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To better accommodate the increasing needs for non-local service-learning (SL) projects, SLLO is working on establishing service-learning bases in key non-local sites. Service-learning bases are locations where SLLO has extensive connections to local communities, NGOs and service providers, meaning that we are well positioned to help colleagues who wish to place a project there.

SLLO currently maintains three bases:

  •     Cambodia
  •     Yunnan
  •     The Philippines

We can work with you to ensure all necessary preparation is in place, from logistical arrangements, partner negotiation, site identification to on-site support. The support we can provide is as follows:

Support service to be provided For colleagues going to SL Offshore Bases For colleagues arranging Trips to other places
Connect your projects with potential collaborating partners and identify suitable service recipients and service sites
Arrange pre-trip(s)
Support on preparing the Non-Local Study funding application (mainly itinerary and budget preparation)
Work out a detailed service plan with partners and colleagues
Source air tickets, accommodation, transportation and meal options, work with Dept’s GO and FO to complete procurement procedures
Arrangecultural learning / enrichment activities for students
Collect necessary information from students via the online platform of Non-Local CAR and SL Management and to arrange travel health consultations for the students and colleagues
Procure PolyU SL t-shirts (at cost)
Provide on-site logistical support
Provide emergency support, ISOS risk assessment reports and a 24-hour emergency support hotline
Support on preparing the completion report of Non-Local Study

More details of each base are available via the tabs below. Feel free to contact SLLO’s colleagues to find out more details about these bases.

 

PolyU has been conducting service-learning in Cambodia since 2011 (before service-learning even became an academic subject!) Since then, thousands of students have visited and participated in a wide range of service projects in the country, in the capital of Phnom Penh, in neighbouring provinces, and as far as Siem Reap. Subjects that will be working in the Cambodia base in AY23/24 are

  •     BSE3S03 Living Environment for Low-income Communities 
  •     Project: Build water filtration system for rural communities in Kampong Speu Province
  •     BME2S04 Reducing the Scientific Divide in Primary and Secondary Students through STEM Projects 
  •     Project: Conduct STEM workshops for elementary school children in Kampong Speu Province

  •     COMP2S01 Technology Beyond Borders: Service Learning Across Cultural, Ethnic and Community Lines
  •     Project: Conduct AI workshop for children in under resources primary schools in Phnom Penh  
  •     EIE2S02 Promoting Digital Literacy in Developing Societies
  •     Project: Conduct STEM workshops for underprivileged communities in Phnom Penh and Kampong Cham Province
  •     ELC2S02 Serving the Community through Teaching English
  •     Project: Teach underprivileged children English in a local school in Phnom Penh
  •     ELC2S03 Persuasive Digital Storytelling: Small Charities Big Impacts
  •     Project: Co-create contents of “advocacy package” to enhance NGOs’ profile in Phnom Penh
  •     FSN2S02 Service-Learning in Nutrition and Healthy Diet     
  •     Project: Promote knowledge on nutrition and healthy diets for the primary school students in Phnom Penh
  •     RS3S04 Serving People with Special Healthcare Needs 
  •     Project: Conduct health assessment and workshop for autism children in Phnom Penh
  •     SO2S01 Learning through Providing Eye Care and Vision Health to the Community 
  •     Project: Perform eye examinations and make prescription glasses for needy school kids in Phnom Penh  

Some photos of previous service projects and enrichment activities for students can be found below. The pictures depict the situation of actual service, cultural activity and more. SLLO can assist in arranging service sessions and cultural enrichment sessions for different projects. While the service sessions vary from project to project, every team can share the same cultural learning experience: (1) Museums visit, to learn about the genocide history of Cambodia; (2) Community visit, to understand the livelihood and difficulties of local people; (3) Cultural workshops about local language and traditions, to learn some basic words and cultural norms; (4) Visit historical restaurant, to experience local dining culture. SLLO can negotiate and arrange the above sessions for teams to fit specific teaching and learning needs.

A standard itinerary of 10/9 days and related budget can be found here, to provide colleagues a better picture on the management of logistics and financial resources. The number of days and itinerary can be adjusted. Flexibility in scheduling and itinerary customization can be accommodated to ensure that the projects align with the ILOs, colleagues’ availability and preferences. SLLO can help to prepare budget and itinerary according to different projects’ needs. Please contact Mr. Sean Leung on (852) 3400-8097 / sean.leung@polyu.edu.hk for more details about the base in Cambodia.

