追随我心 无问西东
Connecting the Dots: A Journey of Exploration
宋庆龄学校国际部
2024届毕业生 黎则行
圆梦斯坦福!
深夜,我坐在桌前,许多童年和少年的记忆碎片,如潮翻涌——绿草如茵的球场,每个宋庆龄学校长大的孩子都会去的“小山坡”、那个我们曾肆意奔跑的和平鸽迷宫、封校长每天早上微笑着鞠躬欢迎我们的身影、从小一起长大的伙伴,彼此一个眼神就心领神会的同学——在这样一个几乎没有压力的环境里,我所有的时光是在宽容、友爱、自由的氛围中度过的;我的成长是在一次次选择中,不断塑造而成的。
To sit down in a single night and reflect on the place where I’ve spent a good third of the past 12 years of my life, and to then put all these overflowing thoughts on a piece of paper, is not at all an easy task. Many pieces of my childhood and teenage memories have been strung together to form my life until now, my senior year. If I close my eyes, I still see the landscape of our school – the grass and little bump hill at recess, Madame Feng welcoming us at the gate every single day, all my classmates and friends I know all too well – they are all key memories from those distant days. In this environment with few pressures to become a specific type of individual, I spent my primary years growing up in this forgiving, loving, and free atmosphere. Bit by bit, I was building up my life with all the pieces of my choices and experiences.
好奇心
Curiosity
这么多年来,我不断地被问到如此喜欢学习并能学好的秘密是什么?在宋庆龄学校长大的我,这12年来没有被磨灭掉的是我儿时那颗对万物运转迷一般的好奇心。这种好奇心不是单纯指学习知识本身,而是在探索中找一个方向,不断深入,感受、品尝探索的滋味和快乐。
I believe the most important quality that led me to where I stand today is curiosity. This is something I’ve kept close to my heart throughout these 12 years at SCLS-ID. What’s most important about my middle and high school journey was not learning knowledge per se, but constructing a platform of exploration to taste the flavors of life.
初中时,我对高中数学课程产生了浓厚的兴趣,开始自学,那时候我一度以为自己是个理工男;然而,到了高中,我对更广泛的领域,自然科学、社会科学、甚至哲学都产生了极大的兴趣:科学是内在真实的吗?技术作为一种工具如何把我们周围的许多事物联系在一起?是否可以在地图上绘制社交媒体数据?我们如何利用技术向更多青少年推广海派文化?于是,我阅读了有关科学哲学的书籍,参加建模比赛和CTB (全球创新研究大挑战)。
I self-studied high school math courses in middle school, at a time when I thought I would just be a “STEM guy.” But later in high school, I did much wider explorations, spanning from the natural sciences to social sciences to even more abstract fields like philosophy. I read interesting theories that made me consider fundamental questions like is science intrinsically true? And is it a superior form of knowledge? From this springboard, I dived into the philosophy of science and its uses in our lives. How does technology act as tools to connect different fields? How can we use this technology to promote and preserve local Haipai culture for more teenagers? How can technology be a tool that connects with so many things around us, like patterns of social media data plotted on maps?
追随我心 无问西东
建模和CTB
Our CTB Project
关于建模和CTB最美好的记忆,莫过于在放学后、在假期里有各种机会与一起长大的同学们留在这个校园里,甚至住校一起开展项目和竞赛!为了我们共同的 CTB 项目,为了一起完成最后的演示和黑客马拉松,我们在校园里一起度过了“十一”假期。
One of my best memories at SCLS-ID was the opportunity to briefly live on campus with a group with very talented and fun people, working together to complete our China Thinks Big (CTB) competition project that addressed some of my previous questions, including how to best preserve local culture. We devoted our October break to our final presentation and hackathons amidst shared fun and intellectual discussions.
我们制作的互动游戏、展览计划和原创艺术作品拿下了的全球赛一等奖(项目终极展演一等奖、黑客马拉松一等奖、三项个人终极挑战奖)。这些奖项是我们实力的见证,但更重要的——是那些在我们脑海里刻下的挥之不去的最美的记忆;是这个假期和朋友们一起为了一个共同的项目而创作的快乐;是在学校图书馆、剧场、宿舍一起头脑风暴、不断挑战新方案的酣畅淋漓。
In the end, we developed an interactive game, an exhibition plan, and some original artwork! It was great to have friends, teachers, and the school supporting every idea we had, and moving forward with our sense innovation.
