美國奧數總教練羅博深教授尋美數學

On March 11, 2018, Po-Shen Loh, a professor of mathematics at Carnegie Mellon University in the United States, came to Beijing Royal School to deliver an inspiring lecture to the high school students.

Since he began serving the head coach of the U.S. Mathematical Olympiad Team, Po-Shen Loh has led the U.S. team to two consecutive championships at the International Olympiad Math in 2015 and 2016.

The US team accredits this refreshingly consistent upturn in performance with Po-Shen Loh’s passion for learning and work ethic, for which he has become widely known.

He is committed to letting more people discover the inner beauty and practicality of mathematics and has created the open-source learning platform “Expii”.

During his visit to Beijing Royal School, Po-Shen Loh sought to inspire and to guide students in discovering the beauty of mathematics.

He suggested that the study of mathematics, just as to other disciplines, relies on the combination of a passion for learning and hard work.

2018年3月11日，美國卡耐基梅隆大學的數學教授羅博深（Po-Shen Loh）受邀來到北京王府學校，為高中學生帶來了一場發現數學之美的精彩講座。

在臺上羅博深教授為王府高一、高二年級的學生們展示了學習數學的全新視角，還邀請他們上臺做游戲，幫助他們理解數學在生活中的應用，

他說：“能學好數學最關鍵的因素是學習的熱情和能量”，而這種能量根植于對生活的關注和思考。

現場，王府的學生就數學迷思，與羅博深教授進行了問答交流，深厚的數學功底受到了羅教授極大的肯定。

羅博深擔任美國奧數隊總教練以來，在2015年和2016年帶領美國隊連續贏得兩屆國際奧林匹克數學學術活動團體冠軍。

創造了美國隊的參賽記錄，也因此為人們所熟知。

除此之外，羅博深致力于讓更多人發現數學的內在美和實用性，創立了開源學習平臺Expii。

此次到訪北京王府學校，羅博深是希望引導學生們發現數學之美，告訴他們學習數學和學習其他學科一樣，學習的熱情和努力付出是最重要的。

·一問一答·

Q你有什么教學心得想和我們的老師分享？What kind of teaching experience would you share with our teachers?

羅博深：From my experience of coaching top students, also trying to encourage all students, not only top students.

I feel that the most important piece of the puzzleis passion and energy.

So one of my objectives today in giving this talk was to share some of my passion in mathematics, and hopefully light a little flamein some of your students as well to do mathematics.

So I feel that all people actually have great potential, and it is really whether or not their heart drives them to do these great things to achieve them.

So the biggest lesson that I try to bringto all the world is passion.

在我教授那些非常優秀的學生里，也包括所有學生，我發現他們能學好數學最關鍵的因素是學習的熱情和能量。

因此在我今天的講座中要分享的，是對數學的熱情，也希望能夠點燃你們學習數學的興趣。

我相信所有人都有很大的潛力，關鍵是你的心是否能引導（這個潛力）去實現你的目標。

因此我想分享給你們的是學習的熱情。

Q 您如何理解中國學生和美國學生在數學學習上的差異？/How do you think the difference on maths study between Chinese and American students?

羅博深：By going around the whole world and giving these kinds of math lectures, it is very interesting to see the different kinds of back grounds and approaches that each student brings.

It is definitely true that many Chinese students have many of the techniques learnt already because of the different classes that they take.

Sometimes some people compare，maybe some people say that there is more creativities in certain approaches and more learning of techniques in other approaches.

My opinion actually is that no country has the best technique.

I think that the best thing we can do is to learn from all the different methods that are throughout the world, and to make the best technique together with them.

The best thing to do is to bring together creativity and also learning of techniques and practice.

If you can make sure that on both of these dimensions you are strong, you have the best of both worlds.

走訪了世界各地并進行了各種講座之后，我發現了不同教育背景中，學生會帶有相應的學習方式。

中國學生確實已經學到了很多解題技巧因為他們在課堂上學到的很深入。

有一些觀點認為，某一種學習方式看重創新精神而另外一些方式重在解題技巧。

我的觀點是任何單一的學習方式都不是最好的。

我認為最好的學習方式是去學習和借鑒不同的方式，融合成自己最佳的學習方式。

最佳的學習方式是既注重創新，也注重學習技巧和實踐。

如果你確認能夠在這兩個維度都做得很好，那么你就擁有了組好的學習方式。

Q您對北京王府學校有什么印象？/What impression you have on Beijing Royal School?

