Professional insight from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

With 85 years of proud tradition and ranking among the world’s top 100 institutions, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) aspires to be a leading university with world-class research and education. PolyU is a home for educating thinkers, discoverers, innovators and communicators in delivering positive impact.

PolyU campus

A mechanical robot hand writes on a notepad

A tool for teaching argumentative writing to EFL students

Even students with a solid grasp of English can find it hard to construct coherent arguments in their academic writing. A six-week training course centred around an AI-powered corpus platform could help, writes Liu Kanglong

Liu Kanglong

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

An illustration of a figure balancing on a tightrope

The balancing act involved in teaching a class of mixed-ability students

Have you faced a situation where half of your class are subject-matter experts, and the other half are absolute beginners? Find practical strategies for bringing novices up to speed while keeping experts motivated

Lolita Edralin

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

An illustration of international research collaborations

Juggling competing priorities in research collaborations

Bringing together cross-disciplinary research teams, government and industry on a single project will need strategic management from the beginning. Here’s how

Xiao-Lin Zhao, Chien-Ming Wang

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Students gather around a table to work together

Creating empathetic graduates requires us to go beyond exams

Drawing on self-determination theory and using immersion technology can help educators shape civic-minded, people-focused students. Find out how

Angel Lai

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A student uses her phone while studying

The case for the omnichannel AI assistant

A virtual assistant can make learning seamless, ubiquitous and scalable while addressing common faculty concerns regarding AI integration. Here’s how

Wai Chi Rodney Chu, Charles Woo

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A physiotherapist moves a patient's leg

Help students make the leap from classroom to clinic

How to bridge the gap between classroom-based practical learning and the realities of clinical practice for physiotherapy students? Here’s how to prepare students for unpredictability

Shirley Ngai, David Yu, Raymond Tsang, Nerita Chan

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Students work together over a laptop

Learning by doing in a GenAI-enabled world

The best way for students to learn is by doing. But now GenAI is a non-negotiable in university teaching, what does that mean? Renia Lopez-Ozieblo explores

Renia Lopez-Ozieblo

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Hands work on a clay pot

Let’s teach students to see the fingerprints

Does humanities education still have value when machines can generate art at the touch of a button? Yes, if we reframe our thinking, writes Renia Lopez-Ozieblo

Renia Lopez-Ozieblo

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Red velvet seats at an opera house

How Carmen and the humanities can embed the skills GenAI can’t

A cultural programme centred on the opera Carmen lit a flame of engagement in students. Here’s how the humanities reach parts of the human psyche that GenAI could never touch

Renia Lopez-Ozieblo

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Academics discuss ideas in a meeting

Weave interdisciplinarity into the identity of your humanities department

Create flexibility within department structures to allow interdisciplinary work and collaboration to flourish. Here’s how

Hang Xing

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Students work together over a laptop

Tips for embedding flipped learning at an institutional level

The benefits of flipped learning are clear, but what about scaling it up across an entire university structure? Here are some strategies – and lessons learned

Julia Chen, Wong Chi-ming, Laura Zhou

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Students raise their hands in a lecture hall

Make interdisciplinary research accessible to everyone

Short courses can give members of the public insight into cutting-edge interdisciplinary research, focusing on issues related to their daily lives. Here’s how to put them into place

Qingyan Chen

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A student presenting in front of class

How to get your students writing stellar social policy analysis reports

Policy analysis equips social work students with the skills to critically assess, influence, and advocate for equitable policies. Read how to demystify the process

Adrian Man-Ho Lam, Mathew Wong Yee Hang

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

An illustration of various employees tapping into AI

A four-part framework to categorise AI tools for research

How to use AI tools to assist in research, for each phase of the process

Eric Tsui

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

An illustration of a heart passing from one hand to another

Four ways to balance service and learning

Community-engaged pedagogies such as service learning are widely practised in universities, but how to achieve a lasting impact on both students and communities? Here are four strategies to do so

Grace Ngai, Rina Camus

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A laptop screen shows a cursor hovering above copy and paste options

Copy, paste, learn: lessons from code programmers for the AI-enhanced classroom

Copying and pasting can be a powerful learning tool, whether it involves mindless copying or mindful reuse. Here’s how to use it without compromising academic integrity

Xiangen Hu

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Hands type on a laptop with "AI" on the screen

Let’s look at AI as a reasoning partner, not a shortcut

The latest reasoning AI models, such as DeepSeek, offer an opportunity for universities to strengthen critical thinking in the next generation of workers

Xiangen Hu

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

An illustration of a university

How to reimagine an existing subject

Immersive technology and student co-creation allowed educators to revamp a general education course. Here’s how they did it

Kai Pan Mark, Wai Chi Rodney Chu

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A robot holds a paint-splattered easel

