小学四年级暑假，Yolanda参加了福州西湖国际学校（FLIS）举办的夏令营。回望那段经历，她说每天的项目都很有意思，但头一回进入全英文环境，不太能听懂，也很苦恼。彼时有意来国际学校读书吗？她摇头。那时，还是小学生的Yolanda能想到的未来并不遥远：按部就班升上好的公立初中，每天和好朋友见面，完成老师布置的作业，就挺好。改变令人恐惧。她说，我是个很害怕改变的人。

During the summer of fourth grade, Yolanda attended a summer camp organized by Fuzhou Lakeside International School (FLIS). Looking back on that experience, she says the daily programs were interesting, but she didn't quite understand and struggled with being in an all-English environment for the first time. Was she interested in coming to an international school? She shakes her head. At the time, Yolanda was still a primary student and could only think of a future that wasn't too far away: going to a good public middle school, seeing her best friends every day, and completing the homework assigned by her teachers was just fine. Change is scary. “I'm a person who is afraid of change,” she says.

也是她，拿到大学录取通知书后，被问及升学选择的多方考虑时，毫不犹豫地表示，专业与排名固然重要，但自己最看重的是个人意愿及环境合适与否。“我相信适合的环境有利于自己未来的身心健康发展。”

She is also the one who, when asked about the multiple considerations for her choice of further education after receiving her university offers, did not hesitate to say that while majors and rankings are important, what she values most are her personal desire to study in the place she was drawn to and the suitability of environment. "I believe that be in the right environment is good for my overall well-being in the coming years."

很巧，聊天前后，这也是Yolanda给大家留下最深刻的印象：

一个害怕改变，但适应能力极强的学生，在适合的环境里成为了「她自己」。

Coincidentally, before and after the chat, this is what impressed everyone the most about Yolanda:

A student who was afraid of change, but extremely adaptable, became 'herself' in the right environment.

传统家庭与公立学校

成长起来的普通小孩

能否适应国际学校的教育方式？

Yolanda最害怕的改变在初一学期结束后来临。一路念公立名校的她再也受不了成吨作业与标准化考试的束缚，决定接受父母的建议，尝试新的可能。做出转投国际学校的选择并不容易，Yolanda的父母也面临着重重未知：除了升学路径彻底改变之外，作为一个在传统家庭与公立校里成长起来的普通小孩，国际学校的教育方式是否符合她的个性发展、能否激发她的潜能？

Yolanda's most feared change came at the end of seventh grade. After attending a prestigious public middle school, she couldn't take the tons of homework and standardized tests anymore and decided to take her parents' advice and try something new. The choice to switch to an international school was not an easy one, and Yolanda's parents were faced with many unknowns: in addition to a radical change in her path of education, as an ordinary child growing up in a traditional family and public schools, does the international school's education fit her personality development and can it stimulate her potential?

转入FLIS几年后，Yolanda的父母逐渐定心，“这些年她的成长是远超过我们的期待的。”最初他们支持女儿转学的理由之一，便是孩子原来的学校过于看重成绩，大考前后机械刷题必不可免，大人轮番上阵辅导作业没能缓解焦虑、反倒令亲子关系更加紧张。Yolanda爸爸曾经历多次复读、高考才考上心仪大学，人到中年还会梦到应试教育之苦；他不希望女儿经历同样的煎熬，牺牲热情与灵气，换一个“模范优等生”的未来。

A few years after transferring to FLIS, Yolanda's parents have come to realize that "our daughter’s growth over the years has far exceeded our expectations." Initially, one of the reasons they supported their daughter's transfer was that her original school placed too much emphasis on scores, and a lot of homework before and after the big exams was inevitable, while adults tutoring the child's homework didn't alleviate the anxiety, on the contrary, it made the parent-child relationship even tenser. Yolanda's father had taken National College Entrance Examination for 3 times to get into his dream university, and in his middle age, he still dreams of the pain of exam-oriented education. He doesn't want his daughter to go through the same ordeal of sacrificing her passion and spirit for a future as a "model honor student".

