On the 6th period of March 10th, students filed into Xianmian annex auditorium, once again chattering amongst themselves, wondering what the lecture would be about. Waiting for them, was a experience sharing about growing up in a multi-culture environment.

The lecturer started the students off with the question “Who are you?” She explained that students of this age are at the period called growth confusion, but it’s a normal phenomenon that everybody would experience. Then, she went on to explain the challenges of growing up in a multi-culture environment, but gave students examples of famous multi-cultured kids like Barack Obama that were able to turn a multi-cultured environment into their strength. It is obvious that the students’ culture is no longer limited to their parents’ or community’s culture, yet what exactly is their culture, and who are they really? It was pointed out these questions could all be traced back to the Tree of Life.

The Tree of Life is composed of the roots, the ground, the trunk, the branches, the leaves, and the storms; respectively they represent where one comes from, one’s present life, one’s skills and interests, one’s hopes and dreams, important people in one’s life, and challenges one faced. After the gateway course, students were encouraged to reflect on these aspects, and explore their own identity. They walked out of the lecture hall feeling more inspired and ready to answer the question of “Who am I?”.

(Written by 9(12) Tiffany   Pictures by Wenqian Wu   Supervised by Meijun Shi   Reviewed by Qian Zuo)