教學、關懷、成長專訪 中文系劉燕萍教授 Teaching, caring and growth an interview with Prof Lau Yin-ping of Department of Chinese劉燕萍教授曾三度獲頒大學優異教學獎並曾取得優秀教學證書獎，成為嶺大首位榮獲教學終身成就獎的教員。她認為，向學生傳授學問之際，更應着重對品格和精神的裁培，實踐以生命影響生命的博雅精神。教學育人的抱負自 1994 年加入嶺大 ( 前嶺南學院) 至今，劉燕萍教授曾任文學院院長及協理副校長(學生事務)，但最享受的始終是教學。她回憶當初加入嶺大，是緣於對教育的熱誠和對青年人的關懷。早年移居加拿大，曾從事其他工作，然而清楚感到教育才是真正的抱負。劉教授對當時有不少香港學生輕生深感痛惜，觸動了投身教育的使命感。1993 年回流香港後，即在香港大學攻讀博士課程，並在機緣下加入嶺南，廿二年來心繫嶺大學生。方法與心靈並重劉教授的課程包括中國古典文學史、古典小說、神話與文學、元曲等。她在課堂上談笑風生，與學生互動交流，以方法教學與心靈教學引導學生思考。劉教授時刻思考改進課堂設計，從教學用的電腦簡報、讀本、論文，到講課的眼神、聲線和語速，都準備得一絲不苟。劉教授認為只有啟迪學習興趣，授課時既解惑又製造疑惑，鼓勵學生多方思考問題，成為自己的老師，才是長遠有效的教學。只側重於方法教學容易令學生與文本割裂，視作品為應付考核的材料，之後便拋諸腦後。惟有以心靈教學誘導學生用心閱讀，與作者心心相印，才能有效掌握理性分析的知識，將前人的智慧融入生命實踐中。In her career at Lingnan, Prof Grace Lau Yin-ping has received a Certificate of Merit for Teaching and the Teaching Excellence Award no less than three times. She is also the first recipient of the Master Teacher Award at Lingnan. According to Prof Lau, when imparting knowledge to students, it is important to cultivate their character and moral values, with a view to practicing the liberal arts ethos of “inspiring lives with lives“.Aspiring to teach and nurtureSince joining Lingnan University (formerly Lingnan College) in 1994, Prof Lau has served as Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Associate Vice President (Student Affairs), but what she enjoys most is teaching.Prof Lau emigrated to Canada at a young age and had worked in other fields before realising that her true aspiration is in education. She recalled that she joined Lingnan primarily because of her passion for teaching and concern for young people. She was deeply saddened at the time to see numerous cases of Hong Kong students committing suicide, which triggered her sense of mission to take up teaching. When she returned to Hong Kong in 1993, she immediately enrolled in a doctoral programme at The University of Hong Kong. She joined Lingnan by chance, and teaching and nurturing Lingnan students have since been the focus of her attention for the past 22 years.Dual implementation of pedagogy and soul cultivation in teachingProf Lau has taught courses in history of Chinese classical literature, classical fiction, mythology and literature, and Yuanqu. She teaches with wit and humour in class, interacting with students and employing the dual concept of “pedagogy teaching“ and “soul cultivation“ to inspire their learning. Prof Lau is conscientious and meticulous in preparing for her class design, from powerpoint files, careful choice of textbooks and essays, to nonverbal skills including eye contact, voice projection and pace of delivery.Prof Lau believes that effective teaching would motivate and inspire students to learn. The classroom is the arena for teachers to enlighten and challenge students intellectually. Students should be encouraged to exercise their critical thinking and become their own teachers. If we focus too much on pedagogical approach, students would be alienated from the real meaning and value of the text and merely consider it as material for assessment purposes that would be quickly forgotten afterwards. The complementing approach of soul cultivation, however, induces students to read the text closely with deeper appreciation. Students would then be 劉教授 ( 前排左二 ) 及學生。 Prof Lau (front row, 2nd left) and her students.14TEACHING rather, this student has given Lingnanians an invaluable experience to witness how one could thrive in face of adversity. He completed his masters degree afterwards but encountered difficulties in finding employment. Prof Lau encouraged him to write down his thoughts and feelings for publication. After the publication of his book, he donated all his royalties to the Department of Chinese and set up a scholarship as a token of his gratitude to his alma mater. His accomplishments not only epitomized his efforts but also testify the importance of education to whole-person development and the liberal arts ethos of “inspiring lives with lives“.Naturally, not every student can deal with adversity with perseverance and an indefatigable spirit. Perhaps as a mother with teaching experience in secondary school, Prof Lau has a better understanding of the difficulties and anxiety students often face. She admitted that she could not look after every student but hoped that she could try her best to help those in need. Despite her heavy workload in teaching, research and administration, she is most willing to listen to the inner thoughts of her students and will take the initiative to reach out to them. This has brought her many sweet rewards and appreciation from students, such as postcards and knickknacks picked up during their travels. She taught the tale Liu Yi Chuan Shu in her classical fiction class. Once, a student sent her photos of the scenery and the statues of the protagonists Liu Yi and Dragon Princess during a tour of the Dongting Lake as supplementary materials for her c