追随我心 无问西东
思维方式、全球视角
Ways of Thinking、Global Perspectives
回顾这12年的学习经历和成长历程,我觉得我在宋庆龄学校学会的不仅仅是知识本身,更多的是一种思维方式——拥有批判性思维,同时有一颗包容、理解他人的心,探索不同的世界观、论点和论据却始终能以世界大同的角度看待这个世界。正如在生活中,重要的不是那些报告上显示的数字,而是如何对待它们;在学习中,重要的不是某些课程,而是课程背后的思维方式。
Looking back at these 12 years, I feel like my education has taught me not just facts and history and knowledge to remember, but more importantly, ways of thinking and ways of engaging in the world. It’s not about the number that shows up on all those test papers and reports that really matters in life; it’s how to actively participate in the world. Have a critical mindset, explore different worldviews and arguments and evidence, and look at the world with a genuinely nice heart. These are simple sentences, but I think they might take you a long way. I really hope so.
我记忆犹新的是 "全球视角 "这门课,它并不过分关注知识本身,而是关注知识与理解、表达、交流和思考——这是成为世界公民的关键。它像是哲学沙龙,我们通过项目研究,思考日常生活中的各种问题,搜集资料,交流思想。我希望你们也能和我一样:围绕生活中有趣而复杂的想法进行思考,并体会其中的快乐。
I remember Global Perspectives was a unique class – one that does not overly focus on remembering stuff. It is more like a philosophy salon in school, where we have projects to research about and time to muse upon various issues in our daily life. The four criteria that we were graded on – Knowledge and Understanding, Presentation, Communication, and Thinking – are key to being a citizen of our school and the broader world. I would hope you could do the same: muse about the interesting and complex ideas around your life, and put your thoughts down on paper.
在高中的学习阶段,我参加了 AP Seminar 和 AP Research。这两项课程都让我积累并拓展了独立研究和探索的技能,并深入了解了我喜欢的话题。我通过绘制数字地图的方式探索了数字不平等问题、研究双语教育的挑战和益处、探索如何使用数字讲故事等等,最重要的是学会了论证的方法,并有机会提出一些原创性的想法。
I took AP Seminar and AP Research in high school, both allowing me to build up and expand on my independent research and exploration skills, digging into insightful topics I enjoyed. I explored digital inequalities through mapping, challenges and benefits of bilingual education, the uses of digital storytelling, and more. I believe it is important to learn the methodology of making your arguments work, and have a chance to produce somewhat original thought.
追随我心 无问西东
感恩前行
Moving Forward with Gratitude
感恩所有的朋友、每一位老师和我挚爱的学校支持我们的每一个想法,让我们在创新中不断前行、不断成长,让我们在温情中被关爱着长大,善意的看到这个世界所有的美好。
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all my friends, each of my teachers, and my beloved school in supporting every endeavor we made together, every spurt of innovation and growth, and our prospects in the future. Together we’ve grown and seen the beauty of the world.
即将毕业,离开这个我生活和学习了12年的校园,我一直在问自己:我的人生方向在哪里?然而,我似乎还没有找到很好的答案,但似乎又有了最佳的答案,那就是——"跟随你的心,无论它把你引向何方"。这句话听起来很抽象,很哲学,其实很清晰——追随自己的兴趣,深入探索。这些选择就像空白画卷上的一些点,而只有多年以后,往回看时才会发现这其中的联系。这一答案让我最终在人文与科技的交汇处找到了自己的道路。
On a final note, it seems like it’s time to say goodbye to a campus that is so familiar and loving. I’ve been asking myself: How exactly do you find a direction in life? Honestly, I don’t have a good answer for that. My own best answer would be, “Follow your heart (or head, or God, or instincts; whatever) wherever it leads you.” That sounded really abstract and philosophical, but it’s a great way to just say follow your own interests. Really. All these life choices are like a series of dots on a canvas that you cannot really make sense of when up close – it is only when you step away and look back, years later, will they connect themselves into a thread, tracing a clear life trajectory. As for myself, I ended up finding my paths lying in the intersection between the humanities and technologies.
追随我心 无问西东
未来可期,相会有期!我相信待我们在宋庆龄学校重逢时,皆已追随自己的内心,找到了最美好的方向。
Look forward towards tomorrow, good luck with life, and until we meet again :)
——黎则行
2024年4月写于上海宋庆龄学校
师说
Authors 撰稿:Thomas Li 黎则行
Sponsor Teachers指导老师:罗剑青、Mr. Josh Yager