Media

HKU weekly notice (from May 30 to June 6, 2015)

29 May 2015

 

Launch ceremony and press conference for “JC A-Connect: Jockey Club Autism Support Network”
In recent years the number of people diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has risen globally. In Hong Kong, a similar trend of rapid increase in the number of students with ASD has been observed. According to statistics from the Education Bureau (EDB), in the four years from 2009/10 to 2013/1  4 the number of students diagnosed with ASD in public schools has increased from 2,050 to 4,970, more than doubling in 4 years. Many of these children with average or above intelligence are attending mainstream schools in Hong Kong. With greater public awareness of the disorder and improved detection and diagnosis, the number diagnosed is projected to raise by 20% each year.

In view of the increasing number of ASD students in Hong Kong’s primary and secondary schools, the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust has earmarked HK$167 million to pioneer a three-year programme entitled “JC A-Connect: Jockey Club Autism Support Network” starting from the academic year 2015/16. The Jockey Club is collaborating in the programme with the Faculty of Social Sciences of The University of Hong Kong, the Education Bureau and six non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with solid experience in serving ASD students. The NGOs are Caritas - Hong Kong, Heep Hong Society, New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association, SAHK, The Salvation Army and Tung Wah Group of Hospitals and the programme seeks to provide better support for these students, their families and schools. Coaching programmes, teacher training and research will be conducted to improve the social communication, emotional regulation and learning strategies of ASD students to help with behavioral problems, enhance their learning ability and social skills and improve their quality of life. The programme will involve 250 public sector primary and secondary schools, covering about half of the students with special needs. Education and assistance for their parents will be also provided through 18 satellite centers and other educational programmes.

A press conference will be held to brief press members on the programme. Representative of participating NGO and principal will join the case sharing session.

Media representatives are invited to join the event, details is as follows:

Date:   June 2, 2015 (Tuesday)

Part 1:   Launch Ceremony
Time:   10:30am
Venue:   Hall 2, Lee Shau Kee Lecture Centre, Centennial Campus (Map)

Part 2:   Press Conference
Time:   11:15am
Venue:  CPD-LG.17, Centennial Campus (near the Hall 2)
Speakers:
Mr Leong Cheung, Executive Director, Charities and Community, The Hong Kong Jockey Club
Dr Irene Ho, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, HKU & Project Director (School Support)
Dr Sandra Tsang, Associate Professor, Department of Social Work and Social Administration, Faculty of Social Sciences, HKU & Project Director (Family Support)
Case Sharing: Representative of participating NGO and principal

For media enquiries, please contact
Miss Rhea Leung, Communication and Public Affairs Office, HKU (Tel: 28578555 / 90227446; Email: rhea.leung@hku.hk)
Miss Vanessa Sit, Faculty of Social Sciences, HKU (Tel: 39171203/92678877; Email: vansit@hku.hk)

Major international conference on the Sociolinguistics of Globalization to be held at HKU
The School of English is hosting a major international conference ‘The Sociolinguistics of Globalization: (De)centring and (de)standardization’, from June 3 to 6, 2015 at the University of Hong Kong. Over 400 delegates from 43 countries will participate in the four-day conference which features five plenary speakers, eight invited panels and 55 thematic parallel sessions. The conference will be officially opened by HKU President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Peter Mathieson and the Dean of Arts Professor Douglas Kerr. Plenary speakers include Professor Nikolas Coupland of Copenhagen University, Professor Christopher Hutton of the University of Hong Kong, Professor Michelle Lazar of the National University of Singapore, Professor Christopher Stroud of the University of the Western Cape and Professor Kathryn Woolard of the University of California, San Diego.

