The eight-day conference, conducted by Harvard College undergraduates, faculty, and prominent leaders from both nations, seeks to expose 600 Chinese high school students to liberal arts education.
HSYLC 2006, supported by the Goldman Sachs Foundation and American Airlines, recruited 37 Harvard students to create and teach a curriculum at a school in Shanghai.
The program received extensive media attention across China, bringing approximately 600 high school students from among thousands of applicants to participate.
In the past, seminars have ranged from the academic, such as Uncovering Dark Corners of Human Psyche: Abnormal Psychology, The Game Theory of International Relations, Your Brain on Computers, and V.2.0: Present and Future Possibilities in Electronically Enhancing the Human Mind, to less conventional ones, including The Social Psychology of Love and Attraction and A History of Chocolate.
The seminars introduce students to a new style of learning that incorporates active and collaborative research, critical analysis of sources and ideas, and Socratic discussions among peers.