Teaching Excellence Award Scheme 2015

Message from Curriculum Development and Quality Assurance Section of the Registry

teas2015Further to the circular from the Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor dated July 6, 2015, this is to remind colleagues and students that nominations are now invited for the University Distinguished Teaching Award (UDTA), the Outstanding Teaching Award (OTA) and the newly introduced Teaching Innovation Award (TIA) under the Teaching Excellence Award Scheme (TEAS) in 2015.

The TEAS aims to recognise, reward and promote excellence in teaching at the University. All Faculties are encouraged to nominate colleagues who have made an outstanding contribution to the leadership and scholarship of Teaching and Learning at both Faculty and University levels for UDTA; colleagues who have demonstrated excellence in teaching and curriculum development for OTA; and those who have demonstrated innovation in pedagogy and/or curriculum design for TIA. Both OTA and TIA comprise individual and team awards, the latter is to recognise and promote collaborative effort and achievement in enhancing Teaching and Learning.

For further details, please refer to the circular at:

URL: http://intranet.hku.hk:8030/web/reg/adqa/rslleung/TEAS-List-A-2015.pdf

Nominees are encouraged to contact the Centre for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning (CETL) for advice on the preparation of teaching portfolios. Three TEAS workshops organised by CETL will be held on September 17, October 13 and November 20, 2015 to support interested staff members to prepare for their submissions. Details about the workshops are available via this link: http://www.cetl.hku.hk/wshp150917/.

All nominations and the supporting documents should reach Ms. Synthia Chau, Curriculum Development and Quality Assurance Section, Registry, by December 11, 2015. Enquiries may be directed to Ms. Chau on 2859 2440 or via email to schau@hku.hk.

Chat-n-Snack Session: Curious about Teaching a Common Core Course?

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Dear Colleagues,

The Common Core Curriculum (CCC) Committee will soon launch the 2015 Call for Course Proposals for the CCC. I will be hosting a Chat-n-Snack Session “Curious about Teaching a Common Core Course?” on September 17, 2015, to talk to interested teachers, informally, about the development of course proposals as well as the teaching of CCC courses.

Chat-n-Snack Session
“Curious about Teaching a Common Core Course?”

Date: September 17, 2015 (Thursday)
Time: 3:30pm – 4:30pm
Venue: Common Core Lounge, Room 150, 1/F, Main Building

All interested teachers are welcome to join.

All best,
Gray

Gray Kochhar-Lindgren, PhD
Professor and Director: The Common Core

Teaching Excellence Award Scheme Workshop Series

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Organized by Centre for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning (CETL)

Teaching Excellence Award Scheme Workshop (1)

Date: 17 September 2015, Thursday
Time : 12:45pm – 2:00pm
Venue : Rm 321, Run Run Shaw Builiding

This workshop is open to all teaching staff who are interested in finding out more about the different Teaching Excellence Awards. Staff will be provided an overview of the award schemes, the key selection criteria and advice in preparing an evidence-based teaching portfolio. Staff who are thinking about applying in the next round are strongly encouraged to attend. Staff who are not sure, or would simply like to know more about the scheme, are most welcome.

Teaching Excellence Award Scheme Workshop and Sharing Session (2)

Date: 13 October 2015, Tuesday
Time : 12:45pm – 2:00pm
Venue : Rm 321, Run Run Shaw Builiding

This workshop is open to all teaching staff who are interested in finding out more about the different Teaching Excellence Awards. Staff who are thinking about applying in the next round are strongly encouraged to attend. Staff who are not sure, or would simply like to know more about the scheme, are most welcome. Previous award winners will be invited to discuss their experience, and a sharing session will be organized.

Preparing an Evidence-Based Teaching Portfolio for your Teaching Excellence Award Workshop (3)

Date: 20 November 2015, Friday
Time : 12:00pm – 2:00pm
Venue : Rm 321, Run Run Shaw Builiding

This workshop is open to all teaching staff who are preparing their teaching portfolio. We strongly advice teaching staff to bring along their work-in-progress teaching portfolio, individual consultation by CETL staff will be arranged on the spot to advise you on the portfolio.

For enquiries, please contact Ms Ivy Lai by email laichun2@hku.hk.