As a leading centre for research in Sociolinguistics, Discourse Analysis and Applied Linguistics, Hong Kong has been a regular meeting place for language and communication researchers for several decades. This conference aims to continue this tradition by offering a platform for continued dialogue over two fundamental and interrelated questions: How are we to continue theorizing language and communication under globalization? How can sociolinguistic theory shed new light on our understanding of globalization? Presentations will encompass diverse topics and issues including multilingualism and diversity, minorities, the commodification of language and culture, identity, postfeminism, workplace communication, language in the media, hiphop culture, and LGBTIQ.

Details of the conference’s Opening Ceremony are as follows:
Date: June 3, 2015 (Wednesday)
Time: 4:30 pm
Main Venue: Grand Hall, Lee Shau Kee Lecture Centre, HKU
Programme Website: http://sociolinguistics-globalization-hk2015.com/

Members of the media are cordially invited to cover the event. Please contact Mr Cyrus Chan, Events Coordinator, Faculty of Arts (tel: 3917 4984 email: cyrusc@hku.hk) to reserve a seat.

UMAG exhibition: "Alberto Reguera: Blue Expansive Landscape"
The University Museum and Art Gallery is presenting an exhibition of renowned Spanish artist Alberto Reguera from June 5 to August 23, 2015. The exhibition highlights a borderless space that is woven together by the artist’s paintings, sculptures and installations. Reguera’s work across various media shares a similar visual structure formed through an expansive use of the colour blue. Diverse stylistic elements are then linked to create a single aesthetic and conceptual unit.

Born in Segovia, Spain, in 1961, Alberto Reguera now divides his time between Paris and Madrid. His work originates in his admiration for the French lyrical abstract artists; in his evocation of the Romantic landscape painters; and in the spectacular vistas of his native Castile. Reguera's abstract landscapes represent fragmented elements of nature that he constitutes via a discrete series of shapes and colours. Tones and textures multiply as he experiments with the colour blue's position in space. Depending upon the play of light, greater nuances and ranges appear.

The museum’s outreach programme includes guided visits, lectures and workshops.

Details of the Exhibitions
Period: June 5, 2015 (Friday) to August 23, 2015 (Sunday)
Opening Hours:
09:30 – 18:00 (Mon to Sat)
13:00 – 18:00 (Sun)
Closed on University and Public Holidays

Venue: 1/F & 2/F, Fung Ping Shan Building, University Museum and Art Gallery, the University of Hong Kong, 90 Bonham Road, Pokfulam

General Enquiry: Tel: (852) 2241 5500 / Email:  museum@hku.hk
Fees: Free Admission
Website: http://www.hkumag.hku.hk/

Media enquiries:
UMAG Communication Officer Miss Elena Cheung, Tel: (852) 2241 5512, Email: elenac@hku.hk

HKU Centre for the Humanities and Medicine presents an exhibition on the History of Malaria in Hong Kong
The HKU Centre for the Humanities and Medicine is co-presenting an insightful exhibition into the presence and significant impact of malaria on Hong Kong’s history. "Fever: The History of Malaria in Hong Kong" will run until July 26, 2015 at the Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences. The exhibition encourages multi-sensory engagement with local historical information and artefacts and promotes understanding of the importance of the disease in the development of the territory. Visitors will learn how malaria was eradicated from Hong Kong, as well as the seriousness of the contemporary malaria situation in other regions of the world.

The launch of the exhibition was timed to coincide with World Malaria Day 2015 which aims to raise awareness of malaria as a disease that is preventable and treatable and mobilize action to end the ravages of malaria.

Exhibition - Fever: The History of Malaria in Hong Kong
Period: 25 April – 26 July 2015
Time: 10:00am - 5:00pm (Tuesday - Saturday); 1:00pm - 5:00pm (Sunday & Public Holidays); Closed on Mondays
Venue: Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences, No. 2 Caine Lane, Mid-Levels

Further information: http://www.chm.hku.hk/history_of_malaria.html.

For media enquiries or individual interview requests, please contact Mr Cyrus Chan, Events Coordinator, Faculty of Arts (tel: 3917 4984 email: cyrusc@hku.hk).