Common Core Forum for Teachers on May 10, 2010

In September 2010 a new 3-year undergraduate curriculum will be implemented to smooth out the transition to the full launch of the new 4-year curriculum in 2012. At the centrepiece of the new undergraduate curriculum is the Common Core Curriculum. In preparation for the partial launch of the Common Core Curriculum this coming September, about 70 members of the teaching staff, who are either teachers of Common Core courses, teachers of pilot Common Core courses or members of the Common Core Curriculum Committee, gathered together for a one-day forum on May 10, 2010 to share their experiences, concerns and plans.

Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Amy B.M. Tsui gave an opening speech, taking participants on a journey revisiting HKU’s conceptualization of the Common Core Curriculum and highlighting the world-wide trend in higher education where there is growing recognition of Arts and Humanities forming a crucial part of the undergraduate curriculum.

A major focus of the forum was the examination of what had been learnt from the pilot Common Core courses, with Mr Gwyn Edwards, Director of Common Core Curriculum, giving a broad overview. It has emerged from interviews with staff and sharing sessions that pedagogy for large classes, assessment, and teaching students with diverse background are the key issues faced by teachers. From lesson observations and interviews with students, it was learnt that students generally believe they have developed an enhanced understanding of the complexity of and the connections between issues in life.

A panel discussion moderated by Professor Joseph Chan, Deputy Chair of the Common Core Curriculum Committee, took up issues at greater depth. While Dr Harold Corke and Dr Jess King, who are both Common Core teachers, stressed the importance of maintaining non-science students’ confidence when making references to scientific concepts and formulae, Ms Kathy Griffin, who had sit in some sessions of the pilot courses and interviewed students in her capacity as commissioned professional writer for university publicity material, shared that students indeed feel very positive about the pilot courses. Students in particular treasure the inclusiveness of the classes, the new perspectives being brought to them, and even the different modes of assessment such as keeping journals and doing group presentations.

The other major focus concerned exemplar practices on which three presentations were given. Dr Sam Winter spoke on motivating students in large classes, Professor L.S. Chan shared examples of facilitating and assessing tutorials, and Dr Patrick Ng explained how interactive learning through various classroom activities such as participatory games was used in classes.

Besides learning from presenters, participants had the opportunity to share views at the two break-out sessions. Discussions in the morning break-out session focused on specific issues of concern including assessment, tutorials, pedagogy for large classes and teaching students from different Faculties while those in the afternoon on issues pertaining to individual areas of inquiry. The forum ended with a plenary session in which some of the practical concerns such as the running of tutorials were addressed.

Click here for the Programme Rundown

PowerPoint Presentations
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Motivating students in large classes by Dr Sam Winter
Facilitating and assessing tutorials by Prof L.S. Chan
Interactive learning in large classes by Dr Patrick Ng
What We have Learned from the Six Pilot Common Core Courses by Mr Gwyn Edwards

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Common Core Update

Common Core: Call for Proposals

The special call for Stage I proposals for the China AoI ended on March 26, 2010. This call, open for only six weeks since its announcement, was met by a very positive response of eight submissions. The China AoI Working Group met in early April to consider these Stage I proposals and made its recommendations to the Common Core Curriculum Committee. Out of the eight proposals, six have been selected to proceed to Stage II. All preliminary Stage II results, including those for the October 2009 call and the special call, will be announced in mid June.

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Staff-student Meeting on Common Core

Staff-student meeting on Common Core

On March 8, 2010 Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) Professor Amy B.M. Tsui and a number of staff, including Executive Director of CETL and members of the Common Core Curriculum Committee and the Teaching and Learning Quality Committee, met with fourteen students to discuss issues related to the Common Core Curriculum. The meeting was initiated by office bearers of the Students’ Union and its associated Faculty Societies in an attempt to address students’ queries over the implementation of the Common Core Curriculum in 2012.

Students were informed of why HKU would be implementing the Common Core in the context of undergraduate curriculum reform. In particular, the Common Core would enable students to broaden their horizons beyond their chosen discipline and would give them the opportunity to explore issues of profound significance to humankind in the 21st century. Teachers from various Faculties explained how the Common Core would be incorporated into their future curricula, and assured students that the Common Core would fit into professional degrees as well as double-degree programs involving multiple Faculties.

Since most Common Core courses would have a heavy weighting of coursework assessment, students were concerned about the workload implications. It was explained that student workload hours for each standard 6-credit course would be between 120 and 180, so coursework assessment should not lead to additional workload. The meeting ended with Professor Tsui’s remarks on the importance of constant dialogue between students and staff, and her words of thanks to the students for initiating and joining the meeting.

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The 3rd Symposium on the Core Curriculum

The 3rd Symposium – Core Curriculum. 12 May 2009 (Tuesday). Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong. 
 
Pro-Vice-Chancellor Amy B.M. Tsui presented the HKU Common Core Curriculum (CCC) at the plenary session and Professor Harry Lewis, author of  ‘Excellence Without a Soul’, presented the Harvard General Education Curriculum. In comparing it with HKU’s CCC, Professor Lewis noted that:
 
  • HKU’s CCC has a more coherent framework
  • HKU’s four Areas of Inquiry are more flexible, adaptable, and interconnecting
  • Some areas of implementation may need special attention
In the parallel sessions, members of the HKU Common Core Curriculum Subcommittee of the Steering Committee on 4-Year Undergraduate Curriculum made presentations on each of the four Areas of Inquiry under the HKU Common Core Curriculum. 
 

Mr. Gwyn Edwards, Co-ordinator of HKU’s CCC, gave a presentation on the New Senior Secondary Liberal Studies curriculum, highlighting its rationale, framework and main features.

Almost 380 staff attended from various institutions including local tertiary institutions, UGC, Education Bureau, secondary schools, Associate Degree providers and other educational institutes. The Symposium’s web site has a full set of the presentations and program details.