Our day starts with a familiar double-tap on the door as our “dorm parents” — teachers who take on the responsibility of dealing with reckless teenagers’ life in the dorms— stride in with the daily wake up call. After thirty minutes, a string of well-groomed young men and women cheerfully races to breakfast.
This morning routine has become almost instinctive to most Pao School students. It’s easy to forget that moving into an unfamiliar environment and no longer having your mommy and daddy kissing you goodbye every morning is an emotional struggle for some. Homesickness is natural. I have seen 12-year-old girls sobbing hysterically into their phones, begging for their mothers to bring them home. I’ve heard stories (told in confidence, of course) of grown, 16-year-old boysmissing family members so badly they couldn’t sleep. It happens to everyone.
But there is always a calm, supportive figure in the background, providing reassuring smiles, warm embraces, and soothing words of comfort. Whether it is a teacher, a fellow student playing the role of an elder sibling, or a dearly-missed family member on the other end of the computer screen, you can always find someone to communicate your troubles, to wipe the tears away. It’s almost impossible to feel lonely when you’re surrounded by such welcoming friends and an optimistic atmosphere. Being with others who care about you is the perfect cure for homesickness. This phase passes after a period of time, and you come to accept your school and your classmates as your second home and family.
Aside from the usual classes, there is one special course that involves all students—Character Education. Grades are merely numbers, a sheet of paper is unreflective of the qualities you possess. Character Education focuses on shaping students’ view on morality and what cannot be taught in classrooms but only through interaction and experience with other human beings. It teaches us not to beg, borrow, or steal for the sake of an “A,” and that there are so many more important things in life besides high scores.
May 2014
