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The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has organised the “Class Acts” CUHK Online Talk Series. It helps students in ongoing learning at home and self-improvement by acquiring knowledge in different areas during the pandemic. In the seventh talk today (5 May) broadcasted on YouTube and the CUTV website, Professor Catherine So from the Department of Educational Psychology spoke on the topic “Robots as Mentors for Children with Autism”. The talk was free of charge and gave many CUHK students, staff members, alumni and members of the public, both local and overseas, an understanding of the application and effectiveness of social robots in treating patients with autism.

Autism is a developmental disorder characterised by impairments of the ability to relate to and communicate with others. Making use of social robots in educating children with autism represents significant innovations in both the medicine and special needs education sectors. Social robots create an encouraging learning environment amongst children with autism, while reducing the need for the instructors to repeat teaching the same content excessively. In the talk, Professor So introduced the application of social robots in treating children with autism to improve their social and communication skills, and summarised other results. She also responded to questions submitted earlier from the viewers.

Dr. Jeremy Yuen Chun Teoh, from the Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine will give the last talk to be broadcasted on 11 May 2020 at 4:00 pm on the topic “What I Have Learnt as a Surgeon”. He will discuss the sweet and sour moments of his journey in practicing medicine.

About the “Class Acts” CUHK Online Talk Series

Eight online public talks are being given in simple terms, by CUHK scholars outstanding in their areas of expertise. The talks are free to the public, in particular local students and those from the Mainland and overseas.

The outstanding scholars from a number of faculties give their views on their respective areas of expertise. The topics cover artificial intelligence (AI), gravitational waves, the application of robots in education for Special Educational Needs students, and the law of treasure hunting, amongst others. For more information on the other talks and arrangements, please visit https://againstcovid19.cuhk.edu.hk/class-acts-online-talk/.