Minerva 的第四課：何謂視野
大家常說：「出國就會開啟你的視野」，可是卻沒有人告訴我們，到底什麼是視野，有了視野又有什麼好處呢？
我想用我和新進學妹的談話來談談什麼視野。他問了很多的問題，像是和同學的思想激盪、一天的生活、第一年的課程，其實都是很好的問題。可惜，我們的討論的多限於知識的成長，因為，與來自四十多國的同學一起遊歷七個城市的成長，好難說啊！不過這篇文章，我想嘗試分析什麼是視野，以及視野帶給我的改變。
學習的三層次
對我而言，視野是學習的一部分，所以要討論視野，得先把 Minerva 的學習簡要分成三層次。第一層是知識，可以充實腦袋，第二層是知識＋體驗，可以運用知識來感受和體驗世界，第三層是則是知識＋體驗＋自我成長，把知識和體驗帶來的衝擊化為己用，成為自己的一部分。第一層的學習可能哪裡都有，但是第二層與第三層只有視野獨有。
第一層：知識的吸收
第一層的知識在 Minerva 就是翻轉教室的線上課程和批判性的思考框架（Habits of Mind)，是最顯而易見、可以現學現學現賣的層次。像是其中一個思考框架，叫做 Level of Analysis，在課堂裡，我們就得思考，如何把舊金山的的無家者議題，分析成社會層級、社區層級、家庭層級、和個人層級，再用這些層級分析為什麼城市裡充滿著無家者。
我會說在台大、沒什麼視野的我，只看重這個層次，畢竟 (1) 這是社會對聰明的定義 (2) 在台灣同值性高的情況下，其他層次的學習，很難看見。
第二層：當知識遇見體驗
第二層是知識與體驗的結合。這一層跳脫書本上紙上談兵，實踐「讀萬卷書不如行萬里路」。
我會說這層次的學習，來自於看得見的新奇與差異。
像是我們所有人都知道拉丁美洲人不愛工作、阿根廷通膨嚴重，但是那份強烈的感受，不來自書上的文字和數字，來自出門買飯的時候，所有店家突然都沒開門，因為又有國定假日。通膨的體驗也來自上個月餐廳的菜單突然從 1000 漲到 1200 阿根廷披索，下個月又從 1200 漲到 1400。我認為這份感受是重要的，因為遇見了，才會激發個人的好奇心，在未來的某一天，想要了解更多。
又像是我們可能從新聞上都讀到韓國的女權運動，但是卻沒有韓國女性告訴你他的親身的體驗來的深刻。當時我們越聊冒出越多問題，這些問題都讓我有對韓國女權有更加細緻的見解，看見所有男性和女性的觀點從何而來，不再一竿子打翻一船人。
第三層：知識、體驗、和自我改變
第三層的改變是自我的成長，來自知識和體驗對自我的衝擊。Minerva 多元的環境常常帶來很多意外，讓我不得不改變和成長。
像是阿根廷政府在我上飛機的前一天，又把我的簽證記錯了第三次，電話也打不通。我在舊金山的租約已經到期，害我不知道下一週、下個月該何去何從，這時候該怎麼辦？學習除了採取緊急應變措施以外，練習想像去不了、沒有同學們的生活，學習在焦慮中以平常心面對。
又像是當烏克蘭的同學遭逢戰爭，憂心家人戰死沙場，又和俄羅斯同學大聲吵架的時候該怎麼辦？第一層的學習可能是了解更多的政治背景，第二層的學習，是去聽烏克蘭同學他們的體驗，但是第三層的學習是練習在當同學半夜驚醒於家人死亡的噩夢時，給他們一個擁抱，練習在最困難的時刻支持彼此。當時，我看見再聰明的知識框架，在危急存亡之秋，根本沒用。我明白自己的無用與渺小，學習謙卑、學習同理、學習接受世界的不公、學習培養心裡的韌度，即便這些成長，一點也不舒服的。
（我舉這些例子，是想要讓大家更容易理解，但坦白來說，我最大的改變其實來自於和同學們的生活與吵架裡的，畢竟都是枕邊人麻…….）
結語
人們常說 Minerva 的同學相對成熟。因為大量的新體驗就會帶來新的好奇、問題，和麻煩，所以我們快速成長。但要一個二十多歲的年輕人，經歷這麼多的害怕、崩潰、徬徨、困惑，又必要嗎？今天的我是有所保留。
不過，當我問以前的學姊，他在 Minerva 的最大學習是什麼，他說：「成為一個更好的人」。他沒有說更聰明的人、更成功的人、更善良的人，卻說更好的人，真的是在恰當也不過了。因為在不斷地衝擊下，原先的驕傲與偏見的終究脫落，太多新的感受、價值進入又脫離原先的系統，我所見的視野，真的只能用「成為一個更好的人」攏統概括而已。
於是，我只好回答學妹：「恩…… Minerva 可以帶給你的，可能遠超乎你現在所能想像的。」
Minerva 畢業系列
• Minerva 畢業
• Minerva 的第一課：專心致志遠勝聰明才智
• Minerva 的第二課：環境的重要
• Minerva 的第三課：科學下的謙卑
• Minerva 的第四課：何謂視野
The Fourth Lesson of Minerva: What is Horizon?
