The principal's philosophy
The current principal’s philosophy: care for the land with emboldened courage to take risks
Principal Chou Chun-Lin, who was transferred to Jiajhong Elementary School in August 2019, grew up in Xiaying District. As for the motivation to serve in his hometown, Principal Chou frankly explained that he has both official and private reasons; since both his parents are at an advanced age and inevitably have health concerns, it is more convenient for him to serve in a nearby school in case his parents need caregiving and transportation.
On the other hand, observing the exodus of people and the shrinking community in his hometown, he is also worried about the future prospects of the local area. As an educator, Principal Chou has always believed that educators have an obligation to allow students to develop a sense of "caring for their place of origin" through learning, which in turn inspires students to think, choose, envision, and create the future of their hometown; this is the only way to sustain the development of their local community. With this in mind, Principal Chou chose to return to his hometown and, as an educator, hopes to do his part in contributing to the students' futures.
As for the future development of Jiajhong Elementary School, Principal Chou emphasized that, with the hard work of the principals and teachers, the school brand is now well known, and he can stand on the shoulders of giants and see higher and further. Therefore, at present, the school will continue the previous diversified courses, such as ocarina, ukulele, Taekwondo, soccer, computer programming, etc., so that students can embrace diverse learning and develop appropriately, providing the nourishment and motivation for students to develop themselves in the future. Principal Chou himself has started learning laser engraving and 3D printing technologies, with the hope of ensuing these maker courses. On the other hand, Principal Chou has also started to develop a school vision as the axis of the school's future development. As the saying goes, only when the compass is pointed correctly can the ship reach port, and only with a vision will the curriculum development have a direction to follow. The four visions of collaboration, character, passion, and story have been tentatively conceived, but are to be discussed by the school’s faculty before being finalized. Principal Chou notes that these four aspects are the qualities that future citizens must possess: the ability to work together and be accountable as a team, creativity that can break through the mold, passionate aspirations that can be sustained, and narrative skills that can touch people's hearts. He hopes that the future curriculum and activities of Jiajhong Elementary School will be structured around these four aspects, and that students will gradually develop these qualities in their learning, so that they will have the courage and strength to take risks when they face obstacles and challenges in the future.
With the start of the new semester, Jiajhong Elementary School is gradually collaborating with the local community. The first step is to partner with the Farmers' Association on a local grain program, in line with Principal Chou's belief that students should "care about their place of origin". Principal Chou emphasized that getting to know the local people and place is only the first step, the next step is how to evolve, connect and creatively develop the curriculum. Local culture is not static, what to preserve and what to innovate are two parallel lines that are not in conflict. Starting from knowing the place, we should allow students to try to experience, try to imagine, and try to plan. Who knows, maybe elementary school students can also propose a new miracle roadmap for the local community.
