A renewed E-learning Strategy is now available to guide Faculties and Departments in judiciously setting priorities, experimenting with ideas, and formulating action plans for e-learning.

In response to the 2011 Senate recommendation that an institutional review be conducted on our E-learning Strategy at a three-yearly interval, as well as to acknowledge the rapid changes in the landscape of higher education within and beyond the University, an E-learning Review Group was constituted in January 2015 to put forward an enhanced strategy with the input from Faculties, The Hong Kong University Students’ Union and the Postgraduate Student Association. The Senate endorsed the Review Group’s submission in July.

With the support from Senate, we are now ready to go ahead with the implementation. Please check back this blog often to learn more about projects that we are doing, as well as the types of support that are made available to you.

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.

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

South China Morning Post recently interviewed our teachers on how e-learning has taken off at HKU and will bring unprecedented learning experience to learners both on and off campus. The first MOOC, an introductory public health course entitled Epidemics, showcased the University’s strength in the global context, and was “hugely successful”.

The initiative turned out to be headlights into how online learning can be widely and effectively incorporated into on-campus education. The article highlighted the valuable statistics collected from MOOCs. Leveraging a treasure of both quantitative and qualitative data collected from an impressive number of MOOC learners, teachers were able to evaluate and refine course materials and assessments, which can then be repurposed for their on-campus counterparts, laying the groundwork for “flipped classroom” teaching.

The data also provided insights into how some e-learning tools for on-campus students can be improved. For example, compared to the underused Moodle online forum, the MOOC discussion forums encouraged students to ask questions in a comfortable way since they allowed a certain level of anonymity.

New and exciting online courses are on the way to provide e-learners an ever better expereience. Read the article to find out more.

Here’s your chance to question and get challenged by ideas and beliefs of your fellow learners!

HKU03x Humanity and Nature in Chinese Thought is holding an online debate activity to be broadcast live on YouTube. You can join in the audience anywhere at a click.

Drawing on the Chinese philosophical concepts developed in the course, six debaters coming from around the world will discuss the topic “We should follow the social conventions of our society” from the affirmative and negative perspectives. Course instructor Professor Chad Hansen will adjudicate the debate and summarize the ideas presented.

Details of the debate:

It is a valuable opportunity for you to learn “face-to-face” with Professor Hansen and fellow MOOC takers. Join us!

Organized by e-learning Pedagogical Support Unit, CETL

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.