Newsletter No. 466

8 466 • 4.11.2015 ’ 口談實錄 Viva Voce 本刊由香港中文大學資訊處出版，每月出版兩期。截稿日期及稿例載於 www.iso.cuhk.edu.hk/chinese/newsletter/ 。 The CUHK Newsletter is published by the Information Services Office, CUHK, on a fortnightly basis. Submission guidelines and deadlines can be found at www.iso.cuhk.edu.hk/english/newsletter/ . 梁美儀教授 Prof. Leung Mei-yee 大學通識教育主任 Director of University General Education 中文大學最近成為首間獲美國通識教學協會頒贈優化通識 教學獎的海外學府，甚麼因素激發角逐此獎項？ 通識教育本身不是一個專科，不同大學各師各法，水準如何很 難界定。教資會近年強調國際參照標準，大學通識教育部一向 留意世界各地有關的模式和評鑑標準。大學在2012年全面推 出通識教育基礎課程，學生反應良好，但我們不敢自滿，去年 特邀請了國際知名的通識教育研究專家 Jerry Gaff 來校做一 個全面檢討。他對基礎課程印象很深，鼓勵我們角逐此獎，所 以我們便決定一試。 可以說說獎項的評審標準嗎？ 評審涵蓋由醞釀到施行、成果以至由此衍生的持續改善的一 個完整周期。我們需解釋怎樣界定優化的需要，計劃是否跟大 學的使命和學生需要配合，有沒有研究或實證作為基礎，過程 是否有不同持份者參與；實踐計劃是否審慎擘畫；可有改善學 生學習的證據，而且能否據此幫助持續改進。 從甚麼時候起參與中大的通識教育？ 我的本科是歷史，在法國念碩士和博士學位，1999年加入大 學通識教育部出任副主任，協助其時的主任 張燦輝 教授，推出 通識教育叢書，籌劃推廣通識文化的校園活動，也於現代語言 及文化系兼任助理教授。2003年通識教育需要全面建立素質 保證機制，我轉為全職服務通識教育部。 個人學習通識的經驗又如何？ 當年在崇基學院， 沈宣仁 教授的大一通識課「大學理念」帶出 清晰訊息：大學教育與中學教育截然不同，不再是追求模範 答案，而是要自己尋學問。這給我很大啓發。此外，畢業前的 Senior Seminar要求不同學系的同學組成隊伍，因應各人專 長，發掘論文題目和資料。我組成員來自哲學系和數學系，我 們從天文、思想和歷史等角度探討《通勝》，還訪問了堪輿學 和曆法專家 蔡伯勵 先生，是很新鮮的跨學科研習經驗。 早前你代表大學往密爾瓦基領獎，介紹中大的通識教育 時，反應如何？ 評審單位對於我們循序漸進落實基礎課程，掌握學習成果的 實證資料，逐步優化的過程非常欣賞。他們也訝異於一所綜合 研究型大學竟能發展出這樣學分雖少卻既廣且深、影響全校 學生的基礎課程。一位評審員甚至說要重新檢視改革通識教 育的方法—與其每次全盤修整，是否應該效法中大，集中做好 一個小範疇，從大一開始為學生打造共同的學習經驗。 基礎課程帶給學生甚麼挑戰？他們接受嗎？ 在這個知識無限複製的網絡時代，我們要求學生摒棄二手三手 資料，閱讀原典。在大班外還有小組討論，他們須面對面口頭 與人溝通，並整理思想，化為有條理的文字。 深感欣慰的是2012年全面推行後，在一年級課的學生評估 裏，基礎課程可說穩佔榜首。學能提升研究中心進行的相關查 考，也得出正面評價。「太多閱讀」、「程度太深」等評語當然 不斷出現，但他們也「樂於被迫」，慶幸因課程強制而認真學 習了本應擁有卻出於惰性不肯追求的知識，思考嚴肅課題。學 生本對學習非本科知識略有微言，但根據課前課後的比較，文 科生對科學、理科生對人文課題的興趣均大有提高。 如何舒緩緊張繁忙的生活？ 耕種，我家天台種了生菜青瓜等。我還喜歡看小說，最近捨沉 重的作品，重看 珍 ・ 奧絲汀 ，輕鬆一點。一般認為她寫的是愛 情小說，但我覺得她其實是在尋常生活裏探討人性的不同面 向，講無分貴賤，以誠待人和尊重別人的重要。這也給常處於 繁忙狀態的我一點啓示，別忘了照顧他人的感受。 CUHK recently became the first institution outside the US to be bestowed the Exemplary Programme Award for Improving General Education by the Association for General and Liberal Studies. What made the Office of University General Education (OUGE) decide to compete for the award? General education (GE) is not a discipline in its own right. Different universities have their own ways of developing and teaching it. There’s no universal yardstick for measuring their performances. The University Grants Committee (UGC) has stressed the importance of meeting international standards. We have been paying attention to the education models and assessment methods related to GE around the globe. In 2012, the Chinese University introduced the General Education Foundation Programme (GEF). Although it has been well received by students, we are not complacent. Last year we invited Jerry Gaff , a world renowned GE expert, to review our programme. He was very impressed by the GEF and encouraged us to compete for this award. So we gave it a shot. What were the association’s assessment criteria? The assessment covered the entire process—development, implementation, results, and how to ensure continuous improvement. We had to explain how we define our need for improvement, how the improvement scheme dovetailed with missions of CUHK and met the needs of students, whether the curriculum was based on research or empirical data, whether there was participation by different stakeholders, whether the implementation was carefully designed, whether there was evidence of improvement in student learning which could facilitate continuous improvement. When did you get involved in developing GE at CUHK? I studied history and obtained my master’s degree and PhD in France. I joined the OUGE in 1999 as an assistant director, helping Prof. Cheung Chan-fai , the then director, to publish the ‘General Education Series’ and promote the concept of GE on campus. I also served as an adjunct assistant professor at the Department of Modern Languages and Intercultural Studies. In 2003 when there was a need to develop a quality assurance mechanism for GE, I began to work full-time with the OUGE. What were your personal GE experiences? Back then at Chung Chi College, I was greatly inspired by a message that Dr. Philip Shen delivered in a freshmen GE course ‘Idea of University’: university education is completely different from secondary education. You wouldn’t be given model answers; you have to learn by yourself. Before graduating, we had to complete a ‘Senior Seminar’, which required students from different departments to form teams to decide on paper topics and conduct research according to our respective expertise. My teammates were philosophy and mathematics students. We studied the Chinese almanac Tung Shing from the perspectives of astronomy, intellectual tradition, and history. We also interviewed Mr. Choi Park- lai , an expert in Chinese geomancy and calendars. It was a refreshing experience in interdisciplinary learning. You received the award in Milwaukee and gave a presentation on CUHK General Education. What was the response? The assessment panel was impressed by our well-paced implementation of the GEF, collection of empirical data of learning outcomes, and step-by-step improvements. They were surprised that a comprehensive research university can develop a foundation programme with relatively low credit requirements and that has an extensive and deep impact on all students. One of the panel members even said that it was necessary to review the way of GE reform— conventional sweeping reforms may no longer be desirable. Perhaps it would be better to learn from CUHK’s experiences of focusing on small areas first and exposing students to common learning experiences as a foundation for learning partnerships. What challenges does the GEF pose to students? How was it received by them? In the digital age when people can cut and paste from the Internet whenever they like, we require students to give up second- or third-hand information and to read the classics. There are seminars in addition to large-class-size lectures. They have to engage in face-to-face and verbal communication, and organize their thoughts into coherent sentences. Since its introduction in 2012, the GEF has consistently ranked top in freshmen evaluations. According to a survey conducted by the Centre for Learning Enhancement and Research, freshmen feedback is generally positive. Of course comments like ‘too many readings’, ‘too difficult’ constantly show up. But the students are ‘happy to be pushed’. They are happy to be pressed to think about serious topics and acquire necessary knowledge that they wouldn’t otherwise learn due to laziness. At first students are reluctant to learn knowledge outside their main subjects. But according to comparisons of before- and after-course surveys, both arts students’ interest in science and science students’ interest in the arts have grown. How do you relax? Through gardening. I grow lettuces and cucumbers on the roof of my home. I also like to read novels. But recently I don’t have the energy for heavy ones. I prefer to read Jane Austen novels; they tend to be lighter. People generally see her as a romance novelist. But I think that her works explore the various faces of humanity, and depict the importance of treating others with sincerity and respect, regardless of social class. This serves as a reminder to consider other people’s feelings in my constantly busy life. Photo by ISO staff