“Studies on National Regime and Macao SAR” is a compulsory subject established by UTM for first-year students, covering three main areas: history, law, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
In the first semester of the 2024/25 academic year, the subject introduced Mandarin-taught classes to meet the developmental needs of the curriculum. In response to the call from the Education and Youth Development Bureau, Macao SAR Government, to strengthen the promotion of Chinese culture, the subject instructors have comprehensively revised and updated the content related to Chinese culture, especially the section on the "Greater Bay Area," to ensure that the subject remains up-to-date and better reflects the core values and characteristics of Lingnan culture. This allows students to have a more intuitive and comprehensive understanding of Lingnan culture and its connections and impacts on Macao. The curriculum update not only focuses on theoretical teaching but also emphasizes practical experience, enabling students to integrate classroom knowledge with real-life experiences through field visits and thus deepen their understanding of the subject content.
In semester one, UTM organized over 460 teachers and students from the history and Greater Bay Area sections of the subject to visit the Macao Museum, Base Da Educação Do Amor Pela Pátria e Por Macau Para Jovens, and the Poly MGM Museum. Through immersive teaching methods, students were given the opportunity to experience Macao's history and culture firsthand.
Macao Museum: A Convergence of History and Culture
The Macao Museum is a founding member of the "Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Museum Alliance" and is considered the "pacesetter" among Macao's historical museums. The museum houses a vast collection of historically significant artifacts and features several exhibition zones, including early Macao history, Sino-Portuguese trade, religion, the Maritime Silk Road, folk life, and traditional culture. During their visit, students gain an in-depth understanding of the unique characteristics of the cultural integration between the East and the West, especially the lifestyle and culture of the Macanese community, through replicas and multimedia interactive facilities.
Base Da Educação Do Amor Pela Pátria e Por Macau Para Jovens: Strengthening National Identity
The Base Da Educação Do Amor Pela Pátria e Por Macau Para Jovens was inaugurated in December 2020. It is an important venue established by the Macao Special Administrative Region Government to cultivate young people's sense of identity and belonging to their society and country, and to foster respect for their nation and culture. The course primarily arranges for students to visit the "National and Local Sentiments – Lingnan Culture and Macao" exhibition at the base. Through concise explanations by the base's tour guides and interactive facilities, students experience the textbook knowledge firsthand, gaining a comprehensive understanding of the origins and development of Lingnan dialects, handicrafts, architecture, and cuisine, as well as their inseparable connection with Macao society. This experience enhances the students' sense of identity with their nation, the Greater Bay Area, and Macao.
Poly MGM Museum: The History and Future of the Maritime Silk Road
The Poly MGM Museum opened in November 2024 and has become Macao's latest world-class cultural and tourism landmark. Combining the most cutting-edge display technologies, the museum offers a fully immersive experience through movable LED screens, interactive exhibition panels, and directional sound systems. The inaugural exhibition focuses on the Maritime Silk Road, collaborating with numerous national museums and top-tier cultural and artistic institutions to showcase precious cultural relics and renowned contemporary artworks from both domestic and international collections. The exhibition "The Maritime Silk Road—Discover the mystical seas and encounter the treasures of the ancient trade route" features 228 exhibits, including nearly 30 first-class national cultural relics, highlighting the history and culture of the Maritime Silk Road. Two classes of students were organized to visit the museum, where the futuristic layout, 17th-century tapestries blending Chinese embroidery and Western painting techniques, and the bronze animal heads from the Old Summer Palace (Yuanmingyuan) elicited waves of admiration and strong reactions from both teachers and students. This experience further instilled a deep sense of pride in Macao's unique historical role in the development of the Maritime Silk Road.
Student Feedback and Future Prospects
After the field visits, students widely expressed high praise for the series of visits organized as part of the course, noting that these on-site experiences significantly enhanced their understanding of classroom content. Course instructors also integrated the visit content into assignments, allowing students to gain a deeper understanding of the historical culture of the Greater Bay Area and its role in the Belt and Road Initiative.
In line with the overall development strategy of promoting Chinese culture and advancing patriotism and love for Macao by the Education and Youth Development Bureau and UTM, the course team plans to organize students to conduct in-depth field investigations in the Greater Bay Area in the near future. These visits will cover fields such as technology, culture, history, and law, further enhancing their understanding of the region's interconnectedness, deep cooperation, and the potential for integrating technology, culture, and industry with tourism. This will not only enrich students' learning experiences but also provide new ideas for the university's cultural promotion and education.
Authors: UTM Assistant Professor Jim Luo Yixin, Faculty of Creative Tourism and Intelligent Technologies; Leanna Joe Ching Lam, UTM Tourism Business Management student