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Picture of the AISG third floor gender neutral bathroom by author
By: Shannie L.
At the American International School of Guangzhou (AISG), a prestigious non-profit private institution, students enjoy world-class facilities, including a 499-seat theatre and three full-sized gyms.
However, the third-floor gender-neutral bathroom has become a source of concern. Many students describe it as a “mystery box” of unhygienic experiences – encounters with unknown liquid splatters, human waste stains, litter, and unpleasant odors are all too common. Grade 11 student Carolina W. said in an interview about the third floor bathroom that, “It is always the most dirty.” And grade 10 student Iris T. emarked, “A lot of bugs and tissues clog up inside the loo,” highlighting the ongoing issues on this faculty.
Picture of a toilet seat, taken from the AISG third floor bathroom by author
A recent survey conducted on AISG students revealed that 100% of respondents feel the need to check multiple bathrooms before finding a stall suitable for use. This problem affects both the student body and the janitor staff. Many students associate the bathroom’s poor condition with the location on the busiest floor of the school: the third floor – where many students frequently gather around during lunch and breaks. Grade 8 student Qing L. noted, “This bathroom is the most convenient to go to during lunch, and there are many people, and it is difficult to take care of a large number of people.”
Further responses include Grade 10 student Franziska L. where the concern about how people do not flush the toilets after using them is raised. As students, we should be aware that though bathrooms are considered a private area, it is ultimately a shared area, and students need to learn to clean up after themselves.
In an interview conducted with assistant principal Ruth Herrin, she emphasized “It’s all of our responsibility to make sure the toilet seats are closed and everything’s clean because it’s not your private bathroom – you’re sharing it with everyone and so we need to be respectful.”
However, upper secondary students may be putting the blame on the students who do not know how to clean up after themselves on a more specific group of students: the lower secondary.
Grade 10 student Kenta T. who has experienced issues such as littering, human waste stains and odor, first answered the third-floor bathroom has the worst sanitation because “everybody uses it”. Later, when asked what the most disturbing aspect of the third-floor bathroom is, Kenta T. said, “the kids can’t aim” heavily dropping the blame onto the lower secondary students.
On the other hand, in the same survey, a question regarding how often students believe the third-floor bathroom is cleaned reveals a different answer from reality – potentially shifting the blame onto another group.
According to the same survey, many students believe the bathrooms are only cleaned once a day. However, the cleaning schedule says otherwise.
Picture of AISG third floor bathroom cleaning schedule by author
According to the schedule, the bathroom is cleaned once everyone and a half hour, starting from 7:15, to 4:30. Furthermore, the text below the schedule lists all the standards of how the bathroom should be cleaned, with standards such as trash does not fill over 2/3 of the trashcan, no odors, or unknown splatters.
Moreover, in an interview with the cleaner of the third-floor bathroom, Janitor Bai, it was learned that she cleans even more often than the schedule. She also shared that she often checks and cleans the facilities even more frequently than the times listed. She uses detergents to clean toilet bowls, seats, and floors, and explains how the vents are open 24 hours in AISG, and she keeps the stall doors open to allow the odor to further allow fresh air circulation. Additionally, she talked about how since the detergent used contains many chemicals that aren’t good for kids’ bodies, Janitor Bai tries to minimalize the usage of detergent in the bathrooms.
From the interview, janitor bai explains how she believes that kids in AISG are the future for the world, and how she really wishes the students of AISG can grow up in a clean and healthy environment, showing her genuine care for the students.
To address the issues related to the third-floor bathroom, all parties should contribute to help create a better environment. Students should learn to clean up after themselves as a sign of respect for their school and community. “It is part of the student code of conduct, this is our school and our community, and it’s up to us to keep it clean, we shouldn’t expect the ayis and shu shus to clean it for us,” Ms. Herrin emphasizes. Furthermore, students are encouraged to communicate their concerns about the bathrooms to teachers or their General Council (GenCo) representatives, who meet with administrators regularly.
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