Enter the student's heart - New cases of headteacher's work

Author: Zhou Xianhua
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-08-01
Features: The art of education does not lie in imparting skills, but in inspiring, awakening, and motivating the heart. Love is warmth, love is education. Without love, there is no true education or management, nor can there be successful education or management. Without love, there will be no fruits of education—flourishing talents all over the world. One afternoon, during my years as a class monitor, I received a visit from the mother of class leader Li. She looked anxious and out of breath. I quickly asked her what had happened. That afternoon, Li had had a big argument with her mother and stormed out in a fit of anger after school. When I told her mother that Li was in class, her anxiety somewhat subsided. Then, her mother, tears streaming down her face, sadly told me, "Yesterday, I promised her that I would borrow the DVD of 'Meteor Garden' from a friend for her to watch today. Due to the tight schedule, I didn’t go to my friend’s house today, and Li got angry, calling me a liar who didn’t keep her word. I was also very upset at the time. The child is so grown up and yet shows no consideration for her mother’s hard work. She just raged on and on, and I ended up scolding her a few times. I never expected Li to curse me like that. I’ve raised her, and I’ve never heard her swear before. Today, over such a small matter, she acted so immature."
Hearing this story, I was greatly shocked. In the eyes of teachers and classmates, class leader Li is a lovely, well-behaved, thoughtful, intelligent, and considerate girl. If it weren’t for her mother’s tears, I would never have associated her with a girl who curses her mother. What could have caused Li’s dual personality? After analyzing the situation, I believe there are several reasons:
(1) Family influence. Li comes from a wealthy family, and her parents are eager for her to succeed. As long as she performs well academically, they try to meet her every demand. This gradually fostered her self-centered and domineering personality.
(2) Social influence. Nowadays, society is filled with a spirit of and materialism, where people often judge children based on their academic performance while neglecting their moral education.
(3) Personal reasons. Class leader Li grew up surrounded by praise and accolades. At school, she suppressed her true self, striving to be the excellent student that teachers and classmates envisioned, in hopes of gaining more praise and recognition. At home, her repressed personality was released, and her parents’ indulgence pushed her personality to an extreme.
So, how should Li be educated? Li is an outstanding student and a beloved leader at school. If I were to approach her rashly and directly expose her flaws, which she tries to hide, it would undoubtedly lead to negative consequences. I thought that only by hinting at the problem could she realize her own mistakes, and this approach would be most effective.
Therefore, I quietly assigned Li an important task: to organize and host a themed class meeting titled, "The Love of Parents." The content of the class meeting included three parts:
(1) Storytelling. Students collected touching stories from history or real life about parents’ selfless sacrifices and hard work for their children’s growth.
(2) Sharing True Feelings. Students expressed the deep love and care their parents had shown them in their daily lives.
(3) Taking Action. Educating classmates on how to truly appreciate their parents’ love and how to reciprocate it through actions.
This class meeting, organized and hosted by Li herself, was a great success. Both Li and her classmates received a vivid and profound lesson. After the event, I and