FACULTY OF HUMANITIES AND EDUCATION
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QUALITY ASSURANCE REVIEWS A Quality Assurance Review (QAR) of the Asian language programme (Chinese, Japanese) offered in the DMLL found that an investment is needed to ensure that there is sufficient full-time core staff to maintain programme continuity and reduce the reliance on external partners to ensure continuity. Useful recommendations were made also regarding the content and pace of courses, and the possibility of a cross-disciplinary Asian Studies programme. Two departments presented Action Plans in response to QARs of the preceding year. The DMLL presented its Action Plan in response to the QAR of the French and Spanish programmes, including actions to improve academic advising, and to develop French and Spanish courses focusing on professional needs, i.a. The DLLP presented its response to the QAR of the Linguistics programme, which included many recommendations pertaining to teaching & learning, research & publication, and outreach. Funding and limited staff are major constraining factors in developing an adequate action plan. Two departments, the Department of Literatures in English and the Philosophy Section of the Department of Language, Linguistics & Philosophy, presented fol- low-up reports on their 2022 action plans prepared in response to QARs conducted in the preceding year. Both noted as significant challenges the pressure to undertake course and programme development without adequate resources. The DLIE had suffered the loss of three staff members who resigned during the 2021/22 academic year, leaving only three tenure-track academics, while the Philosophy Section was facing the imminent loss of two staff members (retirement and resignation), leaving only one experienced academic for the 2023/24 academic year. THE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT A/C units that had been tested and found working before the start of the 2022– 2023 academic year, failed as soon as classes began, forcing adaptations including rescheduling of classes and even temporarily moving some classes back to the on-line modality. The Faculty is deeply grateful to a donation from the Joint Board of Teaching Education which allowed for some units to be replaced and normal operations to resume. Another important improvement came when well needed repairs were carried out by the Estate Management Department to the roofs of sev- eral buildings housing offices and classrooms where significant leaks had damaged furniture and equipment over time. SUPPORTING POSTGRADUATE STUDENT SUCCESS The Faculty hosted its welcome and induction ceremony for new graduate students in hybrid mode on Friday 2 September 2022. Throughout the year, several sessions
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