Introducing the KEEP Platform & A Sharing on HKU’s Gamification Projects

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Organized by Technology-Enriched Learning Initiative

Speakers:

  • Professor Irwin King, Principal Investigator of KEEP,
    Associate Dean (Education), Faculty of Engineering, CUHK
  • Professor Ricky Kwok, Associate Vice-President (Teaching and Learning), HKU

Date : 21st September, 2015 (Monday)
Time : 12:30pm – 2:00pm
Venue : Room 223, 2/F, Knowles Building

Abstract:

Logo_KEEP_horizontal_color_700x215_rgbKEEP, the Knowledge and Education Exchange Platform, is an initiative developed by The Chinese University of Hong Kong in collaboration with all UGC-funded institutions in Hong Kong. KEEP serves as an e-learning aggregator, providing a single gateway to online learning and diverse education content around the globe. In this seminar, Professor Irwin King, Principal Investigator of KEEP, is going to walk participants through the platform, introduce its major features, and share on how KEEP showcases innovative technologies in education.

The second part of the seminar will focus on the latest development in one aspect of pedagogical innovation at HKU – gamification. From the blending of animation into our Chinese Philosophy MOOC to the development of serious games in our upcoming e-learning modules, the Technology-Enriched Learning Initiative (TELI) team at HKU has been trying to bring a new dimension of immersive learning experiences for our students. At his presentation, Professor Ricky Kwok, together with our tech and multimedia teams will discuss best practices in gamification, and present their work in this area to-date. They will share the challenges encountered in balancing entertainment and education, driving competition in game-based learning to inspire achievement of learning outcomes, and creating a gaming space that might draw learners closer together.

About the Speakers:

Professor Irwin King is the Associate Dean (Education) of the Engineering Faculty and Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, CUHK. He is also the Director of Rich Media and Big Data Key Laboratory at the Shenzhen Research Institute. His research interests include machine learning, social computing, Big Data, data mining, and multimedia information processing. Recently, Professor King has been an evangelist in the use of education technologies in eLearning for the betterment of teaching and learning.

Professor Ricky Kwok is Associate Vice-President (Teaching and Learning) at HKU, assisting the Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) in various endeavors related to e-learning (e.g., MOOCs). He leads the Technology-Enriched Learning Initiative (TELI) team which consists of e-learning technologists, researchers in learning analytics, specialists in systems development, and multimedia talents.

Please send enquiries to Miss Cherry Lai
Email: cherry.lai@hku.hk.

“My students are falling asleep.” – Interactive ways to incorporate active learning activities into a typical lecture and classroom

“My students are falling asleep.” – Interactive ways to incorporate active learning activities into a typical lecture and classroom

Organized by Centre for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning (CETL)

Facilitator: Dr Cecilia Chan, Head of Professional Development, Associate Professor, CETL
Date : 9 September, 2015 (Wednesday)
Time : 12:30 pm – 2:15 pm [Sandwiches will be served with coffee and tea.] Venue : Room 321, Run Run Shaw Building

Abstract:

In this workshop, we will discuss how a lecture environment can be changed so that there are more interaction between students and teachers, and students and students. Practical examples and methods will be shared and demonstrated to motivate students in a lecture and classroom.

Dr Wilton Fok, Assistant Dean of Engineering, HKU, will also demonstrate the iClass mobile apps which was developed in HKU on how to facilitate teaching and learning in classroom.

About the Speaker:

Dr Cecilia Chan from CETL has been involved in the implementation of outcomes-based approach to student learning, assessment, feedback and technology enhanced learning pedagogies and tools. She provides consultations to faculty regarding the design and assessment of innovative educational research projects, grants and initiatives. She also leads, builds and supports faculty efforts to incorporate community to develop skills and knowledge related to the scholarship and assessment of teaching and learning.

Dr Wilton Fok from Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering received his B.Eng degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from the University of Hong Kong in 1993. Dr Fok also received two other M.Sc. degrees in Industrial Engineering and Environmental Management from this University in 1996 and 1999 respectively. In 1998 and 2007, he also awarded a MBA degree and a PhD degree from the University of Cambridge and Renmin University of China respectively. Before joining the department, Dr Fok was the e-Business Development Manager of the E-Business Technology Institute (ETI) of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and the Senior Business Development Manager of the ETI Consulting Limited (ETIC). He led a team to commercialize and transfer technologies in the area of IT and e-Business and other emerging technologies developed in the HKU to the industries.

For enquiries, please contact Ms Ivy Lai by email laichun2@hku.hk.

