William Fitzsimmons, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid,
Marlyn E. McGrath, Director of Admissions,
Charles Ducey, Adjunct Lecturer in Psychology,
College admissions officers, especially those who admitted the parents of today’s applicants, have an unusual vantage point from which to observe changes from one generation to the next. Many of us are concerned that the pressures on today’s students seem far more intense than those placed on previous generations. College admission - the chance to position oneself for "success" through the acquisition of the "right" college degree - looms large for increasing numbers of students. Particularly because selective colleges are perceived to be part of the problem, we want to do everything possible to help the students we enroll make the most of their opportunities, avoiding the much-reported "burnout" phenomenon that can keep them from reaching their full potential.
Of course, the quest for college admission is only one aspect of a much larger syndrome driving many students today. Stories about the latest twenty-something multimillionaires, the astronomical salaries for athletes and pop-music stars, and the often staggering compensation packages for CEOs only stimulate the frenzied search for the brass ring. More than ever, students (and their parents) seek to emulate those who win the "top prizes" and the accompanying disproportionate rewards.
From the Cradle On...
The chase for the prize begins early, and some recent reports sound hyperbolic. Anecdotes abound of infants serenaded with classical music to enhance their mental powers; toddlers overwhelmed with computers and "educational" toys; "experts" guilt-tripping parents by telling them that their children will be hopelessly behind by age three or four if they don’t follow myriad prescribed strategies.
Consultants are paid thousands of dollars to prepare toddlers for the "all- important" interview and observed play-time that will determine admission to the "right" pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, or primary school - thereby presumably ensuring admission to the right high school, college, graduate school, and so on. The consultant will teach the child to maintain eye contact in the interview and to demonstrate both leadership and sharing during the observed play sequence. The competition for admission to some of the Pre-K, Kindergarten, and grammar schools can be intense - statistically more difficult (with lower admission rates) than Harvard.
Once in the "right" school, students are pushed along by teachers, by outside tutors and, if they stumble, by learning specialists who will help them approach their studies in the most efficient manner. The school day continues well into the night with structured study time and drills. The pressure can be relentless, even from well- intentioned parents. For the most part, they simply want the best for their children who, they fear, will be left by the wayside by other high achievers.
Sports, music, dance, and other recreational activities used to provide a welcome break, a time to relax and unwind. No more: training for college scholarships - or professional contracts - begins early, even in grammar school. Professional instruction, summer camps, and weekly practice and game schedules consume many hours and nearly all free time. Student and family commuting logistics become byzantine in their complexity. Even "play-time" is often structured and enriched with just the right mix of appropriate playmates and educational activities. Summer vacations have become a thing of the past. The pace of the day and the year allows little time simply "to be a kid" - or, it seems, to develop into a complete human being.
The Middle School/High School Fast Track
By high school, the pressure intensifies. Students start to specialize in one activity even to the exclusion of other pursuits. Athletes, dancers, musicians and others begin to define themselves by their chosen activity as they try to perfect their new-found talents and identities.
The
Academic demands also ratchet up, supported by special tutors and the beginnings of SAT prep in middle school. In high school, SAT prep becomes a way of life for some students, with night and weekend sessions. The "right" SAT tutors may command several hundred dollars per hour, and can be engaged to live during the summer at or near their tutees’ beach houses. Summer "cram schools" for the SATs are increasingly common, as are summer school sessions at the best prep schools and universities, some beginning in middle school.
The Quest for the
Professional college counselors (either independent or school-based) appear on the scene early, sometimes in middle school, to begin to structure students’ academic and extracurricular profiles for entrance to the "right" college. At its best, such advice can be helpful in assessing talents, goals, and making "mid-course corrections" that can make a real difference in students’ lives. From a more cynical perspective, such advice steers students toward travel abroad, community service, or other activities solely to enhance college application essays or interviews. Such services may command thousands of dollars, and assistance in preparing applications ranges from appropriate to plagiaristic. Videotaped mock college interviews are features of some packages, as are guided tours of colleges. An array of services start in ninth grade ("or seventh or eighth grade for no extra charge") for fees of over $30,000. More specific services include Essay Review, which offers "brainstorming session and as many revisions as necessary". Such services can add to, rather than alleviate, the stress of the normal expectations of school, community, and family life. Their "products", such as overly-slick essays, can even hurt a student’s admissions chances as they can sometimes be easy to spot in the admissions process.
