星光频道第二期：“关注学习的长期意义”——2024届毕业生代表访谈 | Star Channel Vol. 2

在竞争非常激烈的美本申请中，你在ED阶段就收到了范德堡大学（U.S News排名18）历史学专业的录取通知书，能具体讲述下你大学申请的心路历程吗？

In a very competitive U.S university application, you received an acceptance letter from Vanderbilt University (U.S News ranking 

18)'s history major at the Early Decision stage, could you tell us more specifically about your college application journey?

决定申请哪些学校是整个大学申请过程中最有趣的部分。我在升入12年级的暑假参观了加拿大和美国的一些学校，这确实让我更清楚自己想要找什么样的学校。我的一个加拿大朋友还主持了一个接待世界各地大学生的问答会，其中有一位正好是范德堡的学生。她描述了她在那里的生活——从学术、地理位置、食物到社交场景，在深入比较了几所我心仪的学校后，我觉得这所学校非常适合我，于是决定申请 Early Decision。

至于实际的大学申请过程，写申请文书绝对是我一开始感到最迷茫的地方。我在各种大学招生网页上无聊地浏览，看别人读自己的申请文书的视频，也用一些拖延方式不断推迟我的写作。不过，经过几番思考，当我最终决定开始写初稿时，感觉也没那么糟糕。我得到了学校升学指导老师、朋友和家人的大力帮助，不断获得写作灵感，这使得整个过程轻松了很多。

另外，在Ms. Betty（升学指导老师）用她的“30天拒信训练计划”训练我们如何专业地面对收到拒信后，我们已经在心理上做好了接受拒信的充分准备（我们必须主动寻找可能会被拒绝的情况）。当然，当我收到范德堡大学的录取通知书时，我还是非常兴奋的。

Deciding which schools I wanted to apply to was the best part of the entire college application journey. I spent the summer before senior year touring a few schools in Canada and the US, and it definitely gave me a better idea of what I was looking for in a school. A friend of mine also hosted a Q&A panel with college students from around the world, and one of them happened to be a student at Vanderbilt. From what she described of her life there—from the academics, location, and food to the social scene—I thought it was a great fit and after comparing it with several other schools, I decided to apply Early Decision there.

As for the actual college application process itself, writing my essays was definitely where I felt the most lost in the beginning. There was a lot of mindless scrolling on various college admissions webpages, watching YouTube videos of other people reading their essays, and other general forms of 

procrastination, but not a lot of writing on my part. But when I finally started writing my drafts, it wasn’t that bad. I definitely had lots of help from my school counselors, friends, and family, which made the process a whole lot easier.

I’d also say we were more than mentally prepared for rejections after Ms. Betty trained us to take rejections like pros with her 30 days of rejection program (we had to seek out situations where we could end up getting rejected). Of course, I was really happy when I received my admissions letter to Vanderbilt.

在FDIS十年的学习生活中，对于不同学科领域的知识，你是如何学习探索的呢？

During your ten years at FDIS, how have you learned to explore knowledge a

bout different subject areas?

除了上我喜欢的课之外，我和大家一样，也会观看一些我感兴趣的视频，或者听听播客。从老师们那里获得书籍推荐总是很有趣，我会找各种学科的老师请他们推荐他们喜欢的书，我喜欢这种带有互动性的阅读。我也学会了利用学校提供的机会来进一步发展我的兴趣。例如，在与同学一起自学了AP心理学之后，我们想尝试做一些研究，学校正好提供了这样的机会，我们跟随青年学者计划（YRSP）的专家，做了一项心理学专业方面的调查，并完成了研究报告，这绝对是一次非常难忘的经历。我认为，挑战自己去探索课程和课堂上教授的以外的内容是很有益的。即使你最终不再喜欢某些领域，至少可以筛除掉那些不是最感兴趣的东西。

Aside from taking classes I enjoy, like everyone else, I watch videos about things I’m interested in and maybe listen to podcasts too. Asking for book recommendations from subject teachers is always fun too. I’ve also learned to take advantage of the opportunities at school to further some of my interests. For instance, after self-studying AP Psychology with one of my classmates, we wanted to conduct some research. Fortunately, the 

school provided such an opportunity through the Young Scholars Research Program. We collaborated with an expert in the field to conduct a psychological study and completed a research report. It was definitely a very memorable experience. I think it’s good to challenge yourself beyond the curriculum and what’s taught in the classroom. Even if you end up not liking it, it’s good to weed out things you don’t like.