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Students learning Khmer in a local institute.

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Students trying local Khmer snacks.

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APSS students conduct activities for Cambodian kids.

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SN students checking blood pressure for local people and providing healthy tips for them.

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ELC students conducting interactive English learning class for elementary school kids.

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SO students performing eye-check and eye exam for local kids.

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Students enjoying local Cambodian cuisine in a traditional restaurant.

Near the China-Vietnam border, Malipo County in the Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture is rich in culture and agricultural products, but underserved in human services. Many of the young and old belong to the “left-behind” population, and a wide range of direct and indirect service projects targeting schools and communities are possible. SLLO has been partnering with Yunnan University and several NGOs to identify service targets and sites for SL subjects. Subjects that will conducting service in Yunnan in AY2023/24 are:

  •       AF3S02 Service-Learning: Financial Literacy for Low-income Communities
  •     Project: Providing a workshop on financial planning  for secondary schoolchildren in a local boarding school
  •       CHC2S01P Appreciating and Applying Chinese Literary Masterpieces in Modern Daily Life 
  •     Project: Providing a workshop on Chinese culture for primary schoolchildren in a local boarding school 
  •       COMP2S01 Technology Beyond Borders: Service Learning across Cultural, Ethnic and Community Lines 
  •     Project: Developing computer games to aid rehabilitation and exercise for an elderly home
  • SO2S01 Learning through Providing Eye Care and Vision Health to the Community        
  • Project: Perform eye examinations and make prescription glasses for needy school kids in Yunnan

SLLO can help arrange service sessions and cultural learning / enrichment activities for different SL projects. While the service sessions vary from project to project, every team can have similar cultural learning / enrichment experience: (1) Museums visit - to learn about the history, culture and traditions of Yunnan; (2) Community visit - to understand the livelihood and needs of the local community; (3) Cultural workshops about local language and traditions - to learn some basic local expressions and cultural norms; (4) Visiting historical restaurants - to experience local cuisines and dining culture. SLLO can negotiate and arrange the above sessions for the SL projects to achieve specific teaching and learning needs.

A standard itinerary of 9 days and related budget can be found here, to provide colleagues a better picture on the management of logistics and financial resources. The number of days and itinerary can be adjusted. Flexibility in scheduling and itinerary customization can be accommodated to ensure that the projects align with the ILOs, colleagues’ availability and preferences. SLLO can help to prepare budget and itinerary according to different projects’ needs. Please contact Ms. Angel Luo on (852) 3400-3471 or via angel.luo@polyu.edu.hk for more details.

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A primary school with boarding facilities for left-behind children.

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Cultural artifacts from the ethnic minority groups

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Cultural artifacts from the ethnic minority groups

The Philippines is a country with a long culture of service of its own. SLLO has been partnering with the University of The Philippines (Diliman) and Ateneo de Manila University to develop SL projects which involve both Philippine university students as well as PolyU students. The following subjects will conduct service proejcts in the Philippines in AY2023/24. Below are the subjects:   

  •       APSS3S13 Enhancing Resilience of Left-Behind Children, Youth and Elderly in Disaster-Prone Areas 
  •      Project: Conduct resilience and personal growth activities for village children in the Province of Bulacan 

  •      COMP2S01 Technology Beyond Borders: Service Learning Across Cultural, Ethnic and Community Lines
  •      Project: Conduct AI workshop for children staying in illegal settlements area in Manila 
  • RS2S03 Inter-professional Health Promotion & Rehabilitation 
  • Project: Conduct health education talks for the elderly with cognitive impairment, assess balance and mobility for the elderly, and organize health assessments for people with physical and/or mental disabilities or compromised health
  •      SN2S03 Healthy Lifestyle Challenges for Developing Communities
  •     Project: Interview the elderly in rural villages and tailor-make a proposal for improving their healthy lifestyles  

SLLO can help arrange service sessions and cultural learning / enrichment activities for different SL projects. While the service sessions vary from project to project, every team can have similar cultural learning / enrichment experience: (1) Museums visit - to learn about the history, culture and traditions of Yunnan; (2) Community visit - to understand the livelihood and needs of the local community; (3) Cultural workshops about local language and traditions - to learn some basic local expressions and cultural norms; (4) Visiting historical restaurants - to experience local cuisines and dining culture. SLLO can negotiate and arrange the above sessions for the SL projects to achieve specific teaching and learning needs.

