Newsletter No. 166

CUHK Newsletter No. 166 4th June 2000 3 Prof. LIEW Soung Chang Faculty of Engineering (Information Engineering) Prof. Liew Soung Chang believes that effective teaching is similar to effective leadership. Teachers should decide what students should learn, but since it is impossible for anyone to learn everything there is to learn, teachers have to maintain a fine balance between teaching fundamental versus practical materials. Students may not always be naturally motivated, so teachers should try to convince them that the materials they teach are worth learning, and to arouse their interest by making the contents interesting and relevant to their lives. Teachers should also empathize with their students and respect their feedback. Pitfalls to avoid include overestimating students' abilities and trying to please every individual in the class. To ensure that students reach preset teaching and learning targets together with them, teachers can devise a course of action to closely monitor their progress and elicit feedback. Although there is a lot to teach, teachers should try not to overload the course. Most importantly they should instill in their students the spirit and habit of continuous learning. Learning should not be confined to courses and semesters but should be a lifelong process. Prof. LEUNG Sing Fai Faculty of Medicine (Clinical Oncology) I must say that I cannot take all the credit for this award, because teaching in the Faculty of Medicine is the collective effort of all colleagues and I only contribute a very small part in the teaching. But I would like to share with you some thoughts and feelings about being a clinical teacher of medicine in the year 2000. There are several important new issues in the current-day practice of medicine. The first is the explosion of information, the second is the cutback of resources for medical service, and the third is the distrust between the health care professional and the patient. Sufficient attention should be paid to address these issues. We need to train our students' ability to set priorities, to distinguish between the more important and the less important. We need to tell them how to respect human dignity and how to foster a trusting relationship between the doctor and the patient. Since dignity cannot be digitized to become an objective outcome parameter, this important human quality runs the danger of being undermined in the Internet age. I hope that our students can apply what they have learnt to life outside the medical field. As for the clinical teacher, the greatest reward of all is in the opportunity to teach. I would take this award as a constant reminder of this privilege and my inadequacy in this regard. Prof. LI Wai Kee Faculty of Science (Chemistry) 能夠獲得這個獎項我感到很高興及榮幸。我也 很感激化學系同事多年來的幫忙和合作。 由於這個機緣，令我重新思索了一下，數 十年教學生涯中，究竟甚麼是我的最大收穫 呢？答案就是教書令我相交了許多終生的朋 友。各位一定聽過很多關於老師和學生結為莫 逆之交的故事。但我今天要說的一些親身感 受，是略有不同的。 這學年我系有兩位同事退休，兩星期前化學系校友會特為他們舉 行了一個惜別宴會。與會校友約一百五十人，他們的畢業年期跨越三 分一世紀，場面至為感人。為了這個晩會，我致電一位早年畢業的校 友，傾談下才驚覺他畢業三十年了，期間我們未見過面。雖然如此， 話匣子一開，卻是話題源源不絕，好像從沒有過這三十年的隔別。我 想假如我從事其他行業，一定不會遇到這樣的經歷。 最後，我多謝當年崇基學院理學院院長張雄謀教授的聘任，使我 開始了我的教學事業。多謝各位。 Prof. Giovanni Battista MONETA Faculty of Social Science (Psychology) I will tell you a little family story. When we moved to Hong Kong about three years ago, both my wife and I had limited teaching experience especially at the undergraduate level. As I began working at CUHK, my wife began looking for a job. After 18 months of fruitless search, she was unexpectedly offered a teaching position at HKUST. This year, HKUST gave her the equivalent award that I am receiving today. What is the 'secret' of this teaching couple? There is no secret, just a simple boring truth. In these years, we have relentlessly discussed with each other all the problems that we were encountering in teaching and, between us, we figured out reasonable solutions. We could not find other teachers to discuss with, so we became each other's best colleague. I believe that this little story proves beyond any reasonable doubt that there is nothing special about teaching. Teaching is just a job. If one is motivated, supported by at least one colleague, and works hard and creatively, results will naturally come, as is the case in every other job. Healthy Schools Programme Wins Award at Exposition The University's Healthy Schools Programme took part in an exposition organized by the Quality Education Fund from 7th to 10th April. The Programme's booth was visited by the Acting Chief Executive of the HKSAR government, Mrs. Anson Chan, who was briefed on the lastest activities of the programme for health promotion. The booth also came second in the exposition's Best Booth Award. Service to the Community and International Organizations • Prof. Arthur K.C. Li, vice-chancellor, was appointed as a member of the Board of Directors of the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute Co. Ltd. from 17th May 2000. • Prof. Charles K. Kao, honorary professor of engineering, was appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a member of the Council of Advisors on Innovation and Technology for two years from 20th April 2000. • Prof. Liu Pak-wai, pro-vice-chancellor, was appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a member of the Council of Advisors on Innovation and Technology for two years from 20th April 2000. • Prof. Yang Chen-ning, Distinguished Professor-at-Large, was appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a Special Advisor to the Council of Advisors on Innovation and Technology for two years from 20th April 2000. • Prof. WongWai-leung, professor in the Department of Chinese Language and Literature, was appointed by the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services as an Advisor on Literary Art for two years from 1st April 2000. • Prof. Andrew Chan Chi-fai, professor in the Department of Marketing, was appointed as a member of the Quality Tourism Services Scheme Council of the Hong Kong Tourist Association for one year from November 1999. Prof. Chan was also appointed by the Securities and Futures Commission as amember of the Investor Education Advisory Committee (IEAC) for one year from 1st April 2000. • Prof. Sydney Chung, professor of surgery, was appointed as a member of the Regional Advisory Committee of the New Territories for two years from 1st April 2000. • Prof. Christopher W.K. Lam, professor in Department of Chemical Pathology, was appointed by the PLA Postgraduate Medical School and Chinese PLA General Hospital as a Visiting Professor of Clinical Biochemistry on 10th April 2000. (Information in this section is provided by the Information and Public Relations Office. Contributions should be sent direct to that office for registration and verification before publication.)