Week One - Jeff

How best would you describe how your organization learns?

Taking into consideration the five principles developed by Senge et al., the organization I am working for is categorized into an educational institution that has started its role as a learning organization for its people. Upon the transformation of the institution from an education institution that provides mainly non-accredited diploma courses to a sub-degree education institution that gained formal programme validation recognition by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ), the institution has been taken its active role in making changes to people it serves including teaching staff, students and administrative staff.

1. Personal Mastery

In response to the changing approach in teaching and learning for a tertiary education, my organization has utilized grant bidden through Education Bureau over the past few years to organize various Outcome-based Teaching and Learning (OBTL) Seminars and Workshops to share professional advice from Scholars with the teachers.  Teachers who participate in these seminars and workshops  learn the core values of OBTL and take up opportunities for self-reflection during the whole process. The responsible project manager for OBTL will gather all feedbacks received from the participants and discuss with Senior Management for deciding on the upcoming teaching enhancement activities. The ultimate goal, after all, is to ensure everyone in the institution is aware of the latest OBTL which in turns improve pedagogical measures.

2.  Mental Models

Despite all the efforts paid by the College to attempt at changing one's mindsets, it is unfortunately that Mental Models have long been developed since the establishment of the organization several decades ago. The change of the educational role of the organization is not equal to a change of one's mental models. To many people, change is not a good thing to them because allocation of extra resources for supporting the change is usually limited. In most cases, it is the existing people who 'swallow' everything within time limits. Besides, no instant measurable benefits are guaranteed upon change and nobody wants to bear the consequences of failure. Unless visible benefits are expected from everyone, or supporters for change will be in low number.

3. Shared Vision

The organization has made it clear to its people that in response to the 3+3+4 curriculum reform where there will only be one exit examination for the high school students in Hong Kong, the number of students intakes will be less than before. To sustain its future development, its role in sub-degree education institution should be further enhanced to survive. This fact is known by everyone. However, people of the organization share the same vision with doubts as there are many issues remain unsolved at this moment due to the uncertain future and situations. For example, the proper orientation for the organization - how the organization should be developed to attract the highest number of students in future? Whether students are attracted to the approach designed by the organization in future?

4. Team learning

Team learning within teaching departments is effective as there are regular programme committee and staff-student consultative meetings for discussion within the departments.However, inter-departments especially among different administrative departments are pessimistic. Administrative departments seem to work independently without adequate collaboration. This should be improved because administrative works have direct relationship with teaching departments and interrelationship with each other.

5. Systems thinking

As mentioned above, there seems to be a lack of systems thinking in the organization as works are sometimes too independently done. Sometimes, problems and goals are only set by a certain small group of people without made known to all. Communication problem occur when the small group does not choose to ask for feedbacks from all but try to solve everything by themselves.


References:
About HKCAAVQ. 2008. Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualification.
http://www.hkcaa.edu.hk/en/about_us.asp

Outcomes-Based Approaches to Student Learning. 2009. CETL, the University of Hong Kong.
http://www.cetl.hku.hk/outcomes-based-approaches-student-learning