Harness the power of AI to preserve endangered art forms

Researchers breathed new life into Cantonese porcelain painting techniques using AI, equipping a new generation with traditional skills. Here’s how they did it

Henry Duh

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A metal toy robot looks into the distance

The two key steps to promoting responsible use of LLMs

Large language models offer opportunities for higher education, but also present challenges. Here is how to balance both

Xiangen Hu

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

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Campus Talks: University success stories in managing AI and building digital capacity

Find out how two universities, in Hong Kong and the UK, are embracing generative AI and building institution-wide digital expertise

Julia Chen, Helen Cocks

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, The University of Exeter

A young woman presents on a screen as someone takes notes

Flip students’ presentations for more in-depth learning

Ask students to record presentations ahead of class, in order to free up time for in-depth questions, discussion and feedback when together in person, and enable fairer assessment

Eric Tsui

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A woman shakes hand with a unseen person in an office setting

Innovative career services for a well-prepared workforce

How can universities enhance their student career support in response to the rapidly evolving employment landscape? Kelvin Cheng recommends three approaches to prepare students for better careers

Kelvin Cheng

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

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Campus webinar: Recruit, develop and retain the best staff in higher education

Join three experts from Campus+ institutions in the UK, Europe and Asia as they discuss best practices for universities for identifying, hiring and developing the best people

H. C. Man, Inês Crisóstomo , Helen Ashley

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, University of Luxembourg, The University of Manchester

Two people discuss diagrams laid out on a table

Maximise your research impact through interdisciplinary collaboration

What’s the best way to achieve research impact? Qingyan Chen makes the case for an interdisciplinary approach

Qingyan Chen

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Wooden blocks are linked together with an AI block in the centre

The three questions that will define the future of higher education

Generative AI is here to stay – how can higher education respond? Julia Chen poses three fundamental questions to explore a strategic vision for the sector

Julia Chen

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A bird's eye view of a table with reports and laptops

Researchers need support to change the world – here’s how to provide it

To generate world-changing research, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s Research and Innovation Office took on the role of fostering collaboration and allocation of resources to allow their academics to focus completely on their work. Lixin Situ outlines how to provide support.

Lixin Situ

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Two people gesture in front of a board covered in post-its

The dos and don’ts of getting started with service learning

Service learning can have many benefits for students, teachers and the wider community, but starting out can be intimidating. Grace Ngai offers one don’t and three dos to begin your journey

Grace Ngai

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A young scientist uses a laptop and mobile phone in the lab

Science communication tips for university marketing teams

When research reaches a broader audience, it improves the society we live in and inspires the next generation of scientists. Iris Lai offers her advice on engaging the public with your institution's work

Iris Lai

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A illustration of four robots beating a human in a hurdles race

Go head-to-head with ChatGPT to enhance your students’ personal learning

Pitting yourself against artificial intelligence can enhance your students’ motivation and critical thinking. Eric Tsui shows how

Eric Tsui

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Civic education is crucial for today's students

How to improve civic education through service learning

Civic education is essential, writes Grace Ngai, so how can universities teach it effectively?

Grace Ngai

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Lightbulb learning to learn

Learning to learn: developing students into effective lifelong learners

Kevinia Cheung outlines an institutional approach to developing undergraduates’ ability to ‘learn to learn’

Kevinia Cheung

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Students in group

The benefits of leveraging student interest groups

Kelly Lam shares how universities can work with student interest groups to add value to the university and aid student development

Kelly Lam

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Asian students learning

Four directions for assessment redesign in the age of generative AI

The rise of generative AI has led universities to rethink how learning is quantified. Julia Chen offers four options for assessment redesign that can be applied across disciplines

Julia Chen

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Global classroom in action with student

An introduction to the global classroom: benefits, challenges and value added

Eric Tsui explains how to intensify internationalisation-at-home efforts, bringing many benefits to students and institutions alike, such as the sharing of transcultural knowledge

Eric Tsui

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Research team at university

A model for maximising the impact of small research units

Qingyan Chen explains how adopting a quasi-centralised management approach can help stimulate large-scale research

Qingyan Chen

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Diverse team of scientists in a competition

How supervisors can use research competitions to inspire lifetime learning

While some may think that entering student science competitions is all about the gold medals, the long-term nature of such projects is perfect fodder for learning meaningful skills

Zheng Pai

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Research competitions and university sutdents

Tactics for leading and engaging students in research competitions

Research competitions can motivate, encourage and inspire students, but we must align their expectations and encourage teamwork throughout the project

Zheng Pai

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

An example of how co-creation of curriculum content with students can work

Co-creation of curricula with students: a case study

Eric Tsui outlines a method he uses to enhance student learning through the co-creation of new scenarios for curriculum development in their discipline

Eric Tsui

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University