Associate Professor Cheng Chun, from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) has been awarded with the honorary title of “National Excellent Teacher” this year by the Ministry of Education.

Associate Professor Cheng Chun has been working at SUSTech for 6 years. Prof. Cheng integrates enrollment, residential colleges, teaching and scientific research into his academic life, and is determined to open up a new way to cultivate undergraduate top-notch innovative talents.

In the past six years, he has been selected as a core member of the “Innovation Team” of the Ministry of Science and Technology, and has won several outstanding teacher and talent awards across Guangdong Province and Shenzhen. Cheng Chun has also been recognized by his peers and students at the Teachers Day Awards at SUSTech.

Prof. Cheng Chun has published nearly 80 SCI papers with SUSTech as affiliation, in which over 40 papers are corresponding authors. In the past six years, He devoted himself to promoting the education of students’ innovative ability through scientific research. He has directed undergraduate students to apply for nearly 30 research projects, including 2 national and 8 provincial projects, in which he was the first author. There are 9 SCI papers, 9 patent applications, and more than 20 people attending international conferences. Under his guidance, a number of undergraduates receive national scholarships and Top Ten Graduate awards, with many more receiving full-time admission to top universities around the world, including Oxford University, Purdue University and UCLA.

Cheng Chun has been actively exploring the training methods of top-notch innovative talents and used the lessons learned in his own classroom teaching. He applied for 5 educational reform projects, published 3 relevant papers and won the first prize of outstanding papers. Cheng Chun also summarized and promoted his own innovative talent training, which were promoted and publicized to different departments across SUSTech; more and more teachers are involved in the exploration of education of top-notch innovative talents.

He believes that he is always learning and hopes to continue to grow with his students. He often gives enthusiastic guidance to students, by encouraging them to ask questions in class and continue their hard work before & after class. Cheng Chun has also given students opportunities to fully discuss in class, promoting their thinking and critical thinking ability..

Cheng Chun says that he will continue to stand at the forefront of pedagogy, always working to support SUSTech wherever they want him the most.