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| 怎么办？What to do? The HS is encouraging Grade 9 students to pre-meditate how they might respond responsibly to risky situations. |
Over the past few weeks, Grade 9 students have engaged in conversations about identifying risks during their pastoral care sessions.
HS Counselors and staff have been leading discussions encouraging students to identify various risks they have or could encounter as part of their student lives in Beijing, ranging from bullying and peer pressure to underage smoking and illegal drug use. The main goal of these pastoral care sessions is to then encourage students to plan and consider what they might do to reduce the harm of potentially risky circumstances or situations which they might encounter in the future.
Last Monday, for example, HS Assistant Principal David Wood discussed the risks of drinking alcohol as a teen in Beijing. "Maybe you have decided not to sample alcohol until you're of age--or maybe even never. But that doesn't mean that your friends won't try alcohol, or try to convince you to taste it. What we're talking about here today is the importance of developing strategies to deal with potentially risky situations. For example, even if you've decided to abstain from alcohol, what do you do, if you're at a party, and a friend hands you a drink?"
Students spoke up:
"Leave."
"Take the cup and pour it out when no one is looking."
"Refuse and make an excuse about having to wake up early for a game or appointment."
During the same session, students broke into small groups to strategize over how they'd handle different risky situations. Then they shared their most strategic ideas with the rest of the class. One group, who took on the topic of taking taxis in Beijing, suggested the following:
1. Avoid traveling alone in a taxi, especially at night
2. Always ask for the 'fa piao,' or receipt, because you can use the number on the ticket to track your driver in case of loss or emergency
3. Make sure at least one person in your group has a cell phone
4. Carry an extra cell phone recharge card in your wallet, in case your phone runs out of money while you're in a taxi and need to call to get directions or help
"As parents," David commented, "we'd like to think our kids won't be exposed to risky or difficult situations. But what we can do is help our teenagers think about what types of risks they might encounter, and to plan ahead with safe and practical ways that they can respond."