高中最后两年的IBDP课程是非常具有挑战性的课程，我们也知道你有很多兴趣爱好。IBDP课程的学习，和对自身兴趣爱好的不断探索，你如何保持平衡？

The last two years of high school in the IBDP program are very challenging, and we know you have lots of interests in different

 areas, how do you find yourself balancing your studies in the IBDP program with exploring your own interests at the same time?

我认为，养成习惯和维持日常作息对平衡学业和个人兴趣非常有帮助。通常，我一回到家做的第一件事就是看一个节目或电影，从一年级开始，我几乎从未打破过这个循环。它真的能让我在学校忙碌了一整天后重新充满活力，因此我做作业时会特别有动力。跳舞也是如此；我通常每周都会抽出一些时间去上舞蹈课或者自己看视频学一支新舞。不过，IB课程确实非常严格，我确实不得不放弃了一些兴趣爱好。我手机上保存了很多食谱，但我没有足够的时间去提升我的烹饪技能，也没能在心灵上进一步去接近Gordon Ramsay和Jeremy Allen White，不过我会继续追寻我的兴趣的。

I think forming habits and routines really helps with balancing academics and my own interests. Usually, the first thing I do when I get home is watch a show or a movie, and I’ve rarely broken that cycle since literally the first grade. It really reenergizes me after a long day at school, so I’m extra motivated to do my homework. The same goes for dancing; 

I usually set some time aside every week to go to a dance class or learn a dance on my own. But the IB program is indeed very rigorous, and there are definitely interests I’ve had to sacrifice. I have so many food recipes saved on my phone, but I never really had the time to work on my culinary skills and become more emotionally connected to Gordon Ramsay and Jeremy Allen White.

IBDP注重培养学生的批判性思维的精神，关于此，你记忆最深刻的是什么呢？

What is your most memorable experience about critical thinking 

skills which is IBDP program focuses on fostering?

在九年级时，我们的ATL老师给我们播放了一部美人鱼伪纪录片，但并没有告诉我们这是什么。我想班上所有人要么不知道要思考什么，要么就把它当成了真正的纪录片。直到最后一刻，一个看起来非常像合成图像的美人鱼突然吓了我们一跳。影片播放完后，我们的老师在白板上写下了一行字 ——“一派胡言”，告诉我们这些都是假的。我至今仍会在做文献分析时想起这件事，甚至在日常生活中也是如此。

In 9th grade, our ATL teacher showed us a mermaid mockumentary without telling us what it was. I think everyone in the class either didn’t know what to think or took it for a real documentary until the very end, where a very CGI-looking mermaid jump-scared us. 

Then our teacher wrote the words “Bovine Fecal Matter” on the whiteboard when it finished playing. I still think about that when I do my source analysis and also in life in general.

如果你有一天回到FDIS校园，你期望为你所生活过的地方带来怎样的改变？

When you come back to FDIS campus one day, what kind of 

changes do you expect to make to the place where you have lived?

我希望能以我的力量帮助大家尽可能地享受他们的IB体验，也希望我能学到“纳什维尔辣子鸡”的秘方，把它分享给学校。

I hope to contribute to everyone enjoying their IB experience as much as possible. Hopefully, I’ll learn

the secrets to Nashville’s hot chicken recipe, and share it with the school.

在整个高中阶段，你是如何保持学习动力和专注力的？

How did you stay motivated and focused on your studies throughout high school?

