Focus on ethics and critical thinking

The department of religion and philosophy at Baptist University offers a master of arts in liberal studies and ethics to prepare secondary school teachers to teach the new liberal studies curriculum.

Dr Jonathan Chan Keung-lap, a lecturer on the course and last year's programme director, says the course provides in-depth knowledge on the six modules in senior secondary schools' liberal studies syllabus, while retaining a strong focus on ethics and critical thinking.

The core topics in the new syllabus include ethical issues in personal development and interpersonal relationships; values and socio-cultural issues in Hong Kong today; and traditional values and moral challenges in modern China.

'Liberal studies is still fairly new to the curriculum and there is a need to have a formal course to prepare teachers of this subject in senior secondary schools,' Chan says.

The programme will spend more time clarifying concepts, analysing multiple interpretive perspectives, assessing arguments, identification of the conflicting values and demonstrating methods of resolving these conflicts.

'It leads students to see and think of liberal studies from a higher level,' Chan says. 'They are trained to think independently so that they are able to help their senior secondary students extend their knowledge and apply evaluations appropriate to their own changing personal and social circumstances. The understanding of themselves, their society, their nation and the world will be enhanced.'