UMagazine_07

INTERVIEW 專 訪 余小明:每分每秒都是教育的時機 就分工而言,課堂內的學習主要由各院系的任 課老師負責,課堂外的學習則主要由學生事務 老師統領。國外把「學生事務工作者」稱作「學 生事務教育工作者」。余小明博士認為這觀念 很合理,他自己也常對身邊同事說:「每分每 秒都是教育的時機,所以我們組識學生活動要 有教育目的,與學生每次的交流都有教育意 義。學生事務首先是支持教學第一線,要為教 學第一線服務;第二是要開展自己的課堂外教 學,幫助學生拓展課外活動能力。」 上任澳大僅三個多月的余博士,發現澳大學 生事務工作具有許多優點:「澳大不少學生 都有兼職工作,各人對之評價不一。我認為 這是學生了解社會、增加工作經驗、體現自 我價值的好機會。澳大學生事務部的同事年 輕、有活力,肯幹,實幹,辦了不少出色的活 動。如最近我們增設『與教授茶聚』項目(tea with professors),讓學生近距離與老師對話; 『學長扶助計劃』是另一個比較成功的項目,已 經辦了10年了。參與學生可以提高自信,增進 人際關係,建立正面積極的態度,學會有效地 互相扶持,在校園內建立起一份關懷的氣氛。」 學生事務在大學應擔任甚麼角色?余博士概括 指出,學生事務部主要負責處理三方面的關 係:一、學校與學生的關係,幫助建立一種 互動機制,建設同心同德、和諧的校園文化; 二、學生與學生的關係,推動互助、互信、活 潑的學生風氣;三、幫助或代表學校制定有關 條例和處理個別案例,也就是學生管理。 余博士強調,在學生管理方面,要貫徹「懲前 毖後、教育為本」的原則。在他最近處理的一 個學生案例裡,當事學 生一直被視為「麻煩分 子」,多次與學生事務部 同事發生爭執。余博士 後來與該學生坐下來詳 談,了解爭執起因,客 觀梳理學生的情緒。談 話後,該學生認識到自 己性格衝動,更主動發 道歉信予余博士。 余博 士強調,處理學生個案 時,要避免遞給學生一 封處理意見信就完事的 做法,「我們要清楚大學 Peter Yu: Every moment is a teachable moment In terms of division of work, classroom education is mainly the responsibility of academic staff from various faculties, and education outside the classroom is mainly led by student affairs colleagues. In the West, student affairs professionals are referred to as “student affairs educators”, which Dr. Yu thinks is very reasonable. He often says to his co-workers: “Every moment is a teachable moment, that’s why we must turn every student activity and every interaction with students into a chance for education. Our !rst job is to assist teaching, and our second job is to carry out our own teaching outside the classroom to help students develop extracurricular skills.” Only three months into his new job at UM, Dr. Yu has already noticed many good things about student affairs work at UM. “Many UM students have parttime jobs. Different people have different opinions about that. But personally I think it’s a good opportunity for students to learn more about society, to increase work experience, and to realise their individual value,” comments Dr. Yu. “SAO colleagues are young, energetic, down-to-earth and willing to work hard. They have organised many great activities, such as the recent Tea with Professors, which aimed to help bring teachers and students closer. The Peer Support Programme is another successful example. It has been going on for ten years now. This programme boosts students’ self-con!dence, improves their interpersonal skills, helps them to cultivate a positive attitude, teaches them to support each other, and creates a caring atmosphere on campus.” When asked what kind of role student affairs work should play in a university, Dr. Yu pointed out that SAO is mainly responsible for handling three kinds of relationships. The !rst is the relationship between the university and the students, in which SAO helps to establish an interaction mechanism and to create a concerted, harmonious campus culture. The second kind is the relationship between students, in which SAO helps to promote mutual support and trust. The third is establishing rules and regulations and handling individual cases on behalf of the university – management of students, in other words. Dr. Yu stresses that management of students should follow the principle of “learning from past lessons to avoid future mistakes with the aim of educating”. He cites a recent case of a student who was considered a “troublemaker” and who has had many unpleasant exchanges with SAO colleagues. Dr. Yu sat the student down for a long talk to understand the cause, and he objectively walked the student through his feelings. After the talk, the student realised the excitable and impulsive side of his personality, and sent a letter of apology to Dr. Yu. Dr. Yu stresses that when handling student cases, one should refrain from just handing a letter notifying the student concerned of the disciplinary 學生通過「與教授茶聚」與老師近距離交流 Students speak with teachers face to face through “Tea with Professors” 20 umagazine | issue 07

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