The 2019 Summer School of Beijing University League for Cultivation of Excellent Engineers (Beijing Excellence League) took place from May 19 to June 2. It was initiated by Sino-French Engineer School of Beihang University and held in École Centrale de Lyon, Lycée Chaptal and Lycée Saint-Louis. 20 students and teachers from 17 universities of the league took part in the summer school.
The students spent their first week on various forms of learning and hands-on activities at École Centrale de Lyon. For example, in a class Prof. Olivier Bareille designed a research project of industry systems for the students, in which they completed the whole process of design, modelling, analysis and implementation. They gained knowledge of the features of the French education of engineers and had first-hand experience of the international teaching atmosphere as well as the essence of team work in the French education of engineers.
The students also took experiment classes of hydrodynamics, aeronautics, astronautics, optics and polymer chemistry together with French students. They exchanged thoughts about study as well as the education system and methods of each other’s country. In this way, the students experienced a different teaching method and the fun of cultural differences, and meanwhile they thought about other possibilities of their learning.
The participants spent the second week in Paris. They visited Lycée Chaptal and Lycée Saint-Louis, where they received a warm welcome from the directors and students of the two schools. They also learned about the French education system of engineers and interacted with the French students there in class.
In addition, the students took part in Olympiades de Sciences de l’Ingénieur, a French high school student competition of science and technology hosted by l'Union des Professeurs de Sciences et Techniques Industrielles (UPSTI, the Union of Professors in Industrial Sciences and Technology). They also visited the exhibition of scientific and technological projects completed by the students from 70 French high schools and two universities in Beijing.
Olympiades de Sciences de l’Ingénieurn was supported by the Ministry of Education of France and organized by famous French enterprises like Électricité de France (EDF), Thales and ALTEN. It requires students to carry out multidisciplinary projects that integrate various technologies, achieve innovative functions and solve engineering and real-life problems, to finish modelling and simulation and to demonstrate the real products. It is aimed at those French high school students who are counterparts of Chinese university students. Each team consists of two to five students. Among the 72 teams that reached the final this year, there were two Chinese teams selected by UPSTI and Beijing Excellence League, which were from Beihang University and Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications respectively.
According to the students, the classes, explorations of French culture, club activities, visits and practical activities of the summer school enabled them to gain diverse knowledge, immerse themselves in an international atmosphere, have access to modern facilities, develop a strong friendship and keep improving themselves. The summer school also helped deepen their understanding of their majors and update their career plans.
Beijing Excellence League was initiated by Sino-French Engineer School of Beihang University and included 17 universities in Beijing, such as Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture and so on. As the secretary-general of the league, Sino-French Engineer School has successfully organized the summer school eight times since 2012, which enhances the domestic and international influence of the Sino-foreign education model of Beihang University. From 2014 to 2018, the summer school was held in France and the United States seven times, aiming to broaden the horizon of the participants, familiarize them with the mode and content of engineering education in Western developed countries and help the participants improve their learning and teaching methods in a well-directed manner.
Reported by Ma Jiming
Reviewed by Xu Ping
Edited by Jia Aiping
Translated by Li Mingzhu
