Teaching |

Teaching assistant for architectural and urban design studio at Politecnico di Milano

Fri, 01 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Qian Liu served as a teaching assistant for the Master’s level course ‘Thematic Studio (Section E) - Architectural and Urban Design’ at Politecnico di Milano. This course was designed for international students, including students from Italy, Spain, Turkey, China, Armenia, etc., and was conducted in English. Qian Liu held this position in the fall of 2021 and again in the fall of 2022.

In the fall of 2021, due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, the teaching method was hybrid. It transitioned to in-person instruction in the fall of 2022, which allowed students to conduct more effective on-site surveys of the design sites.

The course focused on architectural and urban design. The course content centred on the urban regeneration of the historic centre of Meda, Italy, and the urban regeneration of the historic centre of Ganzhou, China. Students were given the choice between these two sites for their projects.

Instruction emphasised the reading and rewriting of historical urban morphology and the revitalisation of emptied historical centres through the creation of high-quality urban public spaces and architecture that aligned with the urban context. The course also placed importance on energy sustainability, including building thermal environment simulation, and heritage preservation methods and techniques, such as decay identification and fixation.

Qian Liu’s responsibilities as a teaching assistant included reviewing the design work of each group, leading on-site surveys, and helping to organise class sessions and exams, prepare the course curriculum, and gather necessary graphical and textual materials for students’ design projects.

Qian Liu’s broader teaching philosophy, which informed his approach in this role, prioritises fostering an environment where students develop critical and creative thinking, proactively seek out resources, and receive constructive feedback. He believes in guiding students to actively construct their understanding rather than passively absorb information and strives to create an inclusive classroom culture that respects individual differences and diverse learning styles.

Group photo of students, professors, and teachign assistants, during on-site survey in Meda, October 2022

Group photo on the exam day, December 2021

Examples of students’ works:

Example 1

Student group: Y. Xiong，J. Wen，J. Lu，Z. Huang，X. Huang
The Ganzhou case: Urban regeneration of Nanshijie Historical District, Ganzhou
2021 Fall semester

Example 2

Student group: S. Abad, A. Gaviria, K. Lyson, L. Zabolski
The Meda case: Revitalisation of the ‘Lacuna’ courtyards in the historical centre of Meda, Italy
2021 Fall semester

Example 3

Student group: M. C. Behr, Q. Bao, X. He
The Meda case: Reusing the built heritage of Palazzo Mascheroni, Meda, Italy
2021 Fall semester

Example 4

Student group: M. I. R. Bravo, L. Mazzi, W. Feng
The Meda case: Revitalisation of the ‘Lacuna’ courtyards in the historical centre of Meda, Italy
2022 Fall semester

Teaching assistant at the joint workshop between Politecnico di Milano and Southeast University

Thu, 01 Sep 2016 00:00:00 +0000

Qian Liu served as a teaching assistant for the Master’s level international workshop, ‘The Urban Regeneration Project for Ganzhou: Between City, Underground and Water’ in June 2021. This workshop was a joint collaboration between Politecnico di Milano, Italy, and Southeast University, China.

The workshop was conducted online due to COVID-19 travel restrictions. The participants were international Master’s students from various countries, including Italy, China, Spain, and Turkey, with a total of approximately 30 students. The language of instruction was English.

The workshop focused on architectural and urban design. The content centred on the urban regeneration of the historic centre of Ganzhou, China, mainly the Nanshijie (南市街) district. This involved connecting historical monuments such as the Confucius Temple, Buddhist temples, an old commercial street with historical courtyard residences, and an abandoned underground drainage system ‘Fu-shou Gou’ that dates back to the Song Dynasty (11th century).

Instruction emphasised reading and rewriting historical urban morphology and revitalising the emptied historical centre by producing high-quality urban public spaces and architecture that fits the urban context. Particular attention was given to the unique ancient drainage system, which students were encouraged to integrate into their design projects to rediscover and exhibit this historical structure.

Qian Liu’s responsibilities as a teaching assistant included supporting the professors (Prof. Laura Pezzetti and Prof. Li Bao) in facilitating the workshop and guiding the students in their design projects.

Throughout his involvement, Qian Liu’s overarching teaching philosophy guided his approach. This philosophy prioritises fostering students’ critical and creative thinking, encouraging proactive resourcefulness, and providing constructive feedback. He believes in facilitating active knowledge construction over passive information absorption and strives to create an inclusive and respectful learning environment that acknowledges the diversity of students’ backgrounds and learning styles.

Screenshot on the last day of the joint workshop, June 2021

Senior lecturer in architectural and urban history at Wuhan Zebra Crossing Education

Tue, 01 Sep 2015 00:00:00 +0000

Qian Liu’s involvement with Wuhan Zebra Corssing Education Technology Co., Ltd. began during his master’s studies, initially taking on a part-time role teaching architectural and urban history. His responsibilities included delivering lectures, designing and developing curriculum.

His contributions to the company steadily increased, culminating in his promotion to the full-time position of head of architectural history and theory courses in September 2018. In this role, his responsibilities expanded to include coordinating and managing faculty.

Qian Liu’s dedication and effectiveness in this role were recognised in 2018 when he received the ‘Outstanding Contribution Award’.

The courses he taught included Western Architectural and Urban History, Chinese Architecture and Urban History, and Architectural Construction. Throughout his time at Zebra Crossing, Qian Liu’s teaching philosophy centred on cultivating critical and creative thinking in students, encouraging proactive resourcefulness, and providing constructive feedback within an inclusive and respectful learning environment. His approach aimed to guide students beyond passive information absorption, fostering their active construction of understanding of the subject matter.

Photo with students, July 2019