A standard itinerary of 10 days and related budget can be found here, to provide colleagues a better picture on the management of logistics and financial resources. The number of days and itinerary can be adjusted. Flexibility in scheduling and itinerary customization can be accommodated to ensure that the projects align with the ILOs, colleagues’ availability and preferences. SLLO can help to prepare budget and itinerary according to different projects’ needs. Please contact Mr. Sean Leung on (852) 3400-8097 or sean.leung@opolyu.edu.hk for more details.

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Students riding on a jeepney, the most popular means of public transportation in the Philippines, to experience “everyday life” of local people.

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Students visiting local households to understand their livelihood, happiness and difficulties.

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Students conducting workshop: teaching local kids Baduanjin, a Chinese traditional exercise.

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Students conducting workshop: teaching kids Scratch and elementary level programming knowledge.

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Students celebrating with their service recipients on winning a competition prize.

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Students visits a historical restaurant to enjoy local food and culture after 5-day services.

Guidelines, documents and online platform to facilitate planning and administration

Information on the funding application for non-local Service-Learning subjects is provided here. Departments are reminded to submit the relevant funding proposals and completion reports to the SLLO on time. The funding application can be submitted via the Non-Local CAR/SL Management System (https://www.polyu.edu.hk/sllo/nlsl/). Once the funding application is submitted, SLLO will review the applications. For the detail workflow, you may refer to below: 

 map

Enquiries: Mr Kenneth Lo

 mail icon 35x35  kenneth.wk.lo@polyu.edu.hk 
 phone 35x35  3400 3516

Protecting students' health is always one of the top priorities. While the Service-Learning and Leadership Office remains as the liaising party with UHS on travel medicine, an online platform is launched to capture students' medical and health-related information with ease.

Departments can also make use of this platform to collect and record students' information that is necessary for subject/project administration, health assessment and reporting. Such information includes but not limited to their passport information and information on emergency contacts. Students' failure to provide such data may affect their participation in the corresponding subject/project. All data is treated in strict confidence.

This online platform allows students to:

  • submit their undertaking and declaration forms with passport and emergency contact information,
  • complete the travel medicine briefing,
  • submit their vaccination records,
  • indicate the vaccination that they want,
  • sign up the health consultation, and
  • submit the vaccination and VISA receipts for reimbursement.

All the subject leaders will be granted access right to review the submission progress and download the passport copy for further processing. If you need to grant the access right to your colleagues, for example, TAs, project assistants, or admin staff, please contact us.

Enquiries: Mr Sean Leung

 mail icon 35x35 sean.leung@polyu.edu.hk
 phone 35x35 3400 8097 

Departments need to look at different aspects and consider various local logistics issues when working with NGOs and partners in non-local Service-Learning projects. Two templates have been designed to assist departments in the process and collect necessary information in facilitating risk assessment and invoicing. 

 

Enquiries: Mr Kenneth Lo

 mail icon 35x35 kenneth.wk.lo@polyu.edu.hk 
 phone 35x35 3400 3516 

There are matters relating to travel insurance for staff and students travelling overseas that require departments' attention. A document on travel insurance and details on insurance coverage can be found below to offer useful information. 

 

The University has also engaged a Worldwide Emergency Assistance Services Provider, International SOS ("ISOS") to provide professional advice on pre-trip preparation and worldwide emergency assistance services for staff and students travelling outside Hong Kong. More information and reference on communicating with ISOS can be found below.

 

Enquiries: Ms Gigi Kwan

 mail icon 35x35

gigik.kwan@polyu.edu.hk

 phone 35x35 3400 8534


Departments are recommended to collect the outbound activities fee (OAF) from students by means of Debit Notes. SLLO can support your departments to liaise with the Finance Office (FO) to issue debit notes when creating the project account and/or allocating the project fund. If you need that, you can indicate it via the funding application. 

However, if departments plan to collect the OAF by yourself, please provide the necessary information to Mr Christopher Lai of FO. A blank template with an example to clearly illustrate the required information can be downloaded below. Alternatively, departments may also consider collecting the programme fees by cheque. For such a case, they may check with the FO Cashier Team for details.

For subjects with service-learning projects organised by the Service-Learning and Leadership Office (SLLO), SLLO will coordinate with FO for the issuance of Debit Notes.

 

Enquiries: Ms Heidi Ng

 mail icon 35x35 heidi-siwa.ng@polyu.edu.hk
 phone 35x35 3400 8533

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