Teaching Critical Thinking in General Education on Science
Teaching Critical Thinking in General Education on Science
Speaker: Prof. Chu Ming Chung (Dept. of Physics)
Date: 26 Jan 2015 (Monday)
Language: Cantonese
The significant advances in physics have had a profound impact on human life. Physics also tends to be highly specialized and technical, which makes some students find it difficult to learn or even stay away from it. At the same time, quite a lot of students are satisfied with studying some scientific knowledge and regard them as "the truth". It is not easy to nurture students’ critical thinking in general education on physical science.
In this GE lunch seminar, the speaker will share his ideals and methods of teaching critical thinking in general education on physics. The sharing will be divided into four parts:
- The nature of the scientific methods: to emphasize the importance of falsifiability in scientific theories;
- The historical development of science: to demonstrate the importance of critical thinking by analysing several major changes in the history of physics;
- The encouragement of free thoughts: to share some examples of "crazy" ideas of scientists who dare to break the norms; and
- Sharing on actual teaching experiences and assessment methods.
Speaker’s Bio
Prof. Chu Ming Chung obtained his B.Sc. and PhD degrees both at California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Prof. Chu held research positions at MIT and Caltech before joining CUHK in 1995. His current research interest includes astrophysics, cosmology, and particle physics. Prof. Chu is awardee of the 2000 Vice-Chancellor’s Exemplary Teaching Award, the 2012 University Education Award, and the 2000, 2007 and 2008 Exemplary Teaching Award of the Faculty of Science. Prof. Chu has been teaching GE courses for 19 years.
