Hui Ting Chng, Ph.D., is a Senior Lecturer with the Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, National University of Singapore and registered pharmacist with the Singapore Pharmacy Council since 2009. She is a dynamic, effective and passionate educator, with the expertise to bridge the interdisciplinary teaching of pharmacy practice with pharmaceutical sciences, and the arts and sciences. She is adept at using various active and collaborative learning pedagogies such as jigsaw, fishbowl discussions and visual thinking strategies, underpinned by constructivist, motivational learning, and cognitive load theories, to engage students in their learning. Her education research interests are on interprofessional and interdisciplinary education, active and collaborative learning pedagogy, mentorship, motivation in learning and empathy. Her disciplinary research interests are in the areas of pharmacokinetics of drugs used in veterinary medicine and drug information.
Teaching aspirations
I am an educator, pharmacist, scientist, musician and mother. These identities and three core principles of collaborate, connect and care, underpin how and what I teach.
The essence of how I view teaching and learning is encapsulated by Claude Debussy’s “Arabesque I” (listen to my piano rendition here). Melodies shared by the left and right hands symbolize the shared stage between my students and me. Together, we explore the mountains and valleys of learning. Sometimes, I lead, sometimes, they lead. Even when we seem out of sync, like triplets against quavers, we remain in harmony, working towards a common goal. Despite moments of confusion, we navigate together to find clarity. As such, my lessons often include active and collaborative learning pedagogies such as jigsaw, fishbowl, quizzes, poll questions, visual thinking skill exercises etc. to actively engage students in their learning.
I am intrigued by how the sciences help me understand this world, while the arts provide me with the avenue to explore possible worlds. I believe that interdisciplinary thinking and the ability to connect seemingly disparate ideas are necessary to innovate and solve the complex problems of today’s world. As such, where possible, what I teach integrates knowledge and skills across pharmacy practice and pharmaceutical sciences, or the arts and sciences.
University students are at an important crossroad of their lives as they are contemplating what is next after graduation. I believe that teaching goes beyond content knowledge and skills. As an educator, I am also here to care, mentor and support my students in their journey of discovering their interests and charting their own paths.
As “the future of the world is in my classroom today”, my hope is that through how and what I teach, students will be empowered to make a difference in their own lives, to the people around them, and future workplace.
About being a part of the Teaching Academy
As a fellow of the Teaching Academy, I look forward to collaborating with like-minded and passionate colleagues and students, and to connect the various excellent interdisciplinary initiatives that are already ongoing in the university so that collectively, we can create innovative curriculum and pedagogy to develop the modern-day polymath, a team of disciplinary experts who possess polymathic thinking skills to work effectively in an interdisciplinary team. I am also excited to share and learn more about how mentorship can support students’ growth and development outside the classroom.
