UIC hosted the Second IT and E-learning Expo on 13 May, building on the success of the previous year’s event. The theme for this year’s expo was ‘Smart Campus in the Clouds’. The expo coincided with the opening ceremony of the 23rd International Conference on ISO and TQM (ICIT), which was also hosted by UIC from 13 May to 15 May.
IT and E-learning Expo
This year’s IT and e-Learning exhibition featured display booths from leading members of the technology industry and UIC academic units, displaying cutting edge hardware alongside innovative applications to improve the quality of life of society. This also engaged students in an immersive digital teaching and e-learning environment to equip them with necessary skills to become leaders in the 21st century.
The IT and e-Learning Expo attracted a lot of interest
UIC's Vice President, Prof Zhang Cong, gave the opening speech in which he re-affirmed UIC’s commitment to its students, saying “our first concern is improving the quality of learning through technology.” Prof Zhang also praised ITSC staff who organised the event, along with the exhibitors and co-organizers, emphasizing the important role that UIC’s industrial partners play “in turning UIC into a smart campus for our students and teachers.”
Prof Zhang Cong says UIC strives to improve the quality of learning through technology
The Chairman of ICIT, Prof Sam Ho, was then invited to give a speech about the expo. Prof Zhang was then invited back to give a souvenir to the co-organisers, Blackboard China, China Telecom Zhuhai Branch, China Unicom Zhuhai Branch of the expo.
Prof Zhang Cong, Associate Vice President Prof George Wei and the Director of ITSC, Ms Kelly Chan, were then invited for a group photo.
Prof Sam Ho talking about the conference
Prof Zhang with the co-organisers
The MCs were Year 4 students Gu Jielei and Weng Minghong
Highlights of the exhibition included demonstrations of next generation technologies. China Telecom displayed a self-driving car, which cruised around the exhibition floor, navigating through the crowd to let attendees enjoy the show.
China Mobile and China Unicom demonstrated new 5G technology and its present and potential applications at their booths. Other industrial partner exhibitors included: Transvision, Cisco, Dell, Toshiba, Hitachi, HIKVISION, China Telecom, TLR and DaHua Technology.
China Telecom displayed a self-driving car
Prof George Wei (m) and Director of WPEO Prof Guo Haipeng (l) take a huge interest in the exhibition
UIC also flexed its digital muscles with five e-Learning booths operated by UIC staff members. Division of Humanities and Social Science (DHSS) professor and Director of ELLS, Dr Edith Yan; DHSS Assistant Professor Dr Benjamin Barber and CFL Korean language Lecturer Ms Sophia Hye-Young Jee, shared their work on enhancing e-Learning Education with Interactive Software, particularly the Articulate software authoring platform funded by a grant from the UIC Research Committee.
Dr Barber explained that “By using this interactive software, students were able to reinforce the lessons learned in class by engaging a flexible online learning environment.'”
Dr Yan and Dr Barber explaining enhancing e-Learning Education with Interactive Software
Senior Manager of the Academy of Continuing Education (ACE) Dr Kim Man Lui showcased his self-developed VocBooster language acquisition training platform. ITSC’s IT Support Officer Mr Edward Martin and ITSC’s foreign intern, Mr Mohamad Hamdan demonstrated applications of UIC’s lecture capture platform, Panopto, to visitors.
Lots of innovated gadets and devices were on display at the exhibition
The Second UIC IT and e-Learning Expo demonstrated the College’s ongoing commitment to partnering with local and national technology industry leaders and integrating e-Learning into its pedagogical approach to best serving UIC’s growing student body.
UIC’s IT and e-Learning exhibitions are important forums for building bridges between academia and industry leaders. Everyone who came to the event did as Prof Zhang urged this year’s attendees to do while kicking off the event, “have fun while you learn what technology can do for you!”
International Conference on ISO and TQM
Academics from Australia, Spain, Libya, Malaysia, Singapore, the UK, the USA, Zambia and China attended the 23rd ICIT. In total, 35 papers were presented. The objectives of this conference is to consider the impact of ISO implementation on TQM as well as to provide a forum for the identification of contemporary developed in the theories and practices of TQM, and for the sharing of experience.
Ms Kelly Chan presents her paper about system designs for liberal arts universities in China
President and CEO of Alfred Douglas Associate Prof Doug Hensler talking about how jobs could be in danger
UIC faculty members General Education Office (GEO) Assistant Professor, Dr Wong Wei Chin, Senior Lecturer and Coordinator of CFLC Dr Arum Kim as well as DHSS Professor and Chief Student Affairs Officer Prof Johnston Wong were three of the six individuals awarded with the best papers at the conference.
Prof Doug Hensler (left) and Prof Sam Ho (right) present award to Dr Wong Wei Chin (second from left) and her student for best paper
Dr Wong Wei Chin’s paper was titled ‘The Study of Southeast Asian Languages in China: Provincial Location and the Uni. Teaching Goals’. Dr Arum Kim’s presentation was about the ‘Influence of Flipped Classroom Model on Korean Language Learner’s Achievement – Focused on Beginner Level’. Prof Johnston Wong garnered a lot of interest with his paper ‘Sleep Deprivation and Use of Electronic Devices: an exploratory study’.
Other winners included General Manager - Greater China at Hong Kong 5-S Association, Dr Anthony Chan for his paper ‘TQ Rehabilitation Development in Private Sector in PRC’ and Project Director at Kerjaya Prospek, Mr K.T. Leung, who presented about ‘TQM in Construction through 5-S Practice: A Malaysian Case Study’.
Associate Professor at the Department of Systems Engineering and Engineering Management at City University of Hong Kong, Dr Hongyi Sun, also won best paper at the conference for his paper ‘The paradoxical impact of national culture on quality and innovation: implications for changing thinking gears along the process model’.
Group photo of participants and organisers of the ICIT conference
The conferenced ended with some closing words from Ms Kelly Chan and Dr Sam Ho, who congratulated the winners and thanked everyone involved.
Reporters: Edward Martin (ITSC), Samuel Burgess (MPRO)
Photographers: Aria Wu (MPRO), Serena Wang, Ryan Windsor (ELC)
Editors: Deen He, Marissa Furney (MPRO)
