Student development under a new general education program in Hong Kong : a 3-year longitudinal assessment

Abstract

Universities in Hong Kong have implemented general education programmes since September 2012 when the undergraduate education was formally extended from three years to four years. At The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), a new general education curriculum entitled 'General University Requirements' (GUR) has been incorporated in its four-year undergraduate education, aiming to cultivate five desired graduate attributes (critical thinking, problem solving, effective communication, ethical leadership, and lifelong learning). To investigate students' actual learning and development over time under the new general education programme, a yearly online survey was conducted for three consecutive years (N = 460). Results showed that students gained significant improvements in their development of the five desired generic competences after two-year university study, despite a slight decrease in some of these attributes in the second year of their university life. These findings suggest that the new general education programme at PolyU is effective in promoting students' personal development and its intended learning outcomes are largely achieved.