Pui Shing: A Very Moral School

      Pui Shing Catholic Secondary School has moved to Tin Shui Wai because it needs more space for the new facilities it wants to offer to students. They now have ten special rooms for computers, art, science laboratories and other extra-curricular activities.

      Principal Thomas Chiu Woon-lam has strong views on what a school should be like. First, he insists that most students learn best if they are taught in their mother tongue. Since this is the language they think in, it should also be the language they learn in. Also he does not believe in streaming. Top students are spread right across all the forms with the other students. Every form at each level is academically equal.

      Although the school is Catholic, it does not seek to convert its students. Instead they believe in ‘universal education’ and seek to compare the Catholicism with Eastern beliefs and Western philosophy. “Ethics and morals must be taught   but cannot  be  forced. We,  therefore, make   a   special  point  of   bringing  politics  and everyday

affairs into our teaching so that our students can think for themselves,” said Mr Chiu.

     These ethics classes are also useful in helping the school solve disciplinary problems. It has been noted that students who transfer in from other schools often have a bad attitude toward school. But Mr Chiu does not blame the students for this. “I believe virtue is inborn and present in these students; it is just overshadowed by daily practice,” he said. “We, at the school, can build trust in the students by giving them a lot of responsibilities and the opportunity to organise activities so that they feel they are part of the school.”

      In order to develop a close relationship between teachers and students, a budget is allocated for school activities. Teachers and students are given the responsibility to work as a team to determine how the money should be spent. As one Form 2 student said: “It was a good feeling to be made part of a team and given responsibilities. I helped prepare the Open Day and this helped me to understand my teacher better. I do not hesitate to approach my teachers now.”