With a view to understanding the learning of general education by the students of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, in 2010 the BCRCGE, in collaboration with a number of colleges, began a three year tracking study to assess the effectiveness of students’ taking of general education courses.  The study is being carried out by way of questionnaires, with the relevant data collected in two stages.  The first stage is a “freshman survey” whose objective is to understand students’ self-assessments and their expectations of general education; during the second stage, the “graduate survey”, the opinions of students will be collected after they have completed all general education courses.

During the 2010-11 year, the BCRCGE carried out two pilot studies.  The first stage consisted of the “freshman survey”, conducted in collaboration with six large colleges,  which was completed in September 2010; and the questionnaire in the second stage, completed in April 2011, was the “graduate survey” carried out in collaboration with New Asia College.  During the 2011-12 year, the BCRCGE will continue to carry out related pilot surveys to improve relevant plans, and hopes, by virtue of this, to analyze, compare and summarize the interviewees’ learning outcomes in general education classes at university and to assist the Office of University General Education in improving the design of the general education curriculum.