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To help staff and students gain a better understanding of its innovative new General Education Programme the University of Macau (UM) yesterday (26 March) launched a 5-day General Education Fair, the first of its kind in Macao. The general education programme has been designed to create a common core curriculum for all students to ensure that they all have an equal chance to develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes they will need to pursue more satisfying careers and live happier, healthier and more balanced lives. Director of the Tertiary Education Services Office of Macao SAR Sou Chio Fai, UM's University Council Chair Dr. Tse Chi Wai, UM Rector Wei Zhao, Director of UM's Centre for Teaching and Learning Enhancement (CTLE) Prof. Rik Carl D'Amato, Coordinator of Mentoring and Professional Development of CTLE Prof. Gertina Johanna Van Schalkwyk, along with other guests, officiated at the opening ceremony, and visited the newly-launched smart classrooms afterwards. The General Education Fair includes a general education competition, demonstrations on how to use the smart classrooms, exhibitions, booth games, workshops and lectures. UM Rector Wei Zhao said that in order to produce outstanding graduates with integrity, cross-disciplinary knowledge, critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and creativity, UM implements a "4-in-1" pedagogical model that consists of discipline-specific education, general education, research and internship education, and community and peer education (through residential colleges). He said UM hopes that through general education, students can enhance problem-solving ability and better deal with competition and various challenges in the future. Director of the Tertiary Education Services Office Sou Chio Fai said: "In the current fast-changing world, education does not and cannot mean the passing on of knowledge alone. What is relevant or useful today may not meet future demands. Students need the ability to keep pace with the changing environment and respond to trends in learning. Young people need to know multiple disciplines instead of one discipline. Thus, I'm really delighted to see that the University of Macau has been providing students with general education programme. They perfectly meet the current education concepts and trends for whole person development. It also meets the demand of the society which requires human capital with broad knowledge in different aspects." The smart classrooms are state-of-the-art teaching facilities and contain the latest technology for teaching and learning. All rooms are equipped with smart boards, which combine the power of a computer with the simplicity of a white board, as well as multiple projection screens which can display the same or different computer screens. Professors will be able to deliver interactive lessons to students using computer technology projected on large screens. The arrangement of the rooms and furniture further facilitate collaborative work by student groups. Tables and chairs are moveable and can be arranged in a variety of ways for groups of different sizes and interactive activities. The three rooms differ in arrangement and can be used for multiple purposes, including presentations, meetings, interactive teaching, and teaching demonstrations. UM's innovative new general education (GE) programme is modelled on the practice of some of the best universities in the world, such as Harvard University. UM is one of the first universities in East Asia to roll out such a comprehensive GE programme, which covers four areas, namely language and communication, science and information technology, society and culture, and self-development. The programme requires all students, whatever their major, to follow a common core curriculum. UM's GE programme attaches importance to developing students' ability to communicate in English and Portuguese, in response to society's demand for people with foreign language proficiency and cultural awareness. Courses in sports and arts are available to impart knowledge about histories and cultural inheritance in the East and the West, in order to facilitate students' self-development. Courses in natural sciences, health and social sciences not only impart logical reasoning skills as well as knowledge about information technology and society, but also, more importantly, train students' holistic thinking and help them to contemplate values, morality and the meaning of life.
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The 3rd E-Conference was held the other day by IFT Tourism Research Centre (ITRC) and Bournemouth University, UK (BU). Like Macao, the UK is facing a sudden burst of tourism growth, propelled by the coming 2012 summer Olympic games. But this and other factors have been contributing to several challenges that were appreciably similar to both destinations. Among these was an increasing polarization in the graduate workforce. The Hospitality, Leisure, Travel and Tourism sector in the UK is the third largest sector for workforce size. The introduction of tuition fee leads to increased expectations of professionalism of service delivery and standards and increased expectation of benefits of education. This was the idea behind Mr. Andrew Boer's presentation "The Polarization of the Graduate Workforce: Issues for the UK Hospitality Industry". His research reviewed some of the ways in which the higher education sector must change in order to accommodate these influences and which could result in a distinctly different style of hospitality higher education output within the next decade. Labor migration issues were also compared and discussed. Dr. Hania Janta from BU presented her research that migrant workers choose the tourism sector of employment more frequently than other low-paid sectors and this trend is likely to continue in the future. The majority of such workers are in lower paid and casual employment comprising of daily commuters and seasonal employees. Migrants' presence in this sector of employment contributes to the destination as it provides new skills, knowledge and innovation as well as a competitive advantage to many companies. On the other hand, segmentation of the labour market, perceptions and stereotyping, discrimination and underemployment makes the foreign-born workforce more vulnerable than the local one. Also, the need for migrant labours by tourism economies have many implications for destination branding, one of the examples is that people visiting Scotland are surprised to see non-Scottish people in the service industries. Speakers from IFT also highlighted similar challenges. Dr. Clara Lei of IFT focused labour shortage in Macao in which she discussed how the problem of staff turnover could be improved by employing strategic training and development programmes. She spoke on the differences between training and development programmes given by a multinational hotel and a local hotel in Macao, revealing that the multinational hotel, which had an intensive and strategic training and development programme, was able to control the turnover rate (38%) particularly within their middle-management level when compared with its local counterpart (60%). Drs. Frances Kong and Connie Loi from IFT presented a comprehensive portrait of the impact and effectiveness of supervised work experience (SWE) on the tourism and hospitality undergraduates, comparing and contrasting two different formats of SWE adopted at the Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT) in Macao. This is the third IFT-BU E-Conference, one of a series of collaborative activities between the two institutes. This year's theme was on the "Labour Issues in Tourism Economics". Previous themes were on Motorsports Research (2011) and on the Challenges of Rapid Tourism Growth (2010). Delegates and participants to the conference were welcomed by Dr. Fanny Vong, President of IFT and Richard Shipway, senior lecturer of School of Tourism, BU. The e-conference was moderated by Prof. Leonardo Dioko, the Director of ITRC on the IFT side and Mr. Andrew Boer from BU, who also gave the concluding remarks. There were about 30 staffs from IFT and BU, and 40 UK graduate students participated. The annual e-conference is jointly organized by IFT's ITRC and BU School of tourism. ITRC is a research and development unit of the IFT which serves as a management and public policy think-tank for the general public and as a knowledge provider for tourism and hospitality related research in Macao and the region. The School of Tourism at BU is a world-leader in tourism research and a leading provider of tourism management courses.
