Enhancing Whole Personal Development Through

Student-Centered Co-curricular Activities

Alice Ming-lin CHONG Associate Professor,

Maria HO Year-2 Social Work Student

Kin Hang YIM Research Assistant

Department of Applied Social Studies City University of Hong Kong

Presentation Outline

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Higher education in Hong Kong is faced with high graduation rate but low motivation in learning, which is contrary to what happens in the West.

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To enhance undergraduates’ ownership in learning and their whole-person development, the Department of Applied Social Studies (SS) utilizes its own resources to launch a student-centred, non-credit bearing co-curricular program, called

since 2008.

3 Project Officers are hired to plan and implement the project, together with 1 Research Assistant to carry out the project evaluation.

Target all SS undergraduates (studying Social Work, Psychology and Applied Sociology), serving more than 400 students every year.

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aims to foster growth and development in students (particularly year-1) in 4 areas:

• … focuses on 3 main objectives:

1) To establish a network of support with peers, mentors, alumni and teachers

2) To forester better first year transition 3) To facilitate learning enhancement

• so that they may become …

– Lifelong learners – Community contributors – Competitive future job candidates

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Community-Awareness

Projects

Interpersonal

Academic/Professional

Learning Communities

Student Advising

Academic/ Professional (E.g.,

Writing, Presentation) Skills & Competencies

Social, Interpersonal, Public-Relations,

Leadership, Teamwork, Problem-Solving Skills &

Competencies

Study, Time Management, Stress Management, Self-Awareness Skills &

Competencies

Effective Job Candidate

Community Contributor

Lifelong Learner

Areas of Development Co-curricular Activities & Training Outcomes/Skills Learned

Skill - Training

Workshops

Personal

Peer Network Scheme

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• In 2011-12, Project X implemented six main types of co-curricular activities, namely:

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To foster social support, open exchange and

self-reflection

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• Each learning community of 15-20 students (grouped by major) meets weekly or biweekly to foster

among each other and

.

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1. A platform to share our own survival skills and learn from each other – Making use of resources in the university, e.g.

workshops in Student Development Services, language resources provided by English Language Centre

– How to manage the time effectively with the new schedule and ways to balance our study and other tasks (part-time job, ECA, leisure)

– Learning strategies and skills 2. Information exchange and clarification of uncertainties

from mentors and teachers

• Built up the supportive network (substantial and emotional) with others

• Improved adjustment in university life within short period of time

• Learnt some good learning habits and attitudes from mentors

• To provide students with interactive learning opportunities to acquire competencies in ,

, and through small group discussion, sharing and role-play.

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1. A kind of interactive learning opportunities for us to increase our self-awareness through small group discussion, sharing and role play in the workshops.

• Become less panic about “complicated” APA format and had a deeper understanding of how to write a quality research paper in Psychology

• Sharpened my presentation and communication skills which are usually neglected by many psychology and university students

• Well prepared in writing and presentations

To connect academic learning with community issues

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• Community-awareness projects encourage students to the

andto the small voices and

conditions of such communities.

• E.g. Symposium on 3-3-4 Education Reform , Social Inclusion with Circle Painting, Photo Exhibition on Gender Issues etc.

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Equal Opportunity Project

• Students from different cohorts and majors worked together with Hong Kong Stewards (NGO)

• Aimed to enhance the social awareness of equal opportunity in work

Equal Opportunity Project

• Different stages: 1. Learned about concepts of equal

opportunity, situation in the Hong Kong community, and solid skills about designing and creating videos

2. Created the videos and prepared a drama about anti-discrimination and equal opportunity with a group of ex-mentally ill patients (creating the scripts and rehearsing together)

3. Held a multimedia variety show and invited general public to join

Equal Opportunity Project

• Some concrete skills of playback and video-making useful for my own professional development

• Deeper exploration of the issue of discrimination

in the society and have strengthened awareness • First-hand experience of getting in touch with the

ex-mentally ill patients have better acceptance and understanding towards them

• Explored and examined the concept of Mate Selection and speed dating among males and females in Hong Kong

– Stage 1 : Target Group ( University Students)

– Stage2 : Literature review and research method (Qualitative and Quantitative )

– Stage 3: Interview from RTHK DJ

– Stage 4: Analysis of results and presentation

• Carried out in year-1, my first experience of doing large scale research in my undergraduate study

• Realized my own limitation in conducting research

• Redefined my view on Mate Selection of teenagers in Hong Kong

• Integrated knowledge from Applied Psychology in daily life

To understand students’ needs and coach students on goal-setting through individual and/or group consultation

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• All first-year students are encouraged to meet up with Project X staff twice a year to discuss on academic studies and whole-personal development.

• Academic concern: formulating study goals and developing study plans, making decision on selection of major and minor, application of scholarships, etc.

• Whole-personal development: application for exchange programmes and internship, joining a committee, etc.

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1. Many times felt strayed and uncertain during these 2 years, lack of confidence towards my own decision needed advice and new perspectives

2. Talk with the project officers personally or in a small group

• Gained insights about academic and personal issues – Academic: learning resources, applying scholarship,

learning attitude, practicum learning – Personal issues: career plan, exchange programme,

interpersonal relationship with classmates

• Formed a cohesive network among classmates

To build-up the network among the department, staff, students and alumni

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• A series of intensive training programs (e.g. training camps for freshmen, and leadership training courses) are provided to build-up connection and cohesion among students, mentors, alumni and teachers.

• Aim: To provide an opportunity and platform for the teachers and alumni to connect with students in a relatively informal way

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1. Leadership training

2. Departmental orientation training camp for freshmen

3. Undergraduate and graduate mentoring scheme

• Improved self-understanding and had personal breakthrough, learnt and practiced some concrete skills on leadership and programme planning

• Built up a supportive network with people of different cohorts and majors, serving other students through implementing the training camp for freshmen later

• Developed self-confidence and communication skills

1. Undergraduate and graduate mentoring scheme

2. Leadership training

3. Organized 1st ever Psychology Training Camp for freshmen

4. Alumni-sharing with psychology mentees and other undergraduate students

• Deeply understood the true meaning of ”薪火相傳” (Passing on good old tradition to next generation)

• Established a close relationship among teachers, alumni and mentees

• Increased the sense of belongingness to SS and the University

• Learnt to be good mentor and alumnus

6. Career Development

To enhance students’ readiness into their professions and to provide a platform for students to have better workplace transition

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6. Career Development

• Alumni Sharing Sessions were organized for

students to formulate their career goals and build up a supportive network with alumni for further guidance

• Student-initiated Training Workshops were designed to equip the students with relevant job hunting skills and work-transferrable skills, e.g. Writing CVs, Interviewing Skills

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1. Sharing with Alumni from different industries

2. Training on interview and CV writing Skills from Project X Staffs and alumni

3. Seeking advise from Project X staff

• Clarified misunderstanding on industries for

psychology graduates (Only Clinical/Counselling/Educational Psychologist?)

• Built up career path and identified career goals

• “Choose what I like to do and like what I choose to do”

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To investigate the of Project X’s activities in achieving the project’s intended learning outcomes, both quantitative and qualitative measures were conducted.

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Participating in Project-X activities were found to bring about

on various aspects of students’

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From Roy's Largest Root ANOVA test, Workshop has a significant main effect on CGPAs, which suggests that higher participation in workshops was associated with a higher CGPA scores in year 1 and year 3 of university studies.

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