Dr Sin Kuen-fung

Inclusive education advocate made Distinguished Teacher
Dr Sin Kuen-fung of the Department of Educational Psychology Counselling and Learning Needs has been in special education for more than 20 years and his helpfulness and sensitivity to social change have impressed both students and peers. They nominated him for the Institute's Distinguished Teacher Award in 2001-02 and he was the winning candidate in a rigorous selection process.

During his teaching career, Dr Sin has worked diligently to promote inclusive education, citing the Confucian maxim to "be indiscriminate in teaching, and teach according to individual needs". He has strived to keep his skills fresh, taking courses in counselling, psychology, special education and information technology before completing his PhD. He has also produced some wise words of his own for teachers:

"One needs the qualities of five great persons to become a distinguished teacher: the wisdom of King Solomon to analyse an issue thoroughly and to take appropriate action; the knowledge of Einstein, knowledge of academic subjects and beyond, to communicate with students on the same platform; the judgement of Freud to get to students' self-image and needs; Florence Nightingale's spirit of sacrifice and the gaze of Mona Lisa to follow students closely and give them all-round attention."