Newsletter No. 148

2 No. 148 19th June 1999 CUHK Newsletter Conference Explores Changes i n South China f r om Tradi t ion to Mode r n i ty The International Conference on Tradition and Change: Identity, Gender, and Culture in South China was held from 3rd to 5th June to celebrate the golden jubilee of New Asia College. The conference was coorganized by the Department of Anthropology and New Asia College. Academics from Japan, UK, US, the Philippines, Hong Kong and mainland China examined the changes in the culture of South China from a wide range of perspectives including cultural identity in traditional Chinese communities; gender issues in South China such as women's rights, status, and the role of women entrepreneurs in China's socialist market economy; religious organizations and religious traditions. Officiating at the opening ceremony of the conference were Prof. Tan Chee-beng, chair of the Department of Anthropology, and Prof. P.C. Leung, head of New Asia College. They also made opening remarks. Stephen C.Soong Translation Studies Memorial Awards Adjudicators for the Stephen C. Soong Translation Studies Memorial Awards met at the Institute of Chinese Studies on 15th May 1999 and came up with three winners who would each receive an award certificate and HK$3,000 prize money. They are Dr. Chu Chiyu of the Chinese and Bilingual Studies Department, Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Prof. Xia Zhongyi of the Department of Foreign Languages, Fudan University; and Dr. Nam Fung Chang of the Department of Translation, Lingnan College. Prof. Tan Za i xi of the Department of English, Shenzhen University, whose paper wins honourable mention, was to receive a certificate. The panel of adjudicators comprised Prof. David Pollard, senior research fellow of the Institute of Chinese Studies, Mr. Gao Feng, deputy editor-in-chief of the Chinese T r an s l a t o r s ' Journal, Dr. Eva Hung, director of the CUHK Research Centre for Translation, and Prof. Chen Chang-fang of the Department of English, National Chengchi University, Taiwan. The winners were chosen from over 40 entries from mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macau which had previously been published in reputable international academic journals. The prize money came from The Stephen C. Soong Fund set up with a donation of HK$1 million by Mr. Soong's children to commemorate their father's life-long contributions to literary translation. Insp i rat i on-Exp l orat i on Exh i b i t i on Prof. Tom Peters (right 1), chair of the Department of Architecture, poses with four participants of the Inspiration-Exploration exhibition. The exhibition displays work produced by the 46 architecture students enrolled in the Micro 3-D Design course initiated by the Department of Architecture in collaboration with the Industrial Centre of Hong Kong Polytechnic University. The exhibition was held from 19th to 25th May in Pao Gallery of the Hong Kong Art Centre. Chung Ch i News Conference on Juvenile Delinquency Chung Chi College coorganized a conference entitled 'How to Build a New Life for Ex-Offenders and Drug A b u s e r s ' jointly with the Centre for Asian Pacific Studies and the Centre for Public Policy Studies of Lingnan College, and other organizations on 11 th May 1999. Celebrity Telegames In celebration of its 30th anniversary, the Community Chest of Hong Kong jointly organized with TVB a television show entitled ' C e l e b r i ty Telegames' at Lingnan Stadium of Chung Chi College on 22nd May 1999. Chung Chi College sponsored the event by lending the venue. Eight VIP teams comprising 48 celebrities and artists participated in the event which was broadcast on 30th May 1999. In order to show support to the Chung Chi College alumni team led by Dr. Charles Wang, chairman of the Chung Chi College Alumni Association, college alumni returned to their alma mater to cheer them on. Success of Learning Technology Courses From CSC/ITSU Introduction Since July 1997, the Computer Services Centre / Information Technology Service Unit (CSC/ITSU) has been promoting the use of learning technology (LT), other than courseware and video, to enhance quality in teaching and learning on campus. From October 1998, 18 teachers have taken part in a pilot study of a web-based LT application — WebBoard. Over 1,500 students from 28 courses have communicated with their teachers and discussed among themselves using this tool. WebBoard helps extend class discussion beyond the classroom. CSC / I TSU has held a series of activities between January and May to assist teaching staff in incorporating information technology into their teaching. These were attended by over 1,200 head counts. Participants showed great interest in pursuing the innovative integration of web-based instructional technologies into courses. Activities A kick-off seminar was held on 14th January to promote understanding of LT and to introduce the direction of the entire programme and its benefits for teaching and learning. This was followed by a series of seminars, tutorial classes, workshops and guided tours to available LT facilities, carried out on a bimonthly basis. The January-February series aimed at providing an overview of the wide variety of services and resources on LT available to faculties, staff and students, which focus on the World Wide Web, multimedia, programming, and in-class presentations. Through seminars, classes, and guided tours, participants gained hands-on experience of the operation of specific software and knowledge about various web-based instructional technologies. The March-May series focussed on how information technology could best be integrated into the curriculum. Innovative uses of information technology were demonstrated in different areas, according to different skill levels, so that the activities could cater for participants of different backgrounds. To overcome the temporal and spatial constraints of classroom instruction, various types of technical support for facilitating online learning were used as illustration. Participants learnt new ways of utilizing different information technologies, how to deliver lively and innovative presentations through web-based software, and how to give assignments, host discussions and monitor student progress through the Internet. They also knew more about the consultative and technical support offered in the Learning and Teaching Technology Laboratory. Four teaching staff also shared their knowledge and experience in using LT with the participants. Prof. Tsou Jim Yeu (Department of Architecture) and Prof. Louis Leung (Department of Journalism and Communication) demonstrated their use of LT in the kick-off seminar held on 14th January 1999 entitled 'Teaching with Learning Technology: Why? When? How?', whereas Prof. Ping Ping Fu (Department of Management) and Prof. Michael Chang (Department of Information Engineering) used their teaching as illustration in the seminar 'Innovative Uses of Web to Enhance Teaching' held on 18th May. Their enthusiasm in LT enabled participants to understand how LT could assist instruction delivery, rather than replace instructional design. Though LT may not save preparation time, its greatest value lies in the flexibility of the instructional medium and enhanced communication beyond classrooms. Conclusion The success of integrating LT into the curriculum depends on both the dedicatior of teaching staff and their students' active participation in learning. We will continue to promote innovative LT tools to enhance quality in teaching and learning and we hope for support and valuable feedback from all of you. For any enquiries regarding Learning Technology, please contact the following CSC/ITSU staff: Mr. Augustine Lo augustine@cuhk.edu.hk 2609 8837 Mr. Stanley Yuen stanleyyuen@cuhk.edu.hk 2609 8905 Ms. Eva Cheung eva-cheung@cuhk.edu.hk 2609 8913 Ms. Wendy Chan wendychan@cuhk.edu.hk 2609 8881