Teaching in Front of a Camera

Wageningen University is keen on developing forms of education that reach people all over the world. The basics of the course topics are covered in short films and three-minute to seven-minute presentations     1     (use) techniques such as animation and voice-over(画外音).

“The online Master’s programmes are quite different from the large scale MOOCs(在线课程),” explains Busstra. In the Master’s courses, the short “knowledge clips” dealing with the essential topics     2     (link) to an assignment directly to help the students actively absorb the knowledge themselves. Teachers can also use them to test     3     the material has come across well. Busstra says, “The teacher has to think up new ways of working - getting students to make a film clip, for instance,     4     they present a research setup they have have thought up themselves, or to respond to someone else’s idea, or to work on a document in groups.” The students also get the chance to post a question while they     5     (watch) an online film - equivalent of putting your hand up during a lecture. Fellow students and teachers can then answer     6     question online. “There are a lot of misunderstandings about online education,” says Busstra, “one of them being     7     there is only one-way communication. But people are gradually gaining confidence in it. It will stay typically Wageningen: small-scale and     8     (base) on interaction and group work.”

The investment     9     online learning is paying off in the regular education programme too, according to Busstra. Students in Wageningen can pick up the basics at home through the knowledge clips. During lectures, teachers     10     then provide more in-depth analysis, talk about their own work and supervise students more personally. “Increasingly, on-campus and online education will no longer be two separate worlds.” expects Busstra.

Traditionally,     1     the year winds down, it’s a time for reflections—to give thanks, reconnect with loved ones, and cherish the more meaningful parts of life, removed from our usual day-to-day distractions.

Of course, the events of 2020 haven’t shown a lot of respect for our traditions. In a year of so much tragedy, it can be tough to give thanks when you’re doing your best to get by. And far too many of us will have to gather around a table with an empty chair, if we were able to gather together at all.

One thing, though, we can say about 2020 is that it forced us all to cherish what is most important, what’s most meaningful in our lives. To stop taking things for granted,     2     truly matters. To be grateful for what we have, and to be alive to the pain of those     3     (fortunate).

Throughout this challenging year, I’ve been moved, again and again, by the sacrifices so many were willing to make on behalf of others. The healthcare professionals who risked their lives to save ours. The workers who have kept our lights on and our shelves stocked, always essential to our economy, but finally     4     (recognize) for it. The protesters of every race and age who saw injustice in their streets and their institutions and demanded change. And the less heralded leaders, the quiet change-makers who saw need in their own communities and leapt to address it. They checked in on their neighbors, delivered food and PPE to seniors and those experiencing hardship, offered mental health support to those     5    (recover) from trauma.     6     holes this pandemic tore wide in our social fabric, these emerging leaders stepped forward to patch it up.

These are exactly the leaders Michelle and I started our Foundation to support. We always thought they     7     (lead) us into a bright future, if only we     8     empower them, connect them with each other, and give them a dose of inspiration when they needed it.

What we learned in 2020 is that these emerging leaders aren’t just building a brighter future, they’re safeguarding our present. In hard times, they are the ones who’ve given me solace. It’s     9     sacrifice in which I found hope. And as we begin to close the chapter on a difficult year with encouraging news on the horizon, it’s their leadership     10     will guide us today and tomorrow.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everybody.

—Quoted from Barack Obama’s Christmas speech in 2020