What motivated a Singaporean girl with two degrees earned in the United States and 7-year work experience in Singapore to come to Hong Kong and start an academic odyssey in the EdUHK? Vivien Tang, a student of the Master of Public Policy and Management (MPPM) program, has a lot to say.
Vivien Tang, student of Master of Public Policy and Management (MPPM)[/caption] Born and raised up in Singapore, Vivien owns an enviable CV. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University at Buffalo and obtained her first master’s degree at Canisius College, a renowned liberal arts college in the US. Later on, she returned to Singapore and began her career. Encouraged by her family, Vivien was determined to step out of her comfort zone, and eventually decided to return to campus after seven years of social work services and professional research. She chose the Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) to embark on a fascinating journey in the world of public policy here at the Department of Asian and Policy Studies (APS).
Vivien Tang, a studious, ambitious, but down-to-earth Singaporean girl, delightedly shares her study path at the EdUHK.
Tell us more about your academic background
After I received my first master’s degree at Canisius College, I returned to my hometown-- Singapore. During the master’s study, my career plan was to become a teacher, but then I gradually discovered my deep interest in research. Back to Singapore, I worked for two years in a university devoted to serving children with special needs. After that, I worked in a research center for one year. In this soul-searching period, I gradually developed my future goals. I have worked in the Fei Yue Community Services, a noted social work institution in Singapore, for more than two years. I was engaged in research on community services and social work. The recipients of our services ranged from children to the elderly. I have benefited tremendously from my job at Fei Yue. My supervisor took great care of me and provided me with generous opportunities for professional development. The two years of research experience have sharpened my insight and cultivated my spirit of being down to earth. Always looking forward to new challenges, I was eager to explore the vast ocean of knowledge. Encouraged by my family, I eventually went ahead and started my second master’s adventure in Hong Kong.
Why brought you to the MPPM Program at EdUHK?
When I was planning for my second master study, the first consideration was distance! As an ethnic Chinese, I’m very much a ‘family person’. I have a 98-year old grandfather and I lost much family time when studying in the US. The short distance between Hong Kong and Singapore, along with the excellent academic environment here, made Hong Kong the obvious choice. My professional life has given me a strong desire to do meaningful things for the betterment of the society. The field of social policy has inspired me enormously. By chance, I participated in a workshop at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. The speaker was Dr Alex He Jingwei, the Associate Head of the APS Department. After the conference, Dr He shared with me his doctoral experience at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore, and he warmly invited me to apply for the MPPM program at EdUHK. Dr He’s encouragement strengthened my determination to embark on a study at here.
Your impression of EdUHK
“How to make this place a better place” is the motto that always inspires me. The MPPM program at EdUHK offers exactly what I was longing for. The study here has strengthened my academic training in policy analysis, organizational behavior analysis, public sector management and development, and so forth, and has also cultivated my practical ability in public policy and management. The APS Department has a strong faculty. More importantly, professors are willing to nurture the future talents by providing them with best research opportunities without any reservation. Dr He, my supervisor, invited me to join his research project funded by the World Health Organization’s Asia Pacific Observatory on Health Systems and Policies. He offered me lots of opportunities and suggestions on my own research. Two of our research papers are currently under review in leading SSCI journals. He is a great source of inspiration and mentorship in my study journey. When he knew that I had plans to pursue a PhD degree, Dr He enthusiastically shared his own academic experience with me, offering many helpful suggestions, which built up my confidence and allowed me to try and explore the unknown. Dr Isabella Ng Fung-sheung, another Associate Head of the APS Department, is sister-like professor. We have a very close relationship and often hang out together. She makes me and other international students feel at home in Hong Kong, so we never feel alone under the foreign sky. As the founder of the Hong Kong Society for Asylum-Seekers and Refugees, Dr Ng devotes herself to the noble enterprise of social charity services. She often invites students to join volunteer services to help disadvantaged groups in the city. I volunteered in the distribution of relief supplies to the underprivileged people during the difficult time of Covid-19. Dr Lina Vyas, the Program Leader of MPPM, is a helpful and caring professor. I will discuss with Lina when I get any questions about the program.
