Newsletter No. 223

D r . Jose L a i (Faculty of Arts) Teaching has been my dream career since I was 12. I'm very thankful, especially to god, that I'm still living in this dream and have not yet woken to a nightmare,' said Dr. Lai of the English Language Teaching Unit, whose first and only job for the last two decades has been with thi s university. Sh e joined the University soon after her graduation from Sydney University. She was then awarded a staff development gran t to pursue doctoral studies at Macquarie University . Dr. Lai admitted that while she enjoyed teaching a lot and worked very hard to make herself a more responsible and reflective educator, she never aspired to receive the award. What attract s her most about teaching is its continual dynamism, which she likened to life. She expressed thanks to CUHK fo r giving her not only a 'lucrative job' but more importantly, the 'perfect and ideal' environmen t fo r professional growth. Her gratitude also went to her colleagues, and all the unit heads and faculty deans she has worked with, without whose support and trust, she said, she wouldn't have been able to have assumed different roles within her unit and the University , and complete her Ph.D. studies on a generous staff development grant . It was their collectiv e blessing, she said, which made all these wonderful things happen . Words of Gratitude on Their Winning Ways: N i ne teachers f r om d i f f e r ent departments were presented the Vice-chancellor's Exemp l a ry Teaching Awa r d 2002 by P r o f . Amb r ose K i n g at a special ceremony he ld on 15 th M a y 2003 in the Esther Lee B u i l d i n g . A f t er a cong r a t u l a t o r y addres s b y th e vice - chancellor, t h e n i n e awardee s wer e i n d i v i d u a l l y presented th e awards . Eac h o f t h em delivere d a t wo - m i n u t e speec h t o shar e t he i r t hough t s o n teachin g a t t he Un i ve r s i t y . A g r ou p p h o t o - t a k i n g sessio n an d a tea r ecep t i o n w r a p p e d up th e occasion. We hav e cap t u r e d th e gis t o f th e awardees ' speeche s i n thi s issu e o f th e Newsletter. 金耀基校 女士、金 The Vice- From left: Prof. A Prof. Prof. L am K i n Che (Faculty of Social Science) Prof. Lam of the Department o f Geography an d Resource Managemen t is 'pleased, honoured and humbled ' to accept the award, giving ful l recognition t o those who have gone before him, those who have worked hard to make the University a great institution, his colleagues in the faculty an d the department, and his family who have inspired an d supported him over the years. Based on his experience as a teacher in the last 25 years, Prof. Lam summarized the basics of teaching into the acronym 'TEACH'. 'T' stands for 't o inspire'; i s 'empathy'; 'A' i s 'appreciation' for students ' efforts ; 'C' i s 'compassion'; and finally stand s for recognition that teaching is 'har d work''. 'I say "hard" because you haven't taught unti l the students have learnt . Teaching is hard because we have to continually reflec t and learn. ... My goa l therefore is to empower student s to become independent learners , to be self- directed, to be self -motivated, and to find meaning in learning and joy i n learning,' Prof . Lam explained . Pr o f. Fok Tai Fai (Faculty of Medicine) For Prof. Fok of the Department o f Paediatrics, there's no better reward than recognition and endorsement by one's own students. He also felt he'd been extremely fortunate t o have won the award, given 'the great number o f dedicated and talented teachers at the faculty'. 'Students might have welcomed my teaching because I really didn't teac h them much,' quippe d Prof. Fok. The reason for thi s 'under-teaching', he explained, was because as a medical student, he suffered a lot from over-teaching by teachers , not because they were bad teachers but because 'some decades ago, it was a tradition, a culture for medical teachers to teach as much as possible thing s in their own sub-specialty without realizing that students had other thing s to study as well. As a result, teachers taught a lot but students learnt ver y little because of information indigestion, which invariably led to confusion and mental constipation.' With the full implementation of the new medica l curriculum some two years ago, Prof. Fok proposed that the award be changed to a team award, at least for the Faculty of Medicine. This, he said, would d o more credit to the new curriculum, which is 'team work rathe r than individua l performance'. Pr o f. Young Fung Yu (Faculty of Engineering) 'Teaching is much mor e than the delivery o f lectures. It' s a display o f [the teacher's ] whole personality in front of the students. That is why I always remin d myself t o behave and to set a good example for my students, ' sai d Prof. Young of the Department o f Computer Scienc e and Engineering, after dishing out a round of thanks to the University, her faculty and department, and her co-workers. And, being a Christian, she also expressed her indebtedness t o god and added that every day she still prayed for a more loving heart, more patience, and more wisdom to teach and live. Prof. Lee Ch i ng Ch y i (Faculty of Business A Prof. Lee said he felt very lucky to have found tremendously an d which he could handle well. W him o n winning the award, he would say to them, the award but if passion is one of the criteria, then think I have passion. I do enjoy teaching very mu Department o f Decision Sciences and Managerial and two children for their support , which was part to teach in the evening or at the weekends. He als whom he wouldn't have been able to enjoy th for thei r support , and dean of the faculty, whose nomination he wouldn't hav e wo 4 No. 223 4th June 2003