▲ Yolanda与同学参加商业模拟挑战赛，展示为项目设计的海报。

而害怕改变的Yolanda, 在经历了短暂的不适应后，很快融入了FLIS校园之中。她甚至表示语言环境转换的不适应并未给自己带来太大困扰，“因为老师的包容和同学的友善。”对比公立学校与国际学校，Yolanda很快发现，除语言环境这类显而易见的不同外，对她而言最大的区别是学校的氛围——老师与学生的关系不再只是授课/听课，不用硬着头皮受训写作业，她惊讶地发现双方是可以平等对话、像朋友一样相处的，“我能明显感觉到学校像一个community, 老师学生都参与其中”；不仅如此，她也觉得大家的个性都得到了更好的理解与尊重，比起削尖脑袋挤进某一类特定的完美模具里，国际学校更鼓励学生发掘自身更多可能性。

Yolanda, who was afraid of change, quickly integrated into the FLIS campus after a brief period of adjustment. She even said that the language change didn't bother her too much, "because the teachers were so accommodating and the students were so friendly." Comparing public schools to international schools, Yolanda soon realized that besides the obvious differences in the language environment, the biggest difference for her was the atmosphere of the school - the relationship between teacher and student was no longer just about teaching/listening to lectures and not having to be hardened and trained to write assignments, but she was surprised to find that both parties could talk on an equal footing and get along as friends, "I can clearly feel that the school is like a community, in which teachers and students are all involved"; not only that, she also feels that everyone's individuality is better understood and respected, and that the international school are more encouraging for students to explore their own possibilities than trying to squeeze themselves into a particular type of perfect mold.

▲ 艺术课上的舞台设计草图。

于是，Yolanda的校园生活不再只有作业与考试，她发挥绘画特长设计海报，担任乐队主唱、话剧导演，作为领队带领所在学院夺得全年积分第一，参与公益活动做志愿者陪伴白血病小朋友……FLIS丰富的课内外文化、实践活动为Yolanda提供了大展身手的舞台，她也从一个不怎么愿意表达自己的内敛女生，蜕变为开朗自信、敢于发表观点，即使面对冲突也能坚持自我，冷静寻求沟通方案的学生代表——这种蜕变同样有助于Yolanda摆脱“英语半吊子”的困扰，逐渐适应全英文环境，与同学、老师无障碍沟通，在学术上表现得更加出色。

So, Yolanda's campus life is no longer just about homework and exams, she used her drawing skills to design posters, works as the lead singer of FLIS band and director of a drama, leads her hpuse to win the first place in the annual house competition, and participates in public service activities and volunteers to accompany the children with leukemia… FLIS’s abundant cultural and practical activities inside and outside the classroom provides Yolanda with a stage to show her skills and talents, and she has transformed from an introverted girl who was reluctant to express herself into a cheerful and confident student representative who dares to express her views, and who is able to stand up for herself and calmly seek a communication solution even in the face of conflicts - this transformation has also helped Yolanda to improve her English, gradually adapt to a full English environment, communicate with classmates and teachers without any barriers, and perform better academically.

▲ 2022年，Yolanda在年度运动会上与学院同学一起荣获中学部冠军！当年6月，在MYP毕业典礼上，她作为Arc学院领袖完成了旗帜交接。

看着如今的女儿，Yolanda父母由衷感叹：“她活成了我们年轻时也会羡慕的样子。”

Looking at their daughter today, Yolanda's parents heartily exclaim, "she's living the life we would have envied when we were young."

▲ 2023年99公益日，Yolanda与同学参加集市，在FLIS摊位上为白血病患儿义卖筹款。

匹配、包容、接纳

力图根据学子的需求及学术能力，

成为桥接学子与梦校的桥梁。

此次申请季，Yolanda共计斩获都柏林圣三一大学，悉尼大学，新南威尔士大学，曼彻斯特大学，伯明翰大学五份offer。如何在竞争中脱颖而出？Yolanda直言要感谢FLIS升学指导团队的全力护航。而在几位升学指导老师看来，这名学子的申请过程也很值得分享，或许能为尚处于迷茫期的同学带来一些启示。

During this application season, Yolanda received five offers from Trinity College Dublin, University of Sydney, University of New South Wales, University of Manchester and University of Birmingham. How did she stand out from her competitors? Yolanda said that she owed it to the full support of the FLIS Guidance and Counseling team. In the opinion of several counseling teachers, this student's application process is also worth sharing, and may bring some inspiration to students who are still in a period of confusion.