为了保持动力，我经常提醒自己学习意味着什么——我选择关注它的长期意义，而不是关注短期的本质。透露一些关于我过去的秘密：我在初中时的 GPA 曾低到 2.81。其实，我想指出的是，只要有足够的付出和努力，一切皆有可能。不要让你目前的学习状况决定你要实现的目标。除此之外，请记住追求你的爱好和兴趣——大学通常希望看到一个平衡的学习者，而不是一个没有个性的学习机器。让你的特殊品质在整个高中期间闪耀并激励你。

To stay motivated, I often reminded myself about what studying means - instead of focusing on the peripheral essence, I chose to focus on what it means in the long term. To reveal some secrets about my past - I have gotten a GPA of 2.81 once in middle school. I want to point out 

that with enough dedication and effort, anything is possible. Do not let the current state of your studies dictate what you strive to achieve. Other than that, remember to pursue your hobbies and interests - colleges often want a balanced learner, not a studying robot with no personality. Let your special qualities shine and inspire you throughout high school.

你发现哪些学习技巧或习惯最有效？它们如何影响了你的表现？

What study techniques or habits did you find most effective, and how 

did they impact your performance?

说实话，我没有什么学习技巧。但是呢，每个人都可以尝试做的就是减少过度强迫性的学习习惯。例如，试图让你的笔记“美观”或整洁并不能真正帮助到复习。相反，可以花更多的时间来抓住课堂的本质，不需要逐字逐句地理解老师所说的一切。顺便说一句，我向大家保证，每个人一生中都至少拖延过一次——老实说，这没什么大不了的（而且我实际上发现提交作业的时间即将耗尽是一个很好的动力来源）。

To be blunt, I don’t really have any study techniques. However, what everyone could try to do is to cut back on excessive studying habits. For example, trying to make your notes “aesthetic” or tidy isn’t really going to help you during revision. Instead, more time

 could be spent on pinpointing the essence of lectures, do not take everything the teacher says word by word. On a side note, I promise you that everyone has at least procrastinated once in their life - its honestly not a big deal (and I actually find time running out to be an excellent source of motivation).

整个IB学习的过程中，你记忆最深刻的是什么？

What is your most memorable experience during IB journey?

那肯定就是享受与同学一起上课的时光。例如，化学和生物学等实验课程都提供了宝贵的实践经验，你可以亲自做实验。在这些实验中的分组也提供了学习沟通和团队合作的机会。

It would definitely be just enjoying my time with my classmates in classes. For instance, the experimental courses such as chemistry and biology both provide valuable hands-on

 experience where you could physically conduct experiments. Grouping up during these experiments provide opportunities to learn the communication and teamwork skills.

在你的学习的过程中，FDIS的老师怎样帮助你最后获得满分的好成绩？

How did FDIS teachers help you to get a full score during your study?

他们无私地投入时间和精力来解决我们的学科问题。另一个方面是，他们对我们作为学生产生的同理心。例如，虽然有时候我把作业拖到截止日期前几天（这是我在IB学习中最遗憾的事情），但我的老师仍然尽全力确保我能交出尽可能高质量的作业。

I would say it would be their selflessness towards dedicating their time and effort into solving our inquiries on their subjects. Another aspect would be their empathy towards us as students. For instance, I remember that I sometimes 

procrastinated writing my assignments to mere days before the deadline (this is what I regretted the most in my IB course), but teachers still put in their entire effort into making sure I handed in the high quality assignments.

回顾你的高中生涯，你会给学弟学妹什么建议，来帮助他们顺利完成IB课程的学习？

Looking back on your high school career, what advice would you give to FDIS current students to help them successfully complete IB journey?

老实说，犹豫、危机感和恐惧都存在于我的IB旅程中。例如，当我需要选择IA主题、复习考试，甚至决定穿什么去参加晚会时，这些情绪都会出现，哈哈。然而，不要臣服于压力，要让它成为表现更好的动力源泉。另外，请确保利用老师提供的所有资源——他们的教学经验使他们能够选择最有益、最合适的教科书、练习和其他材料来帮助我们学习。不要花太多时间试图寻找其他捷径。

Honestly, I would say that hesitation, insecurity and fright were all present in my IB journey. For instance, these emotions are present when choosing my IA topic, reviewing for the exams, or even deciding what to wear to prom, haha.  However, don’t curb under the pressure, but let it be a source of motivation to performing better. Additionally,

 make sure to utilize all the resources your teacher provide- their teaching experience enables them to choose the most effective and suitable textbooks, practices, and other materials. Don’t spend too much time trying to find some other shortcut.