Warm Words from 陈月娇 (Chen Yue Jiao)

“Strange?… Nothing is really strange to me because I like to look at everything with a positive perspective… Or at least, I’ve learnt to. Growing up in a Chinese family and endeavouring in a Chinese education system, it was definitely intriguing to see the differences between a Chinese public school and an International school. Needless to say, the education system here and the education I had was very different. When I was in school I interacted with people like me— Chinese. We learnt to think in the same way as everybody else and had “traditional” thoughts. However, I’ve noticed that at AISG you guys are more diverse due to the interactions you guys have with people from different cultures and areas. You guys learn to be more open-minded and accepting of others. This environment was certainly unfamiliar to me, but it never occurred to me as ‘strange’. Maybe other Chinese citizens think it’s ‘strange’, in fact, my family thinks so too, but after submerging into this community, I realized it’s not at all ‘strange’. I’ve adapted to the environment and have grown with it, learning something new every day. I wouldn’t call this strange; ultimately it is just a difference in culture. A difference in beliefs and behavior.”

“Although I’ve only worked at AISG for half a year, I’ve collected many memories here. My favorite parts of the day are watching the teachers gather around in the morning to get coffee and seeing the little sixth graders lining up to buy food. The student body and faculty here are nice and always wear a smile on their face. Their smiles ultimately bring a smile to my face. However, one of the most memorable days here at AISG is the Chinese New Year celebration. That day was full of laughter, smiles, and positivity and it influences my mood as well. I was very happy that day. Watching the students and teachers engage in various activities, makes me happy, makes the staffs around here happy too. These activities never happened in my education system, but I see the good in it. It brings happiness.”

Translated by Tiffany Chan