The STEAM center of Lingnan University is about to announce the results of its annual survey on Hong Kong’s schoolchildren and LIFE education. The survey was jointly supported by the Department of Pediatrics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Pediatric Society of Hong Kong, the Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine of the University of Hong Kong, and Lingnan’s STEAM Education and Research Centre. While the full results have to wait until our news conference, I want to draw public attention, and especially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government’s attention, to the worrisome finding that our youngsters sorely need a sense of direction and a boost to their sense of self-worth.
Self-worth is the key to resilience and must be built on mental capital, which is the capability to love (Love), possessing a good sense of balance and the ability to reflect and learn from mistakes (Insight and Fortitude), and having a strong sense of purpose on a daily basis (Engagement). Professor Paul Yip Siu-fai of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention at the University of Hong Kong explained the need to mentally equip our youngsters with the capability to cope with daily challenges thus: If the kitchen tap is on, and water from the tap is flooding the floor, having people to clear the water from the floor is not going to work. Prevention is always better than the cure. While the Three-tier School-Based Emergency Mechanism, which was introduced in December, does help to an extent, Yip pointed out that some people who commit suicide never show any sign that they are in need. Moreover, lacking a sense of direction, and lacking inner strength, someone saved at one time may still make a second attempt at suicide.
Self-worth is not the same as self-esteem. People may gain self-esteem by receiving a lot of “likes” on social media. But they may not have a strong sense of self-worth. When the number of “likes” drops, and when a youngster is bullied online, self-esteem can quickly evaporate. Some would even commit suicide. Someone with a strong sense of self-worth, however, “knows what he is worth” and can dismiss cyberbullying without complaint.
I agree totally with Dr Chan Kai-tai, associate director of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, that both adults and youngsters need mental health education. To me, mental health education is life education. Life education, with its focus on Love, Insight, Fortitude, and Engagement, nurtures a “growth mindset”, so that one builds inner strength. This inner strength will make a difference when the cultural atmosphere is toxic. For example, when fellow students emphasize and compare grades, when teachers and the principal of the school, as well as parents at home, all glorify high grade achievers and “excellence”, the “underachievers” will feel immense pressure.
Learning from mistakes is life education. Never mind the results. But we do mind our mistakes and want to learn from our mistakes. If we have done our best, and the results are still below average, so what! Not everybody can be above average. We will stand with them. In this way, we build relationships
The Education Bureau launched the 4Rs Mental Health Charter in April. These four R’s include: (1) Rest: Help students cultivate healthy habits from an early age, including having enough rest, getting adequate sleep and taking part in leisure activities. (2) Relaxation: Teach students to take the time to relax, take care of their mental health and practice self-compassion. (3) Relationships: Strengthen the relationships among students, teachers and students, as well as parents and children, so as to enhance their sense of connectedness; help students understand their roles and their importance in these relationships, so as to willingly take on responsibilities and make contributions. (4) Resilience: Equip students to adapt to the inevitable stress and setbacks in life, and teach students to deal with emotions, cope with stress and overcome difficulties with a positive attitude.
These four R’s are great if they work. Sadly, in a toxic atmosphere, and where everybody is all focused on “results”, it is not easy for underperformers to relax. Underperformers will remind themselves to work harder and longer hours, thus logically sacrificing rest. If the key figures to whom one relates are all focused on results, relationships will suffer. Telling students to face stress and difficulties with courage “positively” will not work.
We have to recognize that in the real world, the atmosphere can be toxic. For this reason, strengthening a person’s self-worth is most important. To nurture a sense of self-worth, let us tell our youngsters, and for that matter, anyone whom we love, that we do not really care about results that much, but we do care for their well-being: that we love them and only want them to live as a responsible, upright person who learns from one’s mistakes and respects other people’s rights. As long as they earnestly make an honest effort, why care that much about results? Tell them that even if they do not do so well academically, they can still discover other treasures that life has given them. We all need rest and health. So we should not sacrifice our needed rest and health. If they do badly at one examination, work with them to find out if there was room for improving their performance. Learning from mistakes is life education. Never mind the results. But we do mind our mistakes and want to learn from our mistakes. If we have done our best, and the results are still below average, so what! Not everybody can be above average. We will stand with them. In this way, we build relationships.
The author is an adjunct research professor at the Pan Sutong Shanghai-Hong Kong Economic Policy Research Institute and the Department of Economics, Lingnan University.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