Share with us your life at EdUHK
The academic atmosphere of EdUHK is exceptional. Coming from very diverse backgrounds, my classmates share many interesting stories about their hometown. In the spare time before the pandemic, we often explored Hong Kong cuisine together and enjoyed the countryside. The classroom atmosphere of APS is particularly harmonious. When courses cover the case of Singapore, I was often invited as guest speaker. This made me very proud.
The Covid-19 pandemic has forced universities in Hong Kong to switch teaching to the online mode. Thanks to the sufficient resources that EdUHK has deployed, online teaching has not adversely affected us. The fantastic location of EdUHK makes it a paradise in Hong Kong. At the time of the ever-changing pandemic, looking at the lush greenery outside the window, my mood gradually turns good.
我们非常荣幸地在此宣布，亚洲及政策研究学系的胡志强教授与数学与信息科技学系的苏赐福博士合作研发的项目＂个人成绩在线评估系统（ OASIS）＂荣获了2020年IIIC国际创新发明竞赛中的金奖。
个人成绩在线评估系统（ OASIS）是一种针对团队项目而设计的评估方法，意在事前遏止搭便车行为（Free-riding: 指却乘其他组员之便，不负责任的人），并在事后若发现存在这种行为时惩处搭便车者。OASIS已在美国，香港，中国内地和印度的9所大学中，对28名教师以及1,800名学生进行实施。并且成果显著，发现OASIS能通过其合约承諾和表现计分制来鼓励学生参与团队项目，并检测是否存在搭便车行为。其次，OASIS使用同侪审查能公平地评估团队成员的个人贡献。另外，OASIS对用户友好，对各方持份者都有好处，不论是学生，老师还是大学管理层。基于当前用户的积极反馈，胡教授和他的团队预计在下一学年中使用OASIS的人将与日俱增，将有4所大学的1,000名学生从中受益。此外，新签约的商业用户（Goabroad Limited）表明OASIS在高等教育机构以的外的适用性，突显了这教学发展补助金项目（TDG）的知识也能转移到商界应用。
IIIC是大中华地区著名的创新活动，每年吸引来自亚洲，美国和欧洲国家的400多项创新发明。 结果展示了胡教授在技术整合中以创新性和适用性来丰富教育体验，而亚洲及政策研究学系也期待OASIS能够成为具有全球影响力的同侪评估方法。
Some 40 million people have been infected by the Covid-19 pandemic worldwide so far, resulting in over 1.1 million deaths. Apart from creating a severe public health crisis, the pandemic has also caused serious social and economic disruptions. Government capacity and leadership in crisis management is under major test in different countries and territories, and performance varies. Where does Hong Kong stand compared to others? Have government strategies, policy priorities and remedial measures been on the right track? What problems and deficiencies have been exposed? What lessons can be learned?
香港教育大学亚洲及政策研究学系本学年迎来第二位新成员──Stuti Rawat博士。Stuti于学系担任博士后研究员，未来将会开展其个人研究，并与其他学系成员一同就公众信任、网上教学及社会资本等议题合作进行研究。本学年，Stuti主要任教非营利机构战略管理、政策科学基础及公共管理等课程。同时，她亦会开设不同工作坊予硕士学生，教授学术写作及研究的知识及技巧。'
加入亚洲及政策研究学系前，Stuti今年于新加坡国立大学李光耀公共政策研究院获得公共政策博士学位。她的博士论文着重于研究公共政策及发展的交叉点，以量化方法研究政府农业投资的成因与绩效。她的博士论文荣获2018年新加坡春金集团可持续发展最佳论文奖(Musim Mas Sustainability Dissertation Award)，以表彰她在可持续发展领域的卓越研究。在新加坡国立大学攻读博士期间，Rawat博士积极参与各种研究竞赛，并取得优秀成绩。她获得了2017年新加坡国立大学案例竞赛大奖，并在NUS 3 Minutes Thesis Competition取得季军的好成绩。
Stuti曾于国际水管理研究所(International Water Management Institute)及The Abdul Latif Jameel贫穷行动实验室担任顾问及副研究员，这些工作经验促使她对于农业政策展开全面的研究。目睹农业在印度等中低收入国家发展中的重要地位，她认识到完善的公共政策对经济社会发展的关键作用。她的研究目标是为有效的政策制定提供证据，同时推进对政策制定过程及政策客体行为的理解。Stuti同时以此视角研究水资源、食物安全、气候变化、行为转变、自然灾害及公共行政等议题。
Stuti过去曾于多间机构担任兼职顾问，包括世界银行、尼泊尔山区综合发展国际中心(International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, ICIMOD)、The Vittorio Dan Segre Foundation (VDSF)等组织。最近亦于剑桥大学为东盟秘书处(ASEAN Secretariat)撰写东盟发展展望报告(ASEAN Development Outlook Report)。
Stuti表示十分喜爱群山环抱中翠绿的教大校园，她亦十分期待疫情后可以与同学面对面交流，带他们一同享受音乐和网球带来的欢乐时光。
Since 1997, the implementation of 'one country, two systems' has been subject to test in major controversies especially over national security and constitutional issues. Post-national security law, the optimists hope for the end of disorder and arrival of a 'second transition' while the pessimists worry about the erosion of the city's autonomy and freedom. Apart from growing tensions and fatigue between the 'two systems', Hong Kong's political future also faces new turbulence and uncertainty because of escalating US-China conflict. Can the 'two systems' framework still work in the changing circumstances where past assumptions no longer apply?
