In order to strengthen the construction of sports majors at the Open University of China (OUC), deepen teaching reforms, enhance training, and promote consensus-building within its system, the OUC held a seminar on 23 November 2022.
OUC vice president Li Song; Zhang Xia and Zhang Feng, dean and vice dean of the OUC Faculty of Education; and course leaders in the majors, attended on Wukesong campus, while around 100 people attended online, including Professor Liu Houzhen from Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Professor Yang Yang from Chengdu Sport University, and other stakeholders.
Li Song pointed out that the OUC offers sports majors in response to the national strategy of "becoming a leading country in sports and health", to promote the high-quality development of education, and to meet increasing needs for a better life. At present, the OUC has started the enrolment for a junior-college programme, Sports Operations and Management, and an undergraduate programme, Mass Sports Guidance and Management (junior-college prerequisite), with nearly 2,000 students enrolled. All OUC branches are expected to help train China's sports workers and build China into a leading country in sports and health. Li Song indicated that we should fulfill the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education and of educating through sports; focus on job skills and student needs, use of information technology, development of course resources, and reform of teaching and evaluation; and advance integration of industry and education, credit accreditation and transfer, and the training of physical-education professionals.
Professor Zhao Liling, deputy secretary of the Party Committee and president of the Xi 'an branch, shared its measures of offering such new major as Sports Operations and Management and implementing investigation on the needs for the major of Mass Sports Guidance and Management, aiming to advance the high-quality development of open education.
Professors Liu Houzhen and Yang Yang lectured respectively on "International Dynamics in the Organisation and Management of Sports Events" and "Intelligent Development of Contemporary Sports".
Ma Tengfei, OUC sports-majors administrator, introduced the setup and enrolment of the majors, and solicited suggestions from the participating teachers on the implementation of the junior-college programmes and the joint construction and sharing of course resources. Leaders of the majors at the OUC branches shared their enrolment experiences and exchanged views on making the design suitable for students of sports education, designing practical and gradation assignment, assuring quality of practical learning, exemption of certain courses and examinations by taking certification courses, and the joint construction and sharing of course resources. The seminar was attended by leaders and teachers from all the branches, colleges and study centres.
Written by Yang Yuandu; photos by Li Zheng, OUC