o me, teaching is all about being an “alchemist”. Historically, an alchemist is a person with the magical power of transmuting a common substance into one of great value. In the context of my educational philosophy, an alchemist is a teacher who has the ability to transform a student into an excellent learner. I see the pathway to becoming an “alchemist” as centering around nine principles: • Active interaction • Listening • Care • High-quality teaching • Eagerness to take challenges • Motivate students to work harder and develop their skills • Inspire students • Sharing • Technology As these principles show, to achieve excellence as an educator and serve as a catalyst for unlocking the potential for achievement and excellence in students, I regard it as pivotal not only to help students develop intellectually, but also as people capable of managing diverse situations and challenges in their lives. That is why my focus for this column is “Care”, a core element of building a relationship and mutual trust between an instructor and students, yet an aspect too o en overlooked as an ingredient for accomplishment. “When students drop by my o ce, I always try to stop what I am currently engaged with to listen and help solve issues” What does “care” entail? For each student I meet, I try my best to understand their needs – academic or non-academic – to see whether I could help. This o en involves listening wholeheartedly, also one of my “alchemist” principles, to whatever they wish to share. Despite an extremely busy schedule, when students drop by my o ce, I always try to stop what I am currently engaged with to listen and help solve issues that are troubling them. I also regularly arrange meetings to nd out any di culties that students may be encountering with courses and workload. Feedback I have received during my years at HKUST shows that students really appreciate and bene t from such empathy and attention. One wrote: “In many ways, I regard Prof. Raymond as not just an advisor but also a mentor and a good friend.” Another stated: “Prof. Raymond is a friend, a role model, and most importantly a father gure who motivates me to work harder.” As such, I see that along with well-designed assignments, creativity, and academic exploration to stretch students’ minds and generate top results, educators must also pay much more attention to students’ feelings, stresses, and the hurdles they face. With care from professors integrated into the drive for outstanding research outputs and well-developed programs that o en appears to dominate many universities, especially in Asia, we could shape our higher education to transform students more successfully into excellent learners, both academically and in their subsequent lives. The alchemy of care Prof. Raymond WONG is Associate Head (Education) in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering. He received the University-wide HKUST Michael G. Gale Medal for Distinguished Teaching 2020, Common Core Teaching Excellence Award (Honorary Mention) 2016 and 2019, and School of Engineering Teaching Excellence Appreciation Award 2015-16 and 2019-20. century engineers st T By Prof. Raymond Wong 25 IN FOCUS Faculty Column
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