Everyone often says, “Going abroad will broaden your horizons,” but no one really tells us what exactly a horizon is and what benefits it brings.
I would like to talk about what a horizon is based on my conversation with a new junior student. She asked many questions about things like exchanging ideas with classmates, daily life, and the first-year courses, which are all great questions. Unfortunately, our discussion mostly revolved around academic growth, as it’s difficult to express personal growth from traveling to seven cities with classmates from over forty countries! However, in this article, I want to attempt to analyze what a horizon is and the changes it has brought to me.
Three Levels of Learning
For me, a horizon is part of learning, so to discuss it, we need to first divide Minerva’s learning into three levels. The first level is knowledge, which enriches the mind. The second level is knowledge + experience, allowing us to use knowledge to feel and experience the world. The third level is knowledge + experience + self-growth, where we internalize the impacts of knowledge and experiences and make them a part of ourselves. The first level of learning can be found almost anywhere, but the second and third levels are unique to a horizon.
Level One: Absorbing Knowledge
At Minerva, the first level of knowledge is delivered through flipped classrooms and critical thinking frameworks (Habits of Mind), which are the most visible and readily available aspects of learning. For example, one of the thinking frameworks is called “Level of Analysis.” In class, we have to think about how to analyze the issue of homelessness in San Francisco on a societal level, community level, family level, and individual level, and then use these analyses to understand why the city is filled with homeless people.
I must admit that when I was at National Taiwan University (NTU), which lacked a broad horizon, I only focused on this level because (1) it was the societal definition of intelligence, and (2) in Taiwan’s highly competitive environment, it’s challenging to see the importance of learning beyond this level.
Level Two: When Knowledge Meets Experience
The second level is the combination of knowledge and experience. This level goes beyond theoretical discussions and puts into practice the saying, “It is better to travel ten thousand miles than to read ten thousand books.”
I would say that learning at this level comes from encountering novelty and differences that are visible.
For example, while we all know that Latin Americans are not fond of work and Argentina has severe inflation, the intense feeling of experiencing these things does not come from words and numbers in books. It comes from going out to buy food and finding that all the shops suddenly closed because it was a national holiday. The experience of inflation also comes from seeing restaurant menus increase from 1000 to 1200 Argentine pesos one month, and then to 1400 the next month. I believe that these experiences are essential because they ignite personal curiosity, prompting us to want to learn more someday.
Similarly, we may read about the women’s rights movement in South Korea in the news, but it is not as profound as hearing about it firsthand from Korean women. As we talked more, numerous questions arose, which allowed me to gain a more nuanced understanding of the women’s rights movement in Korea, seeing that all viewpoints from both men and women do not fit into a single category.
Level Three: Knowledge, Experience, and Self-Change
The changes at the third level involve personal growth resulting from the impact of knowledge and experiences. The diverse environment at Minerva often brings unexpected situations that force me to change and grow.
For instance, just a day before my flight, the Argentine government mistakenly recorded my visa for the third time, and I couldn’t reach them by phone. My lease in San Francisco had already expired, leaving me uncertain about where to go the following week or month. What should I do in such a situation? Apart from taking emergency measures, I learned to imagine a life without my classmates and face anxiety with equanimity.
Another example is when Ukrainian classmates faced the horrors of war, worrying about their families on the battlefield and getting into heated arguments with Russian classmates. What should one do in such a situation? At the first level of learning, one might gain an understanding of the political background, and at the second level, one could listen to the experiences of Ukrainian classmates. However, the third level of learning, it involved practicing how to give them a hug when they woke up in the middle of the night from nightmares about their families’ deaths and practicing supporting each other during the most challenging moments. At that moment, I realized that even the most intelligent knowledge frameworks are useless during critical and life-threatening situations. I understood my own insignificance and uselessness, and I learned humility, empathy, accepting the world’s injustices, and cultivating resilience in the face of discomfort.
(I gave these examples to make it easier for everyone to understand, but honestly, my most significant changes came from living with my classmates and getting into arguments because we all sleep together…)
Conclusion
People often say that Minerva students are relatively mature because a plethora of new experiences bring forth new curiosities, questions, and troubles, leading to rapid growth. But is it necessary for a young person in their twenties to go through so much fear, breakdowns, confusion, and perplexity? Today, I have reservations about it.
However, when I asked a senior student what their most significant learning experience at Minerva was, they said, “Becoming a better person.” They didn’t say a smarter person, a more successful person, or a kinder person. They said a better person, and it couldn’t be more appropriate. Under the constant impact of these experiences, the original pride and prejudices eventually fall away, as new feelings and values enter and depart from the previous system. The horizon I have witnessed can truly be summarized as “becoming a better person.”
So, I can only reply to my junior student, “Well… What Minerva can bring to you might far exceed what you can currently imagine.”