本学年香港教育大学亚洲及政策研究学系迎来两位新成员加入，分别是讲师关仲然先生(Tommy)及博士后研究员Stuti Rawat博士(Stuti)。稍早前，小编们为他们进行专访，让大家认识及了解他们的研究兴趣。本期先为大家介绍Tommy。
加入亚洲及政策研究学系前
Tommy于2015年在香港中文大学取得社会科学学士学位，其后到伦敦大学亚非学院继续攻读理学硕士；目前，他是伦敦大学亚非学院政治及国际关系学系博士候选人。他的研究兴趣主要是台湾及香港政治，由此延伸到抗争政治、政党政治、以及候选人选拔这几个范畴。他的研究兴趣基础从本科时期开始奠定。他认为，台湾政党作为大中华地区发展最为成熟的代表，不论在课堂上抑或研究中国政治的学者都会关注的重点议题之一，这亦是他作为一个 「香港人却在英国研究台湾」的主要原因之一。
Tommy的两个母校，香港中文大学和伦敦大学亚非学院又碰巧是出了名的左派作风学校，他也曾在出版书《孤独课》里谈及，在「左翼重镇亚非学院」里，学生都很喜欢参加抗议游行。文化环境势必会对人造成影响的，但带来的并非是激进的，而是批判的思维方式，很难说这不是一种正向的熏陶。无论在香港、台湾或是世界范围内，社会运动和政党斗争都是今年非常「大」或者说热门的话题，这也和他所研究的台湾政党与社会运动关系的博士论文汇合了。
Tommy曾任德国杜宾根大学及台湾中央研究院作访问学者，从香港到英国到德国再到台湾，最后回到香港，他说这是一段在不同且多元化学术氛围里不断成长的经历。研究生时期的Tommy与本科时期的Tommy有很大差别，就是更加投身于纯粹的学术了。他提到在英国学习蛮深刻的一件事是，亚非学院的台湾研究中心每个星期都固定会举办许多活动，不局限主题，邀请不同的客座教授来做不同的分享。他还说到，由于地方局限性，香港学生本身都没有很大的移动性（mobility），本科毕业离开香港以后，漂泊异地留学的这些年，他更能够熟习独立生活。
在教大里的未来计划
Tommy将会在新的学期里教授一年级的2门课程，并同步完成博士论文。
在而今疫情已经成为新常态的新学期，他对于不能和学生面对面授课感到遗憾，与此同时，在线教学也给他带来了挑战。但毋庸置疑的是，这并不会影响他以朋友的方式来和学生们相处。抛开学术上的指导，也能和学生们一起聊聊校园生活的趣事或者提供一些力所能及的帮助。对于APS，他和一年级的新生们一样是初来乍到，希望师生间能一起互相鼓励打气，尽快适应新环境。
当然，他对学生也有些期许：升入大学以后，一方面：除了上课，更要好好享受大学生活，珍惜短暂且珍贵的时间，勇于尝试不同的新鲜事物；另一方面：牢记作为学生的本职，不要放弃读书。