A first-year student interning at Google's AI department talks about Hillhouse's writing class.

1. Andy's "After-Class Reflections"

"Think outside the box" 🌷

"That's a great idea, but could you go a little deeper ?" 🌷

"Could you express this in a more concise way?" 🌷

These are the three sentences we heard most often in Steven's writing class, and they perfectly encapsulate his teaching style. He always manages to stimulate more active and profound thinking through Socratic questioning, and then expresses it in concise yet artistic language.

Steven's reading and writing classes often begin with an activity that "activates our thinking." Sometimes it's discussing domestic and international news from the week; sometimes it's sharing our joys and sorrows; sometimes it's discussing international relations... Each class usually leads all students into deep thought, followed by the sharing of their own perspectives. Steven then guides us to think more deeply, helping us see the essence of things. Next, Steven presents carefully prepared reading materials, including but not limited to: poetry, fairy tales, commentaries, essays, short stories, plays, college application essays... a wide variety and rich content. The reading and writing class not only teaches writing skills but also instills a way of thinking, allowing us to see the world from a scholar's perspective.

I remember that at the beginning of the pandemic, Professor Steven would guide us to think about and analyze the various defense measures and data of different countries during the Covid-19 pandemic from various aspects, such as the structure and physiological characteristics of the virus, whether RNA vaccines are viruses, transmission routes and prevention measures, data analysis of various countries, ethics, social responsibility, etc. He also showed us how he did it: he interviewed representatives of the Canadian high, middle and low-income music community at the request of a famous Canadian magazine, calling on all sectors of society to help musicians in distress during the pandemic, and at the same time helping artists sell CDs to warm people's hearts with music during the pandemic. He gave us detailed comments on every email discussion between him and the magazine editor, and every suggestion and thought for revision, teaching us how to observe, think and write.

In the future, knowledge acquisition will become readily available anytime, anywhere, so learning itself will no longer be centered on the mastery of knowledge. Instead, the ability to think critically and ask questions will become paramount. In future society, people will not care how much you know, but rather what you are thinking and how you approach problems . Traditional knowledge-accumulation-oriented education methods are no longer suitable for the needs and challenges of the intelligent era.

I gradually developed a love for thinking and writing. I achieved the top grades in English and sociology in my year. I also actively participated in activities such as Model United Nations, youth leadership, and student council. With these abilities, I was able to write excellent essays that impressed admissions officers when applying to universities. Many of my classmates also had excellent English grades and won awards in writing competitions. Some classmates who had been taking classes with me for years impressed Stanford University admissions officers and the undergraduate president with their unique essays, which was an unexpected surprise.

However, before taking Steven's writing class, my writing skills were terrible. I never got a grade higher than C+ in English or Social Studies at school, so I had a deep-seated aversion to humanities subjects. After taking Steven's reading and writing class for a month, my view of writing, and indeed the humanities as a whole, began to change. I gradually developed a strong interest in English. Looking back, I took Steven's writing class without interruption for six whole years, two hours a week, with no repetition in any lesson. Steven often selected classic articles suitable for teenagers from famous works and magazines like Time, and guided us to analyze and think about them together, with his own uniquely designed series of writing tutorials.

I'm Andy. I've been involved in comprehensive planning and learning at Hillhouse Education for eight years. I've gone to LSE (London School of Economics and Political Science) to study philosophy and worked as an AI research intern at Google.