Small Steps Toward an Ethos of Partnership in a Hong Kong University: Lessons from a Focus Group on “Homework”

Abstract

HISTORY: ESTABLISHING A PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM AT LINGNAN UNIVERSITY As a teacher at Lingnan University new to Hong Kong's classroom culture, I sought insight into the learning environment and feedback on the effectiveness of my delivery of material to non-native English speakers beyond end-of-term evaluations. To serve these needs, also shared by other instructors in this context, and in support of Lingnan's mission as a global, liberal arts institution, I created the Student Consultant Program as a collaboration with the Teaching and Learning Initiative at Ursinus College. Until it was able to develop its own identity and role, implementation of the Lingnan program relied heavily on Ursinus' Student Consultant Program. Since 2014, however, Lingnan's program has grown into a small but sustainable and successful program (Pounder, Ho, & Groves, 2015). In the context of semester-long student-faculty pedagogical partnerships, trained Student Consultants provide faculty across disciplines with feedback from the perspective of students not enrolled in their courses through regular classroom observations, dialogue, and critical reflection. 1 As the faculty coordinator of the program, I organize partnerships, maintain records and evaluations, and mentor the small cohort of seven Student Consultants. As part of my research, I also catalog the unique characteristics and challenges that emerge from the Student Consultant Program's equally unique context as a teaching and learning resource in a liberal arts university, which is performing its mission in a heavily politicized, postcolonial environment. Students invited to join the program are usually the most curious about how they are taught, have high GPAs, and demonstrate excellent communication skills in English and in Cantonese. I hoped that the dialogue resulting from partnerships could not only support teachers in this context but also help students articulate their experience of Hong Kong's recent educational reforms. 2 Stepping Out: Seeking to Expand Partnership at Lingnan University In this historical context, and with the goal of further developing the Student Consultant Program, the Lingnan team (two Student Consultants and I) participated in the " Change Institute " at the McMaster University Summer Institute on Students as Partners held in 2017. As part of our discussion of sustainability, we explored how we could extend the dialogue