OBA

1
OBA A Report and Some Views
Tsing Nam Kiu ??? Faculty of Science The
University of Hong Kong 2009 May 27
2
Overview

• OBA in HKU Faculty of Science progress report
• My personal views on OBA
• Summary and some suggestions

3
HKU BSc Programme (6901)

• Some distinctive features
• Single admission
• Students freely choose from 15 Science Majors
• 2nd Major and Minors options in Science and
  non-Science disciplines
• Common science experience
• Experiential Learning requirement
• Comprehensive advising system

4
BSc Actuarial Science Programme (6729)

• Specialist training in actuarial science
• Prepare students for professional examinations

5
HKU Educational Aims

• The Six Educational Aims of HKU (new 4-year
  curriculum)
• To enable students to develop capabilities in
  critical intellectual inquiry and life-long
  learning
• To enable students to develop capabilities in
  tackling novel situations and ill-defined
  problems
• To enable students to develop capabilities in
  critical self-reflection and greater
  understanding of others
• To enable students to develop capabilities in
  intercultural communication, multi-cultural
  understanding and global citizenship
• To enable students to develop capabilities in
  collaboration and communication
• To enable students to develop capabilities in
  leadership and advocacy for the improvement of
  the human condition

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Faculty Objectives

• To foster students interest and curiosity in
  science and to enable students to develop
  understanding of basic scientific principles and
  methods, and reasoning, fundamental knowledge in
  mathematics and the physical, chemical,
  biological and earth sciences, and understand the
  interconnectivity among the sciences and other
  disciplines, and be able to apply scientific
  processes and knowledge in a wide variety of
  careers and professions.
• To provide a robust learning experience in at
  least one science discipline and enable them to
  acquire an understanding of the
  interrelationships among science disciplines.
• To develop students ability to effectively
  communicate within and across the science
  disciplines, work effectively in a team, analyze
  scientific aspects of complex issues, and adapt
  their learning and knowledge to new situations
  including the real world work environment.
• To increase students awareness and understanding
  of moral and ethical issues within the sciences
  and related disciplines, and appreciation of
  different cultures and customs.

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Alignment of Institutional and Faculty Objectives
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Learning Outcomes of Individual Majors (Physics
as an example)

• Objectives The Major in Physics is aimed to
  provide students a solid foundation on the
  subject. It covers a wide range of core courses
  which form the blocks of fundamental knowledge to
  learn specialization, e.g., quantum mechanics,
  statistical mechanics, classical mechanics and
  electrodynamics. A large selection of elective
  courses is provided for students to pursue a wide
  range of topics from the very small scale (i.e.
  subatomic particles) to the large scale (i.e.
  cosmology). Students would attain professional
  knowledge in physics, research experience and the
  training of analytical thinking and quantitative
  reasoning during their studies. Graduates are
  expected to have acquired the broad training
  which can equip them well for further studies in
  multiple science and technology disciplines and
  for work in their specialized area.

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Learning Outcomes of Individual Majors (Physics
as an example)

• Students should be able to identify and describe
  physical systems with their professional
  knowledge. (By means of coursework and tutorial
  classes in the curriculum)
• Students should have developed their scientific
  intuition, abilities and techniques to tackle
  problems either theoretical or experimental in
  nature. (By means of coursework, tutorial classes
  and laboratory works in the curriculum)
• Students should be able to analyze problems
  qualitatively and quantitatively. (By means of
  coursework, tutorial classes and research-based
  projects in the curriculum)
• Students should be able to communicate and
  collaborate with people effectively in scientific
  issues. (By means of group projects, tutorial
  sessions and presentation opportunities in the
  curriculum)
• Students should be able to apply scientific and
  quantitative methods in tackling problems in
  research or real-word setting. (By means of
  projects, directed studies, local and foreign
  internships attached to universities, research
  centers, government bodies, NGOs and influential
  companies.)

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Present State Scheduled Plan

• Faculty fully supports OBA
• Most colleagues understand OBA rationale
• All new teachers have OBA training through
  workshops organized by the University
• 2010 Develop course-level learning outcomes for
  all courses

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Disclaimer

• From this point onwards the presentation is about
  my own views on OBA
• These views do not necessarily represent the
  views of other colleagues
• They are certainly not the stand of my Faculty or
  HKU

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OBA
Learning Outcomes
Learning Activities
Assessment
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Merits/Characteristics of OBA

• student-centered
• well-defined, assessable objectives/outcomes
• closed-loop system efficient and effective
• uniformity for students all students will
  achieve same outcomes
• uniformity for teachers different teachers can
  still deliver same set of outcomes
• serve as contract between students and teachers
• suit well for skill-based education

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Limitations of OBA

• difficult to accommodate intangible,
  hard-to-assess, non-immediate objectives
• Some merits are exactly shortcomings
• closed-loop system closed system
• uniformity for students set meal for all
• uniformity for teachers individuality not
  encouraged
• can be abused

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Abused OBA an Example
A Slimming Programme Programme outcomes to
reduce 6-10 lbs, 12-20 inches within 14 days.
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Abused OBA Slimming Programme Example
Well-defined, Assessable Outcomes
Activities
Assessment

• The programme has well-defined and assessable
  outcomes (to reduce 6-10 lb and 12-20 inches
  within 14 days)
• All activities (diet, medication, exercise, life
  style) work towards these outcomes
• At the end of programme assessment is made to
  check outcomes
• But even when outcomes are achieved (reduced 6-10
  lb and 12-20 inches) nothing is sure whether
• lost weight will rebound afterwards or not
• the slimming procedure is sustainable or not
• the process is harmful to the body and health of
  the client or not

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Some Quotes on Education

• "Education is what survives when what has been
  learned has been forgotten." - B.F. Skinner
  (Psychologist, 1904-1990)

• Education is what remains after one has
  forgotten everything he learned in school -
  Albert Einstein

• Education is what is left after all that has
  been learned is forgotten James Brian Conant
  (President of Harvard University from 1933 to
  1953)

• To these great scholars, great scientists, and
  great educators, the spirit of education does not
  lie in OBA!

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and from a Local Educator

• ?????????????????,???????????????????????????????
  ,?????????????? -???(????????),?????,????,?????
  ,2007.
• It is exactly because the learning outcomes of
  every lesson cannot be pre-determined that
  teaching can become an open journey that is full
  of pleasant surprises. Perhaps it is these
  unprepared pleasant surprises that motivate me to
  teach for thirty two years without feeling
  weary.
• - Dr. Choi Po-King (Faculty of Education,
  CUHK), excerpt from I am stupid, but I teach,
  stepforward multimedia, 2007.

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Suggestions

• Understand its merits and limitations when using
  OBA
• Allow multiple Teaching Learning approaches
• Look beyond OBA