Recently, Leicester International Institute (DLI) held the first Student-Staff Committee (SSC) conference of the current school year, attended by 46 students and faculty members. Sarah Davies, the Pro-Vice Chancellor and Head of the College of Science and Engineering of University of Leicester (UoL), Prof. Pan Jingzhe, the Dean of DLI British side, Prof. Zhan Jingjing, the Dean of DLI Chinese side, and Prof. Tan Zhenquan, Associate Dean of DLI Chinese side attended the conference, both online and offline.

Through the Zoom Video Conference, Prof. Sarah Davies expressed high expectation and recognition to the SSC conference. She said that SSC conference has been a traditional and formal communication mechanism between students and faculty at UoL, through which the Institute will discuss and give feedback on students’ problems and suggestions, in order to improve the teaching and management standards, and enhance the students’ learning experiences.

The conference discussed the issues raised by the student groups from three majors and four grades, covering the teaching mode, course content, examination form, network support, teaching feedback and administrative support, etc. The participating teachers gave comprehensive and detailed answers and proposed solutions, and will continue to follow up and implement effective recommendations after the conference. Then, the conference continued with the faculty topics. Faculty members gave feedback on students’ learning conditions and outcomes so far, as well as the guiding suggestions.

In the end, Prof. Zhan Jingjing set high expectations for all students. He said that every student should have a clear goal, learn to have forethought, have the sense of crisis, and prepare in advance. He also pointed out that when DLI students encounter learning difficulties, they should face them and try their best to solve them, and make more efforts to adapt to the international teaching mode and assessment standards, so as to become competitive college students.

Since the establishment of SSC, the conference has become an important vehicle for DLI students to express their demands, strengthen the linkage between students and teachers, and make suggestions for the development and construction of the Institute.