FLIS升学指导团队一贯以来的方针恰恰与学校氛围极为相似，即匹配、包容、接纳，力图根据学子的需求及学术能力，成为桥接学子与梦校的桥梁。Yolanda对专业及目标学校的选择经历了几重变化，她对未来的初步想象萌芽于FLIS开设的职业规划课，在课上，学子受到鼓励，结合自己的成长经历与情况，为未来设定一个确切的目标。那时，Yolanda想到自己喜欢与不同年龄层的人交流，其中就包括小孩，且她对教师这一职业有向往，认可其价值，故将最初升学的专业方向定为教育。

The FLIS Guidance and Counseling team's approach has always been similar to the school's philosophy: match, inclusion, acceptance, and an attempt to bridge the gap between students and their dream schools based on their needs and academic abilities. Yolanda's choice of major and dream schools has gone through several stages of change, and her initial visualization of the future began in the Career Navigation class offered by FLIS, in which students were encouraged to set a detailed goal for the future, taking into account their own upbringing and circumstances. It was then that Yolanda thought about her love of interacting with people of all ages, including children, and her desire and recognition of the value of teaching as a career, so she initially pursued a major in education.

但在之后的学习、生活中，Yolanda渐渐发现，这或许并不是最适合自己的选择。接下来，她开始从自己的兴趣爱好入手——比如喜爱娱乐业、对动画艺术感兴趣——认为或许将爱好与学习结合也是不错的选择。此外，参与FLIS圣诞慈善义卖活动激活了Yolanda的商业头脑，她发现自己从前就经常出没于各种二手市场，对赚钱也相当感兴趣……于是，她将目标专业调整为媒体与商科。

However, in the course of her studies and life, Yolanda gradually realized that this might not be the best choice for her. Next, she started to look at her hobbies - such as her love of entertainment and her interest in animation art - and thought it might be a good idea to combine her hobbies with her studies. In addition, participating in the FLIS Christmas charity sale activated Yolanda's business acumen, and she realized that she had been frequenting various second-hand markets before and was quite interested in making money… So, she adjusted her target major to Media and Business.

▲ 在中国银行金融主题研学活动中，Yolanda与同学们前往泉州参观海交馆与侨批馆，了解了金融在国际间的流动。

此时，FLIS升学指导团队与丰富的高中实习、研学体系的配合优势便凸显了出来。几位升学指导老师曾表示，在整个申请过程中，时机是尤为关键的。FLIS团队早在十年级时便与Yolanda同学进行接洽，提供一对一个性化咨询服务，学校也根据该生专业意向匹配了诸如幼儿园实习（对应教育专业）、东南网新媒体实习（对应媒体专业）、中国银行金融研学（对应商科专业）等多种社会实践活动，让学子深入了解所向往的专业，有充足的时间试错，逐步摸清自己的想法。

At this point, the advantage of the FLIS Guidance and Counseling team and FLIS’s rich high school internship and field study system came to the forefront. The team contacted Yolanda as early as 10th grade to provide one-on-one personalized consulting services, and matched the student's major interests with various social practice activities, such as kindergarten internships (corresponding to education majors), new media internships at the Southeast Network (corresponding to media majors), and financial field study at the Bank of China (corresponding to business majors), so that the student could gain a deeper understanding of her desired major, and have enough time try them and gradually figure out her real intentions.

