The article I wrote yesterday attracted the attention of several friends. This made me very happy and boosted my motivation to keep writing.
Back in 2013, when I was pursuing a postgraduate degree at the School of Education, Peking University, I took a course taught by Dean Wen Dongmao. The first assignment was to design a school. I still remember my design at that time (but I won’t elaborate on it here—I’ll save that for later). Now, I am gradually working to design the school of my dreams.
Due to limited financial resources, I haven’t been able to build a physical school yet. However, driven by the pandemic, online teaching has become very common, so I established an online school. This online school has an interesting feature: an audit mechanism.
The Origin of the Audit Mechanism
The prototype of this mechanism comes from the Indian film 3 Idiots. Rancho, the protagonist, says that to attend university, you only need a school uniform. When choosing courses, you don’t have to stick to the training plan—you can walk into any classroom and listen if you’re interested.
I love this free and flexible approach to learning. Therefore, I hope my students can learn with the same freedom as Rancho.
My Personal Experience with Auditing Courses
During my senior year at Tsinghua University, I decided to pursue a postgraduate program at the School of Education, Peking University. So, that year, I often went to Peking University to audit courses that interested me.
Later, in my first year of postgraduate studies at Peking University, severe air pollution hit the city. As I was interested in environmental protection, I returned to Tsinghua to audit several courses and also attended classes at the School of Urban Planning and Design, Peking University. There, I met Dean Lü Bin and a visiting professor from MIT, and gained a great deal. Eventually, Dean Lü even recommended me for an internship at the Harbin Urban Planning Institute.
When I later studied at the University of Wisconsin, I still enjoyed auditing courses across different departments, such as the Computer Science Department and the Curriculum and Instruction Department. This allowed me to meet many professors and experts from various fields.
Details of the Audit Mechanism in My School
In my school, students can audit any class they want. Although I set a very low audit fee, I have never actually collected it.
Auditing students receive all teaching materials—including textbooks, workbooks, and course recordings—just like officially enrolled students. The only differences are that auditing students are not required to complete assignments and will not be called on in class.
I am pleased that many of my students have chosen to audit one or more courses. This helps them expand their knowledge horizons and reduce their families’ educational expenses.