Education's 'queen of hearts'
May 26, 2012, Saturday
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SPECIAL children need special attention, and one teacher in Minhang has devoted her life to helping them. Working with the mentally handicapped requires large doses of patience and understanding. In rising to that challenge, Lu Peifen has become "queen" of her realm.
When Lu Peifen was a child, she dreamed that one day she would become a "queen of children," amid visions of leading them in singing, dancing and drawing.
On her first day of work at the Minhang District Special School for the Intellectually Disabled 15 years ago, Lu became a "queen" of sorts, but the children around her weren't quite what she had imagined. They looked healthy enough, but they couldn't communicate like normal children.
"I was a preschool education major, and I had always thought I'd be a kindergarten teacher," Lu said. "But after graduation, the local education bureau assigned me to the special school because, though the students there are of primary school age, they have the intelligence quotient of kindergarten kids."
Lu, now 34, doesn't regret the hand of fate dealt her.
She forged a successful career helping children suffering from disorders such as cerebral palsy and autism. It took a while, she admitted, but she gradually began to see her students as very special people indeed.
"They are pure, modest and passionate," she said. "So I decided I would try my best to teach them to sing and dance to their hearts' content."
Teaching mentally handicapped children is difficult because it requires extreme patience and understanding. Teaching even one song would turn her throat raspy. Trying to get the children to master a simple dance step left her body aching.
She never complained and she never gave the children up as hopeless.
"My kids are often invited to performances, both in and outside school," she said. "And the pride I feel in them renews my energy."
She has 10 students in her current class, aged about 14. The children are complicated - some are hyperactive, some are anti-social and some have violent tendencies.
Lu interacts with them on a personal level according to their abilities. She has a private talk with each student twice a week.
"Maybe they are slow, but they have feelings just like everyone else," she said. "They will eventually understand things if you are patient and understanding."
Lu's interest in helping the mentally handicapped extends beyond the classroom. She also works with the families of the students.
Jing Jing, who suffers autism, is a case in point.
The girl is quite pretty but bad-tempered. Her parents divorced about seven years ago.
Whenever her mother was too busy to look after the child, Lu stepped in as a temporary surrogate. If Jing Jing's mother had to work an overnight shift, Lu took the girl home with her. On weekends and holidays, she took Jing Jing for outings to parks or the movies.
"I got to know the girl when she was in the kindergarten phase and have been by her side for nearly a decade," said Lu. "When she was little, she would refuse my hugs, but eventually she accepted me."
Lu recalled one Christmas Eve she took Jing Jing out to dinner. This once fiercely anti-social child voluntarily shared her favorite French fries with Lu, which moved the teacher almost to tears of joy.
"She didn't say anything, but I know she was expressing her feelings with the action," Lu said.
Lu's devotion to her work has not gone unnoticed. Her classes have always been ranked among the best in the school. Her students not only sing and dance and service themselves, but they also compete at sports meets for the disabled.
Lu has won several national and municipal awards for her research into education for intellectual disabled children. And this month she was selected one of the "Lovable Minhang People" of the year.
Her hard work has drawn accolades from family and friends, including her husband and daughter.
"If you ask my daughter what she wants to do when she grows up, she will tell you she wants to be a good teacher just like her mom," said Lu Haibin, Lu's husband. "Her persistence and patience move us, and the whole family supports her."
Friends who once felt pity that she had drawn what seemed to be a thankless job don't feel that way anymore.
"We once told her it was stupid to devote so much to mentally challenged kids, but now we are all proud of her," said Zhang Dongmei, one of Lu's friends.
Lu sums up her attitude toward life in three concepts: "The best entertainment is work;" "Peace of mind is one's biggest joy;" and "Doing what needs to be done brings the greatest contentment."
Or put another way, "As long as my kids make progress day by day, I feel happy and satisfied," she said.
When Lu Peifen was a child, she dreamed that one day she would become a "queen of children," amid visions of leading them in singing, dancing and drawing.
On her first day of work at the Minhang District Special School for the Intellectually Disabled 15 years ago, Lu became a "queen" of sorts, but the children around her weren't quite what she had imagined. They looked healthy enough, but they couldn't communicate like normal children.
"I was a preschool education major, and I had always thought I'd be a kindergarten teacher," Lu said. "But after graduation, the local education bureau assigned me to the special school because, though the students there are of primary school age, they have the intelligence quotient of kindergarten kids."
Lu, now 34, doesn't regret the hand of fate dealt her.
She forged a successful career helping children suffering from disorders such as cerebral palsy and autism. It took a while, she admitted, but she gradually began to see her students as very special people indeed.
"They are pure, modest and passionate," she said. "So I decided I would try my best to teach them to sing and dance to their hearts' content."
Teaching mentally handicapped children is difficult because it requires extreme patience and understanding. Teaching even one song would turn her throat raspy. Trying to get the children to master a simple dance step left her body aching.
She never complained and she never gave the children up as hopeless.
"My kids are often invited to performances, both in and outside school," she said. "And the pride I feel in them renews my energy."
She has 10 students in her current class, aged about 14. The children are complicated - some are hyperactive, some are anti-social and some have violent tendencies.
Lu interacts with them on a personal level according to their abilities. She has a private talk with each student twice a week.
"Maybe they are slow, but they have feelings just like everyone else," she said. "They will eventually understand things if you are patient and understanding."
Lu's interest in helping the mentally handicapped extends beyond the classroom. She also works with the families of the students.
Jing Jing, who suffers autism, is a case in point.
The girl is quite pretty but bad-tempered. Her parents divorced about seven years ago.
Whenever her mother was too busy to look after the child, Lu stepped in as a temporary surrogate. If Jing Jing's mother had to work an overnight shift, Lu took the girl home with her. On weekends and holidays, she took Jing Jing for outings to parks or the movies.
"I got to know the girl when she was in the kindergarten phase and have been by her side for nearly a decade," said Lu. "When she was little, she would refuse my hugs, but eventually she accepted me."
Lu recalled one Christmas Eve she took Jing Jing out to dinner. This once fiercely anti-social child voluntarily shared her favorite French fries with Lu, which moved the teacher almost to tears of joy.
"She didn't say anything, but I know she was expressing her feelings with the action," Lu said.
Lu's devotion to her work has not gone unnoticed. Her classes have always been ranked among the best in the school. Her students not only sing and dance and service themselves, but they also compete at sports meets for the disabled.
Lu has won several national and municipal awards for her research into education for intellectual disabled children. And this month she was selected one of the "Lovable Minhang People" of the year.
Her hard work has drawn accolades from family and friends, including her husband and daughter.
"If you ask my daughter what she wants to do when she grows up, she will tell you she wants to be a good teacher just like her mom," said Lu Haibin, Lu's husband. "Her persistence and patience move us, and the whole family supports her."
Friends who once felt pity that she had drawn what seemed to be a thankless job don't feel that way anymore.
"We once told her it was stupid to devote so much to mentally challenged kids, but now we are all proud of her," said Zhang Dongmei, one of Lu's friends.
Lu sums up her attitude toward life in three concepts: "The best entertainment is work;" "Peace of mind is one's biggest joy;" and "Doing what needs to be done brings the greatest contentment."
Or put another way, "As long as my kids make progress day by day, I feel happy and satisfied," she said.
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