羅博深：This is now my third time that I come to BRS to speak in your auditorium.

I should say that I was very impressed all the times by the combination of cultural approaches you have with both the Chinese culture obviously, and also a lot of inspiration from many cultures around the world.

Actually I am on the opinion that the more you learn from other methods, the better of methods you can build yourself.

So I have been impressed by how your students come with both of these approaches, and your teachers as well.

I also have already obviously noticed that in your school, throughout the entire school, you have made an effort to combine both English and Chinese in the ways that your students hopefully,when they graduate,

they will also be citizens of the world, trying to bring their ideas and their culture from China to the rest of the world, and to also eventually bring that back.

I am very impressed by how you fuse all of these together.

這是我第三次來到北京王府學校舉行講座了，但是我每次都感到很驚訝。

這個學校能把諸多文化元素，包括中國和其他文化結合得很好。

實際上我認為越多地吸取其他文化的優點，你就可以變得越完善。

令我印象深刻的還有在學生和老師身上都體現出多元文化的融合。

我也注意到在你們學校，整個校園，你們努力在將中西方文化結合起來，這種方式讓學生能夠建立起世界公民的意識，他們會將中國的思想和文化帶到世界其他地方，并且把其他文化中先進的部分引進來。

對于你們能夠做到這些，我感到印象深刻。

Q天賦和熱情，哪個更重要？/Which is more important, talent or passion?

羅博深：When I look at people, the characteristic I look for is that raw energy and passion for what they are doing.

This is because that I really believe that geneticsdon’t have that big influence on what your mental capacity is.

Certainly there are very a few people who have some very unusual advantage genetically.

For example, Yao Ming is very tall and most of us is are not that tall.

But there is only one Yao Ming.

Maybe there are some more basketball players around the rest of the world too, but their (difference) are still very small.

Most of the rest of us get our skill through practice and hard work.

So to me, if you can align your passion and your energy towards a goal, you can overcome lots of things.

For example, you may think that you are not good at maths because your classmates seem so much better.

But that advantage might only because he/she starts to learn maths six months before you.

A six-month advantage can be overcome if you really want to do it.

For example, if you are in a classroom, if you are not paying attention, you may as well be sleeping, it makes no difference.

But if you are carefully listening, you will take in so much more.

This is just one example of how aligning your work with what you are trying to achieve can overcome lots of things.

Because it is like the tortoise and hare.

There is a saying that somebody has a lot of ability but does not use it, they do not go as far as somebodywho just work as hard as they can.

And so this is why I feel that if you really put that passion forward, then you can do things that will overcome all sorts of what may seems like disadvantages.

當我觀察學生的時候，會關注他們對于學習的熱情和能量。

這是因為我相信生物學上的差異對人的思考能力并沒有很大影響。

當然有一部分人具有天生的優勢。

比如姚明很高但是大多數人沒有他那么高。

但是世界上只有一個姚明。

世界上也許還有其他很多籃球運動員，但是他們（天生的差異）并沒有那么大。

我們多數人是通過實踐和辛勤工作學習技術的。

因此我認為，如果你將學習的熱情和能量在同一方向結合起來，你會克服很多困難。

舉例來說，也許你認為自己數學學不好，因為其他同學比你學得快。

但是他們的優勢也許是因為比你早學了六個月。

如果你真的想學，六個月的差異是完全可以克服的。

舉個例子，如果你在課上，如果你不認真聽講，你可能會睡覺，那么這節課你沒什么收獲。

但是如果你認真聽講，你會學到很多。

這只是一個例子，說明如何將你所做和你的目標結合起來，可以克服很多困難。

這就像龜兔賽跑的故事，寓意一個人有很大能量，但是不去利用，他們的成就就比不上努力學習的那些人。

這就是為什么如果把學習的熱情充分發揮，就可以克服很多看上去是“困難”的事情。