确定了以商科为专业方向以后，指导团队紧接着制定了科学的三层梯队申请策略：即冲刺院校一类、匹配院校一类、保底院校一类，既鼓励学生勇敢追梦冲刺心仪的世界名校，也确保当冲刺及匹配院校申请未能如愿时，学生依然能够在优质学府中继续追求学术梦想。到了申请阶段，针对每个申请院校不同要求，Yolanda也在升学指导老师的协助下完善了突出自我亮点及特长的文书材料，顺利收获多封offer。

After the student decided to major in business, the team then developed a three-tier application strategy, which not only encourages students to bravely pursue their dreams and apply for the world's most prestigious schools of their choice, but also ensures that when the dream ones fail to meet the expectations of the student, she will still be able to continue to pursue her academic dreams in high-quality universities. When it came to the application stage, Yolanda was assisted by her counseling teachers to improve the documents highlighting her highlights and specialties for the different requirements of each applicant universities, and successfully obtained a number of offers.

经过多次权衡，都柏林圣三一大学悠久的历史、雄厚的学术实力、爱尔兰的人文氛围、城市生活节奏皆令Yolanda心驰神往。手握直入录取通知书的她即将于今年九月前往欧洲，成为一名本科生！

After much consideration, Yolanda found Trinity College Dublin's rich history, strong academics, Irish culture, and the pace of city life appealing. With a direct entry offer in hand, she will be heading to Europe this September to become an undergraduate student!

教育究竟是考虑性价比、

衡量投入产出的游戏，

还是让个体成为「自己」、

不断拓展生而为人之边界的旅程？

采访过程中，Yolanda本人及父母均多次忐忑表示，她是个很普通的学生，顶多比较开朗积极，在校学习也和大家一样上课，极少参加辅导班，因此很难说有什么学习方法可以分享；其父母坦言，孩子转入国际学校以后，说实话学业上无法再辅导，只是给了她尊重和空间……殊不知，正是这样一个“普娃”的经历，在遍地鸡娃、卷生卷死卷出好未来的大环境下更显难能可贵。当一个家庭具备了培养孩子的资源、实力与眼界以后，教育究竟是考虑性价比、衡量投入产出的游戏，还是让个体成为「自己」、不断拓展生而为人之边界的旅程？

During the interviews, Yolanda herself and her parents have repeatedly said that she is a very ordinary student, at best more cheerful and positive, and she attends the same classes as everyone else in school and rarely participates in tutorials, so it's hard to say that she has any learning methods to share; her parents said that after their daughter transferred to the international school, to be honest, they couldn't tutor her academically anymore, they just gave her respect and space… But it is the experience of such an "ordinary student" that is even more valuable in an environment where tiger parenting is rampant. When a family has the resources, strength and vision to nurture their children, is education a game to consider the cost-effectiveness and measure the inputs and outputs, or is it a journey that allows individuals to become themselves and expand the boundaries of what it means to be born a human being?

如今，害怕改变的Yolanda即将迎来人生中第二次大的「改变」：上一次，她离开几近窒息的环境，换到一片可以大口呼吸、放松探索自身可能性的土壤之中，开出了自己的花朵。这一次，她将前往海外，进入另一种文化的国度，她说，自己对大学生活的期待是可以更加独立、认识更多人，见识更大的世界。不是没有顾虑，“毕竟是出国，刚开始肯定会碰壁的，但是，”她补充道，“希望这些都能变成我宝贵的经验呀！”

Now Yolanda, who is afraid of change, is about to make the second big "change" in her life: last time, she left a nearly stifling environment for a place where she could breathe, relax and explore her possibilities. This time, she will be traveling overseas, entering the land of a different culture, and she says that her expectations for university life are to be more independent, to meet more people, and to see a bigger world. Not without concerns, "After all, it's abroad, and I'm sure I'll hit a wall at first, but," she adds, "I hope all of this will turn out to be a valuable experience for me!"

于是，旅程继续——「在路上」本身正是对青春的一种祝福。前方的道路可能并不平坦，但探索未来始终令人期待。在爱尔兰那片大文豪王尔德、贝克特、斯威夫特曾漫步过的古老校园里，愿Yolanda也能收获崭新的灵感！

And so the journey continues - "being on the road" might be a blessing to youth. The road ahead may not be smooth, but exploring the future is always something to look forward to. May Yolanda also gain fresh inspiration from the ancient Ireland campus where the great literary figures Wilde, Beckett and Swift once strolled!