Abstracts of Funding Scheme for Engaging Postgraduate Students

in Teaching and Teaching Development

(Supported by Teaching Development and Language Enhancement Grant 2022-25)

No.	Project Title	Abstract
1.	Reviving Learning Atmosphere of Classical Chinese Literature in CUHK: Implement of Digital Humanities in Literary Criticism	· An alarm of classical Chinese literature teaching and learning is realized in CUHK. There is a sharp drop of students who determined to write their final year thesis with regards to classical Chinese literature. · E-learning and digital humanities in Chinese literature is particularly weak and not pedagogically well known among teachers, tutors and students. The absence of reliable database for literary criticism, particularly the remarks of poetry, makes it difficult to promote and explore classical Chinese literature amid post-COVID era, when paper versions of corpora are not welcomed by students. · A tool dedicated for literary criticism will benefit 20 courses. A database for remarks of poetry will be constructed with aid of OCR technology. · Primary texts will be re-modified for full-text search and digital humanities analysis. · Guide sessions and sharing sessions will be held, and a conference presentation will be conducted to better disseminate good practices and findings. · The database is the first comprehensive collection ever dedicated for classical literary criticism, and will serve as a sustainable and essential tool for teachers, tutors and undergraduate students. · This project encourages students to adopt digital humanities in both teaching, learning, research, especially peer learning.
2.	Implementing Acupuncture Knowledge of Ancient Medical Texts from Japan in Teaching and Writing	· Chinese Medicine students need to read ancient medical texts to establish a theoretical basis and learn the experience of predecessors. However, the training of modern Chinese medicine does not focus on these areas and the students find difficulty on studying ancient books in depth. · In this project, workshops and experience sharing sessions will be held by postgraduate students to teach the undergraduate students how to collate and translate the ancient Chinese medical books. · A database and other learning resources will be made to display the knowledge and techniques of acupuncture recorded in ancient medical texts. · We expect to improve the undergraduates' ability of studying ancient medical texts and postgraduate students will also be benefited from the in-depth involvement in teaching and guiding.
3.	Engaging Postgraduate and Undergraduate Students to Collaboratively Develop Micro-modules to Support the Special Learning Needs of the Post-Pandemic Era Chemistry Freshmen on Practical Chemistry Training	The COVID-19 pandemic finally stabilized worldwide in early 2023, and most teaching activities returned to normal face-to-face mode in the second semester of 2022-23. However, the challenges in science teaching encountered during the pandemic period are far from being alleviated. The online teaching methods adopted in secondary schools hardly provide adequate laboratory training for students, which is an indispensable part of chemical education. We anticipate that most undergraduate students that are admitted in these few years had received minimal previous training on laboratory skills. Inexperienced novice students are prone to make mistakes in the laboratory, and the risks of having avoidable accidents would be increased. Among the teaching resources available online, it is hard to find videos that highlight the common mistakes that inexperienced students commonly make, which are effective for reminding students not to make mistakes again. The CUHK Chemistry Department boasts a strong team of over 100 professionally trained postgraduate students who are highly skilled in conducting laboratory work. The aim of this project is to develop a series of micro-modules that address the special learning needs of post-pandemic era freshmen regarding practical chemistry training. Experienced postgraduates will take a leading role in the project, and be actively involved in designing and preparing the standard demonstration micro-modules. Mistakes commonly made by undergraduates will be identified and included in the micro-modules as reminders. The teaching effectiveness of the micro-modules will be evaluated by introducing the micro-modules into the 2^nd year undergraduate laboratory courses. This project would also serve as a model of providing opportunities for postgraduates to acquire valuable experience of designing and supervising a teaching development project.
4.	Interactive Notebooks for Undergraduates: Developed by Postgraduate Students	· This project aims to enhance the learning experience of physics students by using JupyterHub, an eLearning platform hosting interactive notebooks embed with codes such as Python. · Postgraduate students will play a vital role in the project, contributing to the production of video tutorials and the development of interactive notebooks. They will gain valuable teaching and development experience during this process. · The project promotes equality and diversity by not restricting the hardware and operating systems of students' computing devices. · The project eliminates the need for software setup on students' computers, which was a big obstacle for entry-level programming. · The use of interactive coding with immediate feedback will help students to better understand challenging concepts. · The project aligns with the university's strategy of introducing computer skills to students. The project will expose Python to students in many more courses throughout their undergraduate study rather than only once in the ENGG1003 Digital Literacy and Computational Thinking course. · The interactive notebooks will break down complicated tasks into small steps and immediately provide feedback, promoting self-learning and computational thinking among students. · Overall, this project seeks to improve the eLearning experience for undergraduate students while providing postgraduate students with valuable teaching and development opportunities.
5.	Adopting Experiential Approach for Parent/Public Education on Understanding Autistic Children	1. The program aims to prepare pre-service teachers (current students in education faculty to deliver a 4-week course to parents with autistic children. Not only does it help equip potential teachers more practical skills and teaching experiences, but also helps parents understand how to get along with their autistic children. By providing opportunities for student to gain practical experience and develop their skills, the program also helps contribute to the development of a new generation of professionals who are knowledgeable and sensitive to the needs of autistic individuals. Furthermore, parents will develop more empathy and understanding on how to handle autistic children’s challenging behaviors. 2. A few qualified students from education faculty with strong interest in contributing to the autism community will receive training to design four classes, each of which lasts for around 45 minutes and adopts an experiential and interactive approach for parent education. We adopt a small group size approach with each group class catering to 2-3 participants to facilitate interactions. 3. A total of 20 parents will be recruited, learning more about autism by stepping into their shoes with the help of appropriates tools and program contents. In the course, we create an environment so that participants can experience what autistic people feel. 4. The program content is developed by professionals with expertise in autism research, education, and advocacy. The micro-modules and workshops are designed to be engaging, interactive, and accessible. Practical information about autism and strategies for supporting autistic individuals will also be provided.
