Beyond the classroom: FLASS leaders gather to chart what comes next

Stepping back from the day-to-day teaching, learning, and research routine, FLASS holds an annual management retreat to discuss strategic goals, reflect on lessons learnt, and identify capability gaps. This academic year, a one-day retreat was held on 5 February 2026, where over forty academic staff, including Associate and Assistant Deans, Department Heads, Chair Professors, and programme leaders, gathered to share insights and contribute their perspectives.

Rapid developments in big data and generative AI are influencing almost every aspect of higher education, reshaping universities’ curriculum design, learning and assessment, research and knowledge-transfer endeavours, and much else besides. In light of this tide of change, Professor Li Wai-keung, Dean of FLASS, reminded attendees in his opening speech that higher education in Hong Kong has evolved significantly since he took up the deanship in 2019, and that these changes will continue to affect all higher education institutions in the years to come.

“There is no choice but to embrace these transformations. Today’s retreat is both relevant and vital, as we will discuss how our faculty can meet these challenges. As always, the strength of our Faculty depends on its departments, and the strength of each department relies on its members. Your insights today will be crucial in shaping the future direction of our Faculty. Together, we can rise to these challenges and, through our collective efforts, elevate our Faculty to new heights in teaching, research, knowledge transfer, and service to both our local community and the global stage,” said Professor Li.

Following the Dean’s address, Dr Chan Man-ho, Associate Dean (Undergraduate Studies and Student Learning), gave an update on FLASS’ efforts to prepare students for the Language Graduation Requirement (LGR) and on ways to enhance the application of AI in learning and teaching. Dr Tan Weiqiang, Associate Dean (Quality Assurance and Enhancement) (QA&E), and Dr Dennis Hui Lai-hang, Assistant Dean (QA&E), then delivered the next presentation. Their talk addressed how to achieve the learning goals of disciplinary studies, also known as non-BEd major goals, for students enrolled in double-degree (DD) programmes.

EdUHK introduced a series of DD programmes in the 2025/26 academic year. These programmes enable students to obtain two separate academic degrees simultaneously upon completing a single programme. Whilst the BEd component equips students with education-related knowledge, the non-BEd disciplinary component provides subject knowledge in the chosen field. Both components meet the requirements of an undergraduate programme. Dr Tan and Dr Hui also addressed how to integrate AI within the contexts of learning, teaching, and the research-teaching nexus.

Dr Bob Sun Fenghua, Assistant Dean (International Engagement) (IE), and Dr Anthony Suen Chun-kit, Assistant Dean (Research and Postgraduate Studies) (R&PS), opened the afternoon session with an overview of the proposed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for FLASS’ internationalisation initiatives. The four KPIs cover research output and quality, research clusters and infrastructure, international partnerships and joint projects, and institutional collaboration and ecosystem.

Professor Daniel Chow Hung-kay, Associate Dean (R&PS) and Dr Anthony Suen then discussed lessons learnt from the submission process for the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2026. Professor Chow proposed a number of measures for improving future RAEs, including a clear definition and confirmation of Unit of Assessment (UoA) alignment, greater empowerment of UoA Coordinators, the establishment of a long-term research strategy, and earlier, proactive identification of impact cases for each UoA.

In the final presentation of the day, Professor Stephen Chiu Wing-kai, Associate Dean (IE), offered a summary of the Faculty’s diversifying and growing non-local enrolment, highlighting the current situation and the challenges ahead. He also shared details of various initiatives to encourage FLASS students to participate in exchange programmes lasting more than four weeks. Before closing his presentation, he gave an account of the internationalisation efforts made by the Faculty and its four departments over the past academic year.

In both the morning and afternoon sessions, participating faculty members were divided into four groups to discuss and exchange ideas after each presentation. Members shared their valuable experiences and provided feedback on the presentations. The Faculty Office will summarise the key findings from the retreat and follow up with the Associate Deans and Department Heads to review and action the items identified.

"The annual retreat is instrumental in collecting front-line experiences, building us as a team, setting priorities, and reaching agreement on long‑term goals. The Management Retreat 2026 is a step in the Faculty’s continuous quest for a better tomorrow. As a cohesive team sharing a common goal, FLASS will succeed, despite the challenging circumstances that have recently emerged,” said Professor Li.