STUDENTS attending one of Dr Joseph Lian Yi-zheng's classes can never be sure what to expect.
Dr Lian, winner of the University of Science and Technology's Michael Gale Medal for teaching excellence, likes to surprise and shock his students.
'I want my students to come to my class with a fresh mind and expect something new and surprising every day,' said the economics lecturer, who never distributes notes or asks students to prepare in advance.
'There wouldn't be any novelty if they knew beforehand what they were going to learn in the class. Students should be interactive rather than receptive during classes.' Dr Lian likes to stimulate students' intellectual curiosity by raising unexpected questions. He tries to arouse their desire to think and explore.
'I like to quote examples of daily life to illustrate problems and let my pupils enjoy the excitement of exploring the knowledge in macro-economics,' he said.
Having finished his secondary studies at Kowloon Wah Yan College and pursuing his mathematics first degree and economics doctorate in the United States, Dr Lian admits that his secondary teachers and the US education style had a great impact on his teaching philosophy.
'My teachers influenced me a lot. My mathematics teacher in secondary school was stimulating. He made me think of problems at a deeper level,' he said.