Many students at SUSTech are noted for the quality of their research, their academic papers, and the numerous conferences they present at. However, little attention is paid to the quality of presentations that the students give, and how they got to that point.

It was a question that attracted the attention of the Office of Communications and Public Relations, who found Lecturer Liu Lisha. Liu Lisha has overseen student competitions, within her position as Lecturer at the Center for Language Education at SUSTech. Before coming to SUSTech, she studied at Beijing Normal University, before getting her master’s degree at Oxford and her Ph.D. at UCL Institute of Education. With substantial research into UK higher education and teaching English at Chinese universities, Chris Edwards wanted to find out more.

College Life

Liu Lisha spoke openly about her studies, admitting that perhaps philosophy wasn’t her best selection when she first started studying. She majored in Educational Studies and minored in English Literature and Language. With twice as many classes as other students, Lisha spoke of having eight hours of classes a day, and not having any time to rest.

While many students these days tend to relax on the weekends, that certainly wasn’t the case for Lisha. As a pianist with part-time jobs and involved in many student activities, she felt that other people thought of her as the person who was always busy. However, she pointed out something important for here – she felt that her undergraduate life was busy and fulfilled. To misquote the unofficial motto of people in Hong Kong, she “played hard and… studied hard.”

Going to England and the Challenges

The United Kingdom was not originally on the cards for Lisha. She had finished her undergraduate studies and was applying to several universities around the world. Lisha was entitled to teach at any number of schools around China, but received an unconditional offer to Oxford, to do a Master of Science in Educational Studies.

When arriving in England, Lisha was expecting to experience a language barrier, as many students traveling overseas for the first time do. However, it was more of a cultural barrier that was a problem. The different educational cultures between China and the UK stood out substantially, requiring Lisha to adapt to a different learning style quickly.

“When I got my advice from my supervisors, if you can’t catch up, please give up,” Lisha said with a laugh. “That is what they expected because they expect your learning capacity and language skills would be super, but at the time, not really.”

Given that it was Lisha’s first time abroad, everything was new. She felt that she succeeded after she studied really hard and she was able to adjust. “I had no time to play, even if I wanted. There was a lovely party, and I really want to, but I have to study.”

One of the other issues was the different approaches that teachers take in China and the UK. She was forced to become an independent learner, and to develop her critical thinking skills.

How Her Critical Thinking Skills Resulted in Success for SUSTech

As part of her studies in England, she was regularly asked about her opinions and her ideas about matters, and Lisha would have to say, “To be honest, I didn’t have any.” She spoke about how she had to develop her critical thinking skills after completing her master’s degree and while she completed her Ph.D. The importance of being able to build an argument and being able to articulate an argument is something that she noticed in her English colleagues but had never been encouraged by her classmates in China.

On her arrival at SUSTech, after years in England, Lisha was invited to organize a competition in conjunction with the National Youth League. She admitted with a giggle that she didn’t know anything about debating at the time, and the then director had organized her to oversee student activities. It took a bit of time for her to put together a plan, recruit students, organize teachers and structure the platform for future years. Unfortunately, one of the two selected students dropped out through a lack of interest, but a new student was signed up in short order.

Lisha’s eyes sparkled, and she spoke fondly of her coaching experience. “I passed a judge test for the debate, and I learned together with my students. Because we would work together, we didn’t work together like teacher and students, but more like friends.” She was thrilled to see that the students were called the best novice debaters.

“We broke into the octa-finals,” said Lisha, breaking into a big smile. “We were not that bad, and it was our first time to do that… and then we broke into the grand final.” They had been competing in the South Regional Round of the FLTRP Cup and had qualified for the Grand Finals in Beijing later that year. Lisha was open about their chances and chalked it up as a learning experience, and a type of success for everybody.

Where to From Here?

Given the success from their first tournament, Lisha continued her work in helping students with their debating and public speaking skills. The first area of focus was looking at the type of students and how to best help them. She spoke about how there are usually two types of students – those that have language skills and those that have knowledge skills. Both can be molded to become excellent debaters in different ways.

Many students are very knowledgeable about their academic area, given their scientific studies. Lisha talked about students needing what she called “Wikipedia knowledge,” like needing to know just enough about everything.

“I’m not good at dancing, I don’t know how to dance, but you need to know the names of waltz and salsa,” as an example of students needing to broaden their horizons. A general education covering a wide range of areas is very important, but it’s not forced on students because it’s not central to their studies.

The offering of Critical Thinking and English Debate as an elective for students was viewed positively by students, and Lisha believes that the offering of this course is essential to the development of critical thinking skills for students. She spoke at length about how some students need to work on how to develop an argument further and improve their critical thinking skills. All students were learning and developing a habit for seeking different sorts of knowledge, current affairs and cultural issues, and a habit of taking sides on issues.

Other Student Success

Given SUSTech’s focus on STEM subjects, it’s been challenging for the Center for Language Exchange to create a high-profile debating program. What they have been able to do is embed public speaking and presentation skills into every major – forcing students to speak in public and present on different subjects. Lisha points out to students, “if you want to be a very brilliant scientist, this is something you need to overcome,” when they complain about stage fright and being scared.

The differences between academic and competitive public speaking could not be starker. Lisha’s eyes lit up when she spoke about Zhao Yanchu, who came second in the Category C (non-English major) Guangdong Final of the 2018 National English Competition for College Students in the days before the interview. Lisha talked about how Yanchu, among her other classmates, were among a set of five students from Sichuan Province that showed remarkable ability to bloom under her tutelage. The five students, who had been taught in foreign language high schools before arriving at SUSTech, had never been trained in public speaking or debating, which gave Lisha enormous opportunity to mold the students. This small group of students found stimulation in seeking deeper meaning and analysis of current affairs, the economy and a wide variety of issues, with many of them studying maths and one studying finance.

It is Lisha’s firm belief that these are students that have bloomed under her guidance and encouragement. By providing a platform for the students to shine, they are finding a new way to express their intelligence and understanding of the world around them.

Where Else Can Students Succeed at SUSTech?

Lisha spoke highly about the activities that SUSTech offers. With students being provided so many different activities all the time, she pointed out that the world is no longer, “just excel at studying hard and studying hard.” The world has moved on, and employers are seeking developed, innovative talents that have nurtured and fostered their own versatile sets of skills and interests.

“I think the aim of higher education is no longer ‘graduate and find a job. It’s like to teach you how to survive in society,” explained Lisha. The activities are not for the distraction of students, but for their enhancement and development. By providing students with a broader horizon and a global outlook, SUSTech is providing a different perspective of education for students, and they are succeeding in different ways.

At the end of the interview, Liu Lisha was asked: “what message would you give to those who are wanting to succeed?” Lisha raised a series of points. Firstly, be critical, and understand why you are making your decisions. Secondly, be prepared to change your positions if you need to. She also spoke about the need to be culturally aware and independent. Finally, she spoke about being good at what you do – whether it is your academic pursuits or extra-curricular activities.

In Summary

Liu Lisha’s experience shows that students can find success in all sorts of ways. Lisha’s success went from Beijing to Oxford to London to Shenzhen. She has helped students from all over the country find success in a variety of different ways, through their ability to communicate, analyze and learn.

As this journalist walked away from the interview, he felt that he had barely scratched the surface about success among the student body.

Do you have a story about a student on campus succeeding in a non-traditional manner? Send us an email at sustechnewshub@sustc.edu.cn, and we will be in touch to find out more.