Grand Finale of Humanity and Nature in Chinese Thought

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As HKU03x Humanity and Nature in Chinese Thought is drawing to a close, we are going to round up the journey with an exciting online debate! You can join us in the audience simply by clicking on YouTube.

As remarked by course instructor Professor Chad Hansen, ‘For a teacher, it is a big change getting to know most of you by “handles” on your posts and [be] awed by the global reach and diversity of our online community.’ This debate goes in line with our dedication to achieving extensive global reach, while keeping the high-touch personalized interaction that you would expect in traditional classroom teaching.

Debaters from around the world will present their arguments on the topic
“We should follow the social conventions of our society”, followed by comments and summary by Professor Chad Hansen.

Date: August 15, 2015 (Saturday)
Time: 22:00 HKT / 14:00 UTC
Language: English

Live recording

Instructions:

  1. Click the above link and then choose the YouTube live stream: HKU03x Online Debate: We should follow the social conventions of our society.
  2. Depending on your YouTube time zone setting, you will see “Watch the live stream!” and the time of the event, with the number of hours left to the debate underneath.
  3. Contribute to the live chat on your right and share with us your thoughts during the debate!
  4. Let the countdown begin and we are looking forward to meeting you online.

Don’t miss out on the grand finale of our first MOOC in Philosophy!

Common Core Orientation Workshops for Semester 1 Tutors

Dear Colleagues,

Orientation Workshops for Common Core Tutors, Semester 1, 2015-16

I and all of those in the Office would like to warmly welcome both new and experienced tutors to the Common Core and hope very much that you will be able to attend one of the sessions of this semester’s workshop, Activating Learning.

We invite all of you who will be running course tutorials in the first semester to attend one of two orientation workshops to be held on September 1st or 4th, 2015 in the Common Core Lounge, Room 150, Main Building. We will work together on sharing ideas, tools, and methods to enhance active learning such as discussions, role-plays, making art, community engagement, and student projects. Several experienced tutors will also give us their input about how to keep the tutorials running most smoothly, as well as on questions of grading, enrollment, the Mysteries of Moodle, assessment, and increasing the pzazz factor.

A. Activating Learning
Date: 1 September, 2015 (Tuesday)
Time: 2:30pm – 4:30pm

B. Activating Learning
Date: 4 September, 2015 (Friday)
Time: 10:00am – 12:00pm

Again, each day offers “identical” content, so although tutors are of course welcome to come on both days, given everyone’s complex schedules we wanted to be sure to provide alternative times.

Attached please find an invitation letter. For logistics purposes, we would appreciate it if you could register your attendance with Miss Emily Chan (chiting@hku.hk) by Wednesday Aug 19, 2015, along with:

  1. Your full-name
  2. HKU email address
  3. Departmental affiliation
  4. Staff number/ University number (for RPG students)
  5. Course code of your CC course
  6. Your preferred workshop: A / B

Please, throughout the year, always feel free to write me with questions and suggestions for improvement, since you are the ones that live “most closely” to the student learning.

All best,

Gray

Gray Kochhar-Lindgren, PhD
Professor and Director: The Common Core
https://tl.hku.hk/common-core-curriculum/
+852 2219 4956

Motivations for experts’ knowledge sharing in online communities: What can we learn from Google and Symantec

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Organized by e-learning Pedagogical Support Unit, CETL

Speaker: Dr. Jingli Cheng, e-learning Pedagogical Support Unit
Date : 13 August, 2015 (Thursday)
Time : 12:45pm – 2:00pm
Venue : Room 321, Run Run Shaw Building

Abstract:

Communities of practice as an approach to informal learning has received attention from various types of organizations, including higher education institutions. A fundamental process underlying successful communities of practice is knowledge sharing. Yet, empirical understanding of motivations for knowledge sharing is lacking, especially with regard to an important subset of participants in these communities, the experts. Based on a research study that the speaker conducted with Google and Symantec, this presentation will highlight the key factors that motivated expert participants’ knowledge sharing behaviors in the two companies’ online user communities.

Colleagues who are considering implementing communities of practice or knowledge sharing initiatives in and beyond their organizations may get useful insights from this presentation. Teachers who are thinking about motivating student participation in online communities may also find this workshop beneficial. All are welcome.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Jingli Cheng has extensive experience applying instructional design theories and best practices in various organizational settings to help learners improve their knowledge and skills. Before joining HKU’s e-learning Pedagogical Support Unit, he worked as Instructional Designer at Stanford University, the Hewlett Packard company and several other organizations in the United States. His research interests include motivation for knowledge sharing in online communities and informal learning in organizational settings.

