The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) will be organizing the Service-Learning in Higher Education: Teacher Development Course for all academic and teaching staff from higher education institutions.
Background
PolyU has made service-learning (SL) part of the core curriculum since 2012. We cater for almost 4500 students every year to serve in Hong Kong, Mainland China, Taiwan, and other countries like Rwanda, Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines.
SL has been so impactful for our students and us, and feedback from service recipients and community partners are extremely positive. SL is getting popular in Hong Kong and Asia, but it still not a very well-understood pedagogy and is often confused with community service and volunteerism. For this reason, we created a community of practice in SL for higher education teachers, with the goal to build capacity and create community among like-minded peers.
About the Course
This year, the course will consist of three components, A) a 10-hour online course for conceptual learning; B) a 2-day online interactive workshops to deepen learning of the key topics; C) a 4-day face-to-face practical learning. The course will cover basic concepts and theories, effective practices, case studies, skills to facilitate reflection, student assessment, site visits, and sharing from NGOs, teachers and students, etc. You will also get hands-on practice in designing your own project and receive feedback. Please see the poster for more details.
About the Instructors
Dr Grace Ngai is the Head of the Service-Learning and Leadership Office (SLLO) and the Associate Professor of the Department of Computing of PolyU. Dr Stephen Chan is the Founding Head and currently the Consultant of the SLLO.
Dr Ngai and Dr Chan have been involved in SL and community engagement for over 10 years. Together, they oversaw the early implementation of a university-wide initiative into using SL as a key educational strategy for undergraduates. They pioneer innovative pedagogical practices such as multicultural student teams through partnerships with local NGOs, SL exchange programmes, and “global SL classroom” initiatives, etc. They have been invited to share SL experience in many local, national, and international academic activities and published a number of book chapters and papers on international journals about SL. Their contributions have been recognized by the Hong Kong Government in its University Grants Committee Teaching Award (2016). They have been the course instructors for the Teacher Development Courses since 2014.
Course Fee
The course fee ranges from HK$700 to HK$2,500, depending on the registered components. This course is subsidized by the University Grants Committee (UGC). Please see the poster for more details.
Key Dates
Information session (online) |
7 June 2021, 6:30-7:30pm (HK Time) |
Application deadline |
14 June 2021, 12:00n.n. (HK Time) |
Admission results |
18 June 2021 (Priority will be given to the SHUA member institutions) |
Course Application
Enquiries
Ms Renee Leung (+852) 2766 6802
Ms Tiffany Ko (+852) 3400 2936