What is your teaching philosophy?
For me, the most important aspects of medical education are precise yet applicable medical knowledge and professionalism. I believe that, to be an effective medical educator, one needs to be equipped with comprehensive range of knowledge and skills in line with his/her expertise (in my case, anatomy, histology and pedagogy), always keep up with the latest development in the field, and make sure the knowledge passed on to students is as accurate and effective as possible. Medical educators should also integrate professionalism and medical ethics into everyday’s teaching and learning, and guide the students to gradually recognize and resonate with the core values of medical professionals.

I dedicate my work to improving the learning experience of my students and helping them to achieve deep learning. Instead of didactic, teacher-centred teaching that focuses on memorization rather than application, I believe that anatomy and histology education for undergraduate curricula should be student-centred, inquiry-based active learning, with the goals of achieving a comprehensive overview of the body structures and functions, as well as the ability to apply basic medical knowledge to solve real clinical problems.

What kind of teacher-student relationship do you establish?
I was a medical student myself many years ago. From my experience as both medical teacher and student, I believe that teacher-student relationship should be dynamic and should have different emphasis under different circumstances. I strive to provide my students with all the support and guidance they may need, both academically and emotionally, on the journey to become a medical professional. But more importantly, I see myself as their partners and we embark on this journey together. To this end, I have established Near-Peer Anatomy Teacher Programme, co-designed learning activities with my students, and created peer teaching and learning environment. These efforts are all aimed at empowering students to take ownership of their education.

In what ways do you think your teaching would impact medical students? What have been your greatest challenges in teaching and how did you overcome them?
I would like my students to grasp the knowledge of the intricate yet fascinating human body, and comprehend the links between structures, functions and diseases. But beyond all the knowledge, I sincerely hope that my teaching will inspire my student to appreciate the meaning of life and death, and to recognize the importance of physical and mental health in society.

As a teacher of anatomy, the greatest challenges I face in teaching are exactly the same as the greatest challenges my students face in learning, such as difficulty in visualising complex structures, short of time to cope with the vast amount of knowledge, and a lack of opportunities to apply those knowledge in clinical scenarios. To address these challenges, I adopt active-learning pedagogical approaches and integrating advanced education technologies, such as AR/VR, to compliment the cadaver-based anatomy education. I dedicate my teaching to improve learning experience and efficacy, facilitate the visualisation of the complex structures, improve the understanding of 3D anatomy relationships, and provide opportunities for applying anatomy knowledge in clinical-oriented tasks.