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The Communications Museum is going to hold Easter Special Activities from March 31 to April 8, 2012. Daily workshops that will be held at specified times during the promotion period. Family visitors are welcomed to join. Participants can make a bunny greeting card at the "Easter Funny Bunny" workshop (free of charge) which will be held at 11:30am and 3:30pm at the Postal/Philately Gallery on the 1st floor. On the Telecommunications Gallery on the 2nd floor, the "LED's Changing Looks" workshop, which charges MOP10.00 for a material pack, will be held at 11:00am and 4:00pm. Participants can make an LED light with a ping-pong ball and decorative materials. Please refer to the promotion leaflets for time and details of the workshops. Inquiry
Tel: +853 28718063; 28718570
Fax: +853 28718018 Email: info@macao.communications.museum
Website: http://macao.communications.museum
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, is to lead a delegation to Hainan Province on Sunday (1 April) for the opening ceremony of Boao Forum for Asia 2012, a statement by the Government Spokesperson Office said today. The annual conference of Boao Forum for Asia will be held on 1 to 3 April in Boao, Hainan, under the theme of "Asia in the Changing World: Moving toward Sound and Sustainable Development". During his visit, Mr Chui is scheduled to meet with leading officials of the Hainan administration. Mr Chui's delegation will include the Chief-of-Cabinet of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Tam Chon Weng, the Secretary-General of the Executive Council, Ms O Lam; and Advisors of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Fung Sio Weng and Mr Kou Chin Hung. The Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms Florinda Chan, will be Acting Chief Executive, while Mr Chui is away.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, had cordially congratulated Mr Leung Chun-ying for his successful election in the 2012 Chief Executive Election of the Hong Kong SAR of the People's Republic of China. A statement by the Government Spokesperson Office today quoted Mr Chui as having said that Hong Kong and Macao had maintained successful co-operations for a long time, in particular in projects such as building the Greater Pearl River Delta metropolis circle and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. He said he believed that the two administrations would continue to work together and move forward with their co-operation based on the current favourable foundation and build a better future for the people of Macao and Hong Kong.
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The Institute for Tourism Studies' Bachelor Degree Programme emphasises on the balance between theory and practice. Students are required to complete certain hours of practical tasks related to their majors every year. One of the tasks given to the Tourism Business Management students is to provide free guided tour to tourists and local residents. The activity, with the theme of "Tour around Macao with IFT Students", is organised by year two students of Tourism Business Management Degree Programme. With the assistance from the instructors, five different itineraries have been designed and each lasts about one hour and thirty minutes. This free guided tour service will be provided to all tourists and local residents on Saturday and Sunday, from 24 March – 21 April. The main objectives of the activity: I. It allows the students to put what they have learnt about tourism into practice. The whole project, from itinerary design to time control to the actual tour guiding, is planned by the students themselves with assistance from instructors. By coordinating the activity, their communication skills can also be enhanced. II. To promote Macao to the tourists by offering the free guiding service at the city centre and tourist attractions. Residents will also be made aware of the importance of tourism to Macao. The Institute for Tourism Studies is the only public higher education institution in Macao that cultivate talents for tourism and service industry. It endeavours to promote Macao through various activities and to leave a good impressionto everyone who visits the place.
