I was a boarder when I matriculated at YYHS in the autumn, 2019. Toward the end of the first term, all classes were broken up, and thereupon the students were restreamed based on their academic orientations and on their grades.

Upon joining a new class, I chose to be a day student. Instead of residing in a dorm, I go home for the night every day. A school rule stipulates that day students end school 30 minutes sooner than residents after the third evening class. It is over at 10 pm, at which time day students like me go out of the classroom and start for home. Boarders, however, have to stay behind until 10.30 in the classroom, where they study on their own for an extra 30 minutes.

After I became a day student, I thought it was very relaxing at the beginning. When I got home in the evening, I normally treated myself to some fruit before I took a shower. At times, I surfed the Web for a while. However, it was not long before I realised that a lot of time was wasted.

On a typical night when I got everything sorted out at home, it was around 11 pm. Were I a boarder, I would be in bed by that hour. That’s part of the dorm code. In contrast, at home, after 11 pm, mostly I would try to study a little, but I found it hard to stay focused on my work. With TV on in the living room, Mum and Dad chitchatting in the background, my mind kept wandering. As a result, my efficiency was rather low. Obviously, time at home could have been better spent. I sensed it but I did not take action at once.

Three weeks ago, we took the first monthly of this term. After the results were out, the class director announced that boarders earned better grades than day students in most cases. Why was that? According to the master, boarders got 30 more minutes in the evening every day to put their hearts into their lessons in the classroom. By residing in the dorm, they were able to get better sleep and more chances to study. That small daily difference eventually adds up, which accounts for why their averages were much higher than their homebound counterparts’.

I chose to be a day student for a comfortable environment at home. Meanwhile the comfort cost me valuable time for study.

Now I am still a day student, but I have changed my tactics. Instead of exiting the classroom at 10, I quit at 10.30, at the same time as the residents. School buses might have left by then, but my cousin is in Grade 3. Every evening my uncle drives over and picks her up. Luckily, they are generous enough to give me a lift home.

Now, because of the initiative I have taken, I have more time at my disposal to improve myself. My daily life is becoming more colourful and fruitful thanks to the fine-tuning. Challenging as high school is, I can still find fun and meaning in seemingly mundane routines. Nothing feels better than a sense of control and achievement from within.

Only if we are proactive and ready to embrace new challenges will we stay on top and end well.