Please click HERE to view the video of “Message from Professor John Lee Chi-Kin” 

Dear Colleagues, Students and Alumni,

Today, I am truly honoured to take up the presidency of The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) – a university that has inherited a rich legacy from its predecessors, while exemplifying a vibrant spirit of innovation. Carrying forward its century-old excellence in local teacher education, EdUHK is poised to soar towards a bright future.

I wish to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt gratitude to Council Chairman Dr David Wong Yau-kar, Members of the Council, former Council Chairmen and Members, and past Presidents, in particular, Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung and Professor Stephen Cheung Yan-leung, with whom I had the privilege to work closely. They have helped lay a solid foundation, which enables us to embark on innovative ventures and seek continuous enhancements.

My career in teacher education began as a frontline lecturer at one of the former colleges of education, and my passion for teacher education has grown even stronger over the years. I am convinced that EdUHK plays an indispensable and leading role in nurturing generations of educators and professionals for the school sector and the community. With the largest critical mass of educational expertise in Hong Kong and enhanced academic standing in related disciplines, I have every confidence that EdUHK is well placed to make an even greater contribution to society, locally, nationally, and globally.

Having joined the then HKIEd as Vice President (Academic) in 2010, I have had ample opportunities to work with many colleagues, and interact with even more students and alumni through teaching, academic and institutional events and activities. Such encounters have been most fulfilling, giving me much satisfaction and impetus to forge ahead. In my new and extended role, I shall endeavour to further reach out and work with you, taking teacher education and other education-related areas to the next level. Our initial plans to promote educational technology, programme diversity, teacher ethics and values education will form part of our next six-year strategy, when the current Strategic Plan ends in 2025.

To support the University’s continuous growth, there are a host of new initiatives under consideration, in the pipeline or already in place. Among them is the most recent establishment of two new Academies, namely the Academy for Educational Development and Innovation, and the Academy for Applied Policy Studies and Education Futures. The move is to better synergise interdisciplinary expertise across centres. They will serve as hubs of excellence in the diverse areas of special and vocational education, life, and teacher education, applied policy studies, national security and legal education, and AI and the metaverse education, as well as Chinese language education and intangible cultural heritage.

In view of the continuous advances in technology, we will need innovation to drive societal progress. Additional resources will be invested to further strengthen the science and technology disciplines, with special emphasis on the use of generative artificial intelligence-enabled tools in the educational context. EdUHK will strive to stay on top of global trends and contemplate how best to make use of evolving technology ethically and effectively. To this end, we have formulated an exploratory “6-Ps” pedagogical approach to refine and create new forms of self-regulated learning, while upholding academic integrity. In the new academic year, we will see more of its applications, reflections, reviews, and enhancements, as well as research on AI and AI in education.

Another major initiative is a curriculum review of our teacher-education programmes. A working group has been formed to undertake the review with the objective of enriching the related curriculum and co-curricular activities. Our students will benefit from a wide range of new programmes and activities. Priority will be given to strengthening our residential hall-life education and whole-person student learning, coupled with the development of the national identity and an entrepreneurial spirit of EdUHK students, at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. 

As a publicly funded university, EdUHK will spare no effort to seize the enormous opportunities on our doorstep in the Greater Bay Area, which offers great potential for joint research, training programmes and career prospects for graduates. Within this context, various possibilities have been explored and we expect active engagement with potential partners will progressively bear fruit, and it is hoped that we will be able to announce concrete plans before long. Our recent signing of a memorandum of understanding with Qufu Normal University to set up a joint ‘Teacher Ethics Centre’ is the first of the many collaborative projects we seek to make. 

The 2023/24 academic year will be an exciting and joyous year for the University as we celebrate our 30th anniversary, when we will connect and reconnect with our stakeholders and showcase our achievements. This will also be a golden opportunity to highlight our rich educational heritage, which can be traced back to 1881, when the first government normal school was established.

We are all part of the EdUHK family. I sincerely look forward to your active participation in and support for our anniversary activities, and to meeting and greeting you in person in these events and occasions.

With best wishes for a very fruitful and healthy 2023/24 ahead.

Yours sincerely,

Professor John Lee Chi-Kin

President

1 September 2023