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Consumer Council conducted its specific price survey on canned foods on 20th March, surveying retail prices of 11 canned food brand samples from 21 retail outlets .Obvious differences were observed this time in both price increase and decrease in canned foods, 8 surveyed samples recorded very different price changes with both significant price rise and drop: the highest price increase of 'Ma Ling Premium Ham Luncheon Meat (340g)' was 18.5% while the greatest price drop was 14.6%. 'Porthos Sardines in Olive Oil (125g)', which was stable in price in previous surveys, recorded a price increase of 3.3% to 17.3% in some retail outlets; 'Gu Long Spiced Pork Cubes (142g)' which had a price drop in last survey, recorded an obvious price rise this time. Consumers are advised to check with the data available on the Council's website as well as the "Supermarket Price Information Platform" iPhone app as prices of canned foods varied distinctly. Further, Consumer Council's newly published issue no.223 of Consumer Report features a detailed report of a test on extruded foods, pastries, and snacks co-tested by Guangdong Consumer Council and Macao Consumer Council. Other articles featured in this issue include how to choose cooking oil and an introduction of washing labels, etc., information of Consumers International's 2012 annual theme 'Our Money, Our Rights' is also included in this issue of Consumer Report. Consumer Report is now available free of charge at the office of Consumer Council (Rua Inácio Baptista, Nº 6-6A Edficio Seaview Garden R/C), and the service counter of Consumer Council at Macao SAR Government Service Centre (Rua Nova da Areia Preta, Nº52), Public Information Centre at Vicky Plaza and libraries. Consumers may also access the resources online at the Council's official website (http://www.consumer.gov.mo). For enquiries, please call 8988 9315.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that total visitor arrivals recorded a 1.5% year-on-year decrease to 2,130,977 in February 2012; same-day visitors (1,136,136) accounted for 53.3% of the total. The average length of stay of visitors decreased by 0.1 day year-on-year to 0.9 day, with that of overnight visitors and same-day visitors being 1.8 days and 0.2 day respectively. Analyzed by place of residence, visitors from Mainland China increased by 6.7% year-on-year to 1,285,266 (60.3% of the total), mostly from Guangdong Province (635,835), Fujian Province (67,880) and Shanghai (40,111). Mainland visitors travelling to Macao under the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS) totalled 514,095, down by 11.4% year-on-year. The average length of stay of Mainland visitors was 1.0 day, with that of overnight visitors at 2.0 days. Visitors from Hong Kong (520,144); and Taiwan, China (83,357) decreased by 20.9% and 3.4% respectively year-on-year. However, those from the Republic of Korea (45,441) and Japan (40,129) increased by 15.5% and 25.1% respectively; long haul visitors from the Americas (20,853), Europe (18,926) and Oceania (9,386) also recorded increase of 4.4%, 8.6% and 14.7% year-on-year. In the first two months of 2012, visitor arrivals increased by 8.3% year-on-year to 4,592,617. Visitors from Mainland China (2,780,143), the Republic of Korea (91,617) and Japan (71,798) increased by 14.7%, 12.5% and 5.2% respectively; in addition, visitors from Russia (+97.9%), the Philippines (+20.0%), India (+15.7%) and Australia (+13.2%) also registered noticeable increase year-on-year. Meanwhile, those from Hong Kong (1,158,176) and Taiwan, China (168,903) decreased by 2.4% and 5.3% respectively. Same-day visitors accounted for 54.6% of the total visitor arrivals, at 2,507,226.
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University staff responsible for student affairs need to fulfill a large amount of administrative work every day in addition to handling the various questions from students of different nationalities. As a result, they often cannot learn the latest knowledge about student affairs in a timely manner. In view of this, the University of Macau (UM) will organize an advanced certificate course in student affairs from 21 May to 1 June 2012. This course will be Asia's first comprehensive and systematic quality course in university student affairs in recent years. Education and student affairs experts from the U.S. with a solid grasp of theoretical knowledge and rich practical work experience will be the lecturers. They will use scientific teaching methods, apply advanced teaching philosophies, and approach from logically sound perspectives, to analyze the importance of student-affairs-related work, as well as ways to carry out the work in a scientific, innovative and artistic manner. In addition to imparting the newest ideas as well as rules and regulations concerning student-affairs-related work, they will also disclose to the students their unique secrets to achieving academic excellence. The course will cover the following issues: responsibilities and tasks of university student-affairs-related work (job requirements, skills and ethical standards); theories concerning students' growth paths; campus culture and attainment of academic excellence; up-close analysis of student-affairs-related work (basic skills and theory of education); design of quality activities (the role and organization of such activities); guidance on the management of residential colleges and student groups; and the formulation of development plans for residential college students. The course will be conducted in English, and is now open for application by interested parties from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Singapore and other Asian countries and regions, with a quota of between fifteen and twenty. Those with a master's degree (or equivalent degree) or above, good English proficiency, a strong sense of responsibility, and the wish to pursue a career in student affairs are welcome to apply (relevant work experience is preferred). Tuition fees will be waived, but the cost of transportation, meals, accommodation and teaching materials shall be borne by the students. For enquiries or more details, please visit the Website of UM's Faculty of Education http://www.umac.mo/fed/MSAI.html or call 83978777/83978788. Should you have any query, please feel free to contact Ms. Albee Lei at（853）8397 4325 or albeelei@umac.mo or visit UM webpage www.umac.mo.
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Owing to strike action taken by customs workers in Kuwait, Macao Post announced that mail delivery services (including Correspondence, Printed Matters, Small Packet, Parcel and EMS) from Macao to Kuwait are subject to delay until further notice. Thank you for your kind attention.
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