The page is a diary of my teaching experience and I will update them from time to time 🙂 Selected students’ works will be updated in the following website and you may access them by clicking the following button.
Apr 8th 2026
Teaching programming is especially meaningful to me because I grow alongside my students. When I assigned an API project, they came up with creative and unexpected ideas for how APIs could be used. I told them that in coding, almost anything is possible, and that is part of its beauty as well as its craftsmanship. Of course, I could not possibly know how to use every API in the world. Each group identified free APIs they wanted to explore, and I spent considerable time learning the four they selected. That experimentation process was exciting, and I enjoyed every bit of it.
Once I familiarized myself with the APIs, I guided students through the process of reading documentation, obtaining API keys, understanding requests and responses, and working with concepts such as fetching data, GET methods, and JSON parsing. From there, we moved into implementation: building interfaces for user interaction through dropdown menus, buttons, and other controls; retrieving data from APIs; and displaying the results meaningfully within those interfaces. I also emphasized the larger methodology of working with APIs: identifying a problem or need, selecting the right API, studying its documentation, testing endpoints, handling errors, structuring data flows, and designing an interface that makes the retrieved information useful and accessible to users. In this way, students were not only learning syntax, but also learning how to think through the full lifecycle of a small software project.
Some groups needed more coding support, while others, having prior programming experience from other classes, found their way more independently. I enjoyed meeting each group where they were and helping them develop confidence in problem-solving. I like feeling challenged, and I genuinely enjoy the process of finding solutions through programming. For me, teaching is not just about delivering technical content; it is about building the mental infrastructure students need to navigate a rapidly evolving world shaped by new technologies and shifting ways of thinking.
This leads me to larger questions that matter deeply in my teaching: What kind of human capacity will the future demand? What qualities will students need in order to thrive? I strongly believe in learning by doing. Practical experience allows students to absorb theory quickly and meaningfully because they encounter concepts through direct, hands-on engagement. In many ways, my teaching also has a phenomenological dimension: we learn first through lived experience, through observation, through stimulus and response, and through the gradual formation of understanding from direct interaction with the world. These are fundamental human capacities, and they remain essential even in highly technological environments.
I believe creativity and novelty will be crucial for the future. As technologies increasingly replace repetitive and tedious forms of labor, we must ask how we are preparing students to position themselves in that changing landscape. I see my students as collaborators in this process. As we build projects together, we exchange ideas, test possibilities, and imagine value beyond the classroom. I encourage them to think critically about whether what they create belongs to a crowded “red ocean” or opens up a new “blue ocean.” What value does an interface offer? What problem does it solve? Where might it sit in the market or in society? Even if students do not fully grasp these questions now, exposure to them before graduation gives them a stronger foundation for the world they are entering—and helping to shape.
This is how I lead my class. I try to remain actively engaged throughout the learning process, offering guidance, encouragement, and structure as students develop their ideas and bring their projects to life. Because there are many moving pieces in this kind of work, I make a strong effort to help the class move forward smoothly while still leaving room for exploration and discovery. I am proud of what I do, and I also know there is always more for me to learn and improve. Still, for a first year, I feel grateful for what we were able to accomplish.
Ka Hei Cheng 