Hsieh Chieh-Ming

Unlike formal teaching in the classroom, being a residence hall mentor gives me the chance to be part of students' lives outside class — through activities, conversation and care, walking alongside them as they face the challenges of adjusting to life on their own, getting along with others and managing their emotions, and as they grow through those challenges.

This semester I took part in the residents' assembly. Talking with hall officers and residents helped me understand what students need and think about hall life, and showed me how much time and effort the student officers put into running the hall themselves. The assembly is more than a forum for hall business: it is an important place for students to develop responsibility, civic participation and teamwork, and to learn mutual respect and give-and-take as they live together.

I also took part in three themed events this semester, centred on managing daily life and caring for one's emotions. In the talk "A Professional Organiser's Secrets of Storage", the speaker's tips on tidying and storage led students to think about the link between their living space and their state of mind, and helped them build more orderly habits in a busy semester. I then invited a counselling psychologist to lead two events. The first, "Opening the Encyclopaedia of Emotions", helped students understand what emotions are for, learn to notice them, accept their own emotional responses, and find healthier ways of living with stress. The second, "Landing Your Emotions Safely: A Yarn-Ball Wrapping Workshop", included a short talk on grounding emotions by focusing on the present moment, and encouraged students to relieve stress through activities they enjoy — like wrapping yarn balls by hand — slowing down to ease the pressure, and feeling through the shared activity how much company and support matter.

I also check in with residents from time to time, using relaxed and genuine conversation to learn how their lives, studies and emotional needs are going. At the end of the semester, a residence hall mentor workshop and exchange with other mentors let me look back at how I had planned activities and supported students, and gave me many new ideas. Above all, being a residence hall mentor has shown me more deeply that a residence hall is not just a place to live: it is an important place that supports students as they learn independence, build relationships and discover who they are.