6.	Engaging Students in Teaching and Learning Activities in Sports Biomechanics Courses: STEM Concept-Blended Approach	Engaging youth in STEM education is crucial to prepare them for the future. Sports provide an excellent context to attract individuals who are less inclined towards STEM subjects. Students taking sports biomechanics courses at different levels (SPED2610, SPED4640, SSPA6205, and SSPA6206) are predominantly (pre-service) PE teachers and sports coaches, and they usually lack training in both formal and informal STEM education. Meanwhile, these students often face challenges centering on understanding physics and mathematics concepts. Therefore, a STEM concept-blended approach with the following components is proposed in the context of sports biomechanics: - E-learning micro-modules for pre-study and revision - Portable and easy-to-use Dartfish system for movement analyses - STEM teaching tools constructed by simple materials - Alternative assessment mode based on STEM-based micro-teaching/teaching tool development Expected outcomes of the proposed project include - Enhancing undergraduate (Ug) and taught postgraduate (TPg) students in learning activities through an improved sense of competency, relatedness and autonomy - Better understanding in biomechanics concepts compared to traditional biomechanics instructions - Better equipped students for STEM/sports science teaching and scientific coaching in future career paths - Dissemination of pedagogical experience to STEM/sports science/education courses instructors and/or teaching assistants (research postgraduate (PhD, MPhil) students, RPg) in the University - Sustaining the impacts of the project through outreach activities as an extension
7.	A Novel 3D Visual Teaching Modality in Exploration of the Myocardium for Undergraduate Biomedical Students	Background: The topographic and internal anatomy of the heart (myocardium) is complicated. Yet, cardiovascular biology is crucial, especially for biomedical students who will be learning about the heart at some point during their studies. Students frequently struggle when the myocardium is introduced in conventional 2D format as it is difficult to envisage the spatial relationship between the 4 chambers of the myocardium. In this regard, a 3D teaching modality is imperative to enhance the students’ learning experience in cardiovascular biology and ensure a more comprehensive learning of the myocardium. Method: 3D images, videos, augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) images will be created by a 3D camera to investigate the structural detail of the porcine myocardium during lectures for BSc Biomedical Sciences students at CUHK. Objectives: (i) Enhancing students’ understanding and appreciation of the 3D multidirectional overview of the myocardial structure compared to conventional 2D images. (ii) Engaging students in active and students-centered learning via production of 3D images and video. Impact of the study: The application of this novel 3D teaching model will enhance students’ understanding of the heart and cardiovascular biology while improving long-term knowledge retention. The incorporation of modern technology in biomedical science will pique the students’ interest, allow for increased participation in class and group activity, thereby improving critical analysis, creativity and active learning.
8.	Design Thinking for Prototyping, Automation, and Sustainable Material Use	Design thinking methods are critical for architecture students as they provide a framework for human-centered and iterative problem-solving. This approach encourages students to empathize with the users of their designs, define the problem, ideate potential solutions, create prototypes, and test their ideas in real-world settings. By adopting an iterative approach toward full-scale prototyping of built projects, architecture students can gain invaluable experience developing sustainable designs that consider the most efficient use of materials. The use of computational tools and robotics has become an integral part of the design process in architecture and industry. The ability to use these tools effectively is no longer optional for a career in the field. It is important for architecture students to receive training in digital design and fabrication tools as part of their education, framed through the creation of prototypes, as part of an iterative design thinking approach. This training considers hybrid methods of traditional (analog), contemporary (computational), and future systems (AI-assisted) development processes – exploring their unique challenges, limits, and opportunities to contribute to design processes. The importance of prototyping with advanced tools to architecture students cannot be overstated in the context of STEAM-based higher education in Hong Kong. Using these tools has become an integral part of the design process, and students must be equipped with the skills and knowledge necessary to utilize them effectively. This project considers design thinking and STEAM-based methods as essentials for architecture students as they provide a framework for developing sustainable and efficient designs. It adopts a peer learning pedagogy that promotes collaboration, mutual support, and knowledge sharing among students, which can enhance their academic and personal growth. Postgraduate students teaching other students is a valuable way to build a research community with a shared interest in problem-solving and using computational tools for design exploration. By working with experienced postgraduate students, students can learn from their peers and see how these tools can be used in their work. Students will be exposed to teaching and learning exercises that help them understand automation tools such as multi-axis robotic arms, sensors, motors, microcontrollers, computer systems, CNC fabrication devices, rapid prototyping systems, and the computer languages necessary to drive them as part of an architectural design project. Alongside hands-on experiences, students can be better prepared for the challenges they will face in the workforce and ultimately contribute to the advancement of their careers, industry, and the community. Additionally, we will promote the sustainable use of materials critical for architecture as it can reduce the negative impact of buildings on the environment, conserve resources, and promote long-term economic and social viability – aided by novel technology adoption. It will serve to educate students in design methods that are aesthetically pleasing and environmentally responsible.