Picture by Elisabela Larrea

Director of English Language Centre Dr. Donald W. Cruickshank

The English Language Centre, a newly established independent unit of the University of Macau (UM), with an aim of improving students' English and determined to bring the University to international level.

Dr. Donald W. Cruickshank, Director of English Language Centre said that after the approval of the Charter of University of Macau, the English Language Centre would be officially an independent unit, reporting directly to the University Management Board. He expressed that it was a plan of Professor Vai Pan Iu, Rector of the University and Professor Rui Martins, Vice Rector of the Univeristy, to make this centre part of the policy to make the University an international quality university, where the medium of instruction continues to be English.

“We provide good general English language instructions for students of all faculties of the campus. All our staff are at least with master's degree,” said Dr. Cruickshank. He expressed that there was a need for such a centre in order to meet students' different needs of acquiring their English skills.

Carry Mak, a graduate assistant of the Faculty of Business Administration who is currently giving tutorials for Principle of Management said, “Students who come from non-English schools find it extremely difficult to catch up with the course requirements since they can hardly understand the course materials due to inadequate English comprehension skills.” Mak also added that quality learning could only be achieved if students could reach to the English level required. “With the English Language Centre at their corner, they can now seek for help easily and benefit a lot from it.” Mak said.

Picture by Elisabela Larrea

“The Centre is now currently giving first and second year undergraduate English language courses such as Practical English 010, 011, etc… Certain other English language courses will be negotiated between the centre and the Department of English-FSH,” said Dr. Cruickshank. “The Centre has no boundary yet and it is at its growing process,” he added.

Dr. Cruickshank expressed that there are various areas in which he hoped the Centre would be growing into. They have requested to administrate the Consulting Centre for Research and English Writing (CREW), a consultation team providing help for students with their paper writing. [More details about CREW will appear in our May 2003 Issue.]

“I learn from a lot of students not majoring in English language find great difficulties in preparing for their essay and hope to improve their English and seek proper help,” said Carolina Nogueira, a senior majoring in General Program. The Centre has also inherited the intensive English program in summer from the Department of English for students that are admitted to the University but whose English is weak. The Centre is also planning to have workshops on Job Application skills in English, hoping to help undergraduate students be prepared for their job searching.

The Centre is also preparing a self-assessment English language-learning centre. This will be a centre with English learning software, conversation workshops, video and audio aids as well as access to high interest reading materials. “We envision all three types of learning in the self-assess centre,” expressed Dr. Cruickshank. He added that this centre would be able to help students practise and improve their English skills, especially for students that need personal guidance in learning.

The English Language Centre had been informed via email by the Education Testing Services (ETS) that they have designated the centre as the Toefl centre for Macao. They will be having 4 administration of Toefl every year, starting the coming school year 2003-2004.

“We are still evolving and we hope that students who are interested in additional courses will be patient, we are still learning our way,” Dr. Cruickshank said, smiling.