Please send enquiries to Miss Cherry Lai
Email: cherry.lai@hku.hk.

CITE Seminar by Dr. Bei Yu & Dr. Jun Wang, School of Information Studies, Syracuse University, USA

Message from Centre for Information Technology in Education within the Faculty of Education

CITE Seminar Series 2015/2016

Seminar 1
Title: Automated Citation Opinion Analysis for Scientific Writing

Date: 17 July 2015 (Friday)
Time: 12:45 pm – 2:00 pm
Venue: Room 101, 1/F., Runme Shaw Building, The University of Hong Kong
Speaker: Dr. Bei Yu, Associate Professor, School of Information Studies, Syracuse University, USA
Chair: Dr. Xiao Hu, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education, HKU

About the Seminar
With the fast growth of academic publications, researchers face the increasingly difficult task of comprehensive literature review. Current bibliographic databases provide citation linkages but no further citation context analysis to help researchers find the most relevant citations and organize different kinds of academic opinions expressed in citation context. The Citation Opinion Retrieval and Analysis (CORA) project aims for building an automated tool that can extract the citation statements, separate substantial citations from perfunctory ones, and categorize substantial citation opinions by their purposes, topic aspects, polarities, and the opinion holders and targets. CORA is expected to save researchers a significant amount of time to find the most useful comments from a large number of citations. CORA will also provide a new, qualitative approach for assessing research impact and tracking problematic phenomena such as citation bias.

For more details about the Speaker & registration, please visit
http://www.cite.hku.hk/news.php?id=543&category=seminar

Seminar 2
Title: DoodleBook: A New Tool for Science Education

Date: 17 July 2015 (Friday)
Time: 2:00 pm – 3:15 pm
Venue: Room 101, 1/F., Runme Shaw Building, The University of Hong Kong
Speaker: Dr. Jun Wang, Research Scientist, School of Information Studies, Syracuse University, USA
Chair: Dr. Xiao Hu, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education, HKU

About the Seminar
There is growing evidence to show that drawing to learn, a visual and constructive learning strategy, is both engaging and effective. Emerging research is now suggesting that drawing should be recognized alongside writing, reading, and speaking as a key element in science education. This talk will present our recent work on drawing to learn in science (www.doodlebook.org). Developed with funding from the National Academies, DoodleBook serves two goals: (1) to make science more accessible and engaging through art; (2) to provide science students and educators, from kindergarten to college, with a free online space to create, collaborate, and share their own digital drawings. We will present our findings on how art students create drawings for scientific concepts, and how science teachers and students use the web tool in their classes.

For more details about the Speaker & registration, please visit
http://www.cite.hku.hk/news.php?id=544&category=seminar

CETL Programme: Introduction to Teaching and Learning @ HKU

Organized by Centre for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning (CETL)

Date: 8th September, 2015 (Tue) 
Time: 9:30am – 3:30pm
Venue: Multi-purpose Zone, 3/F, HKU Main Library

Introduction to Teaching and Learning

This one-day ‘Introduction to Teaching and Learning @ HKU’ programme is a foundation programme in teaching and learning at the University of Hong Kong and is designed for teaching staff, regardless of previous teaching experience, who are new to teaching at HKU. The overall aim is to provide new staff with a better understanding of specific issues relating to teaching and learning context in Hong Kong and at HKU. Staff will hear from leading Senior Academics in areas of strategic importance to the University.

During this programme, participants will be able to gain knowledge and to engage in discussions relating to issues relevant to teaching and learning at HKU. These will include the overview of the 4-year undergraduate curriculum reform delivered by Professor George Tham, Associate Vice-President of HKU, the demography and culture of HKU students, English as a medium of instruction, the common core curriculum, the role and nature of academic advising and about e-learning at HKU. Participants will also have the opportunity to talk in small groups to Outstanding Teaching Award (OTA) winners at HKU and learn about the diverse ways that have made HKU teaching more outcomes-based and how these have enhanced the learning effectiveness of their teaching.

Online Registration

The maximum capacity is 80 on a first-come-first-serve basis. Registration will close on 2nd Sept 2015 (Wed) at 3pm.

For information on registration, please contact:
Ms. Ivy Lai, CETL
Phone: 3917 8996; Email: laichun2@hku.hk.