Social and academic culture at school: strengths, challenges, and recommendations

¶ … social and academic culture at your current school. What positives and negatives do you see? What changes would you recommend to make it a healthier place for all students?

When reading about a typical 'day in the life' of a student at the Thatcher School, I was immediately struck at how the school strives to give every student a complete education. Students learn how to ride horses, muck out stalls, and actively debate intellectual concepts in their academic classes. Alas, my educational world in Taiwan is very different. While my school has given me a strong base of knowledge in the sciences and mathematics, which I would strive to use to make a contribution to my classes at Thatcher, too much of the educational system in Taiwan is focused on memorization and following the rules set by the teacher. Furthermore, when studying advanced math, the teacher pays little attention to the concepts behind the problem, and often reduces solving the equation to mere mechanics.

I have long craved an American educational environment, where I would be free to ask 'why.' Even in literature and social studies, in Taiwan we are taught there is only one way of interpreting literature, one way to understand history. In science, we are taught about nature, but never have the opportunity to do hands-on experiments. I wish to learn to apply what I have learned. I believe this is the type of education necessary to excel in the global workforce when I become a professional: but more importantly, it is the type of approach to learning that I crave, emotionally and spiritually.

Thatcher's emphasis on learning through extracurricular activities is another aspect of the school that attracts me. At my current school, I have few opportunities to engage in the pastimes that make my life meaningful: I learn so much from my hours practicing on the violin, swimming, and playing tennis, but the emphasis of my current school is solely upon traditional academic subjects and rote memorization. Learning should be a natural part of life, not seen as something confined to the classroom.

To improve my school, first and foremost, I would allow for periods of class discussion, so students would have the freedom to question what they have learned. I would have smaller classes, so students could have enough time to discuss the lesson in a meaningful fashion and engage in hands-on problem-solving activities in math and science. I would allow for more open-ended and creative assignments in my humanities and social science classes. I would make the arts, including music and drama, an integral part of the curriculum so students could enjoy the pure pleasure of learning and use their knowledge in the process of creation and self-discovery.

Introducing greater number of extracurricular activities at my current school is essential: sports are a passion of mine, but I would also like to write for a school newspaper. This would give me a chance to challenge others and to articulate my own views about issues in print. To me, the ideal is to belong to a school such as the Thatcher School that has a singular, communal activity in which all students participate -- horseback riding -- combined with other opportunities in the arts, sciences, and other sports.