The pressure of gaining entrance to the most selective colleges is commonly blamed for much of the stress we observe. But those of us who work in college admissions recognize that college is only one of many destinations in the fast lane. The accumulation of "credentials" simply continues to intensify as the stakes increase. The "right" graduate school looms after college, and the "right" sequence of jobs is next. Such attainments make it possible to live in the "right" kinds of communities and to begin the job of bringing up the following generation, one that might need to vault even higher hurdles.
The Fallout
Faced with the fast pace of growing up today, some students are clearly distressed, engaging in binge drinking and other self-destructive behaviors. Counseling services of secondary schools and colleges have expanded in response to greatly increased demand. It is common to encounter even the most successful students, who have won all the "prizes," stepping back and wondering if it was all worth it. Professionals in their thirties and forties - physicians, lawyers, academics, business people and others - sometimes give the impression that they are dazed survivors of some bewildering life-long boot-camp. Some say they ended up in their profession because of someone else’s expectations, or that they simply drifted into it without pausing to think whether they really loved their work. Often they say they missed their youth entirely, never living in the present, always pursuing some ill-defined future goal.
Some Early Remedies
What can we do to help? Fortunately this young fast-track generation itself offers ideas that can reduce stress and prevent burnout. In college application essays and interviews, in conversations and counseling sessions with current college students, and in discussions with alumni/ae, many current students perceive the value of taking time out. Such a "time out" can take many forms. It can be very brief or last for a year or more. It can be structured or unstructured, and directed toward career, academic or purely personal pursuits. Most fundamentally, it is a time to step back and reflect, to gain perspective on personal values and goals, or to gain needed life experience in a setting separate from and independent of one’s accustomed pressures and expectations.
For the years during high school, here is some of the advice students have offered:
Families should allow for "down-time" during vacations, weekends, and during the week at mealtimes or at any other break in the action. The fabric of family life is already under assault from the demands of parents’ increasingly stressful jobs. Parents, some of whom experienced the first wave of fast-lane childhoods themselves, are often distressed by how little uninterrupted free time they have to devote to their children.
Bring summer back. Summer need not be totally consumed by highly structured programs, such as summer schools, travel programs, or athletic camps. While such activities can be wonderful in many ways, they can also add to stress by assembling "super peers" who set nearly impossible standards. Activities in which one can develop at one’s own pace can be much more pleasant and helpful. An old-fashioned summer job that provides a contrast to the school year or allows students to meet others of differing backgrounds, ages, and life experiences is often invaluable in providing psychological downtime and a window on future possibilities. Students need ample free time to reflect, to recreate (i.e. to "re-create" themselves without the driving pressure to achieve as an influence), and to gather strength for the school year ahead.
Choose a high school (or a college) not simply by "brand name" or reputation but because it is the best fit. A school with a slower pace or a different academic or extracurricular focus can be a better match for certain students in the long run.
Using the Senior Year
The senior year of high school presents some special challenges and opportunities. The U.S. Department of Education’s Commission on the High School Senior Year calls the senior year a "lost opportunity that we need to reclaim." While some students try to get by with as little work as possible, others find it the most stressful year of their lives, with more demanding courses, more leadership responsibilities in their extracurricular activities, and the added burden of applying to college and taking the requisite college entrance tests.
There is often great tension about choosing and being admitted to the "right" college. Students and their families react to this particular stress in a number of ways, and many want the college admissions process over with as soon as possible.
While early admission programs may be right for some students, many observers have begun to ask whether too many students are applying early. They wonder if students are taking enough time and care to select colleges that best match their academic interests, career goals, and personal aspirations. Some have even used the word "hysteria" to describe some students who, perhaps influenced by peer pressure, want to apply early "somewhere" - without considering which colleges might be best for them. Some students have concluded that it is a virtual necessity to apply early, whatever the circumstances, for fear of being left behind.
We concur with these observers that early admissions programs have not served students well. In addition, they are not equally available to all students given the great disparities in guidance counseling and other resources in the
Some high schools help their seniors in the transition from high school to college by allowing a slightly reduced course load, along with alternatives such as community service, research projects, and internships that might help with career exploration.
Colleges can help themselves as well as their prospective students by declaring (and demonstrating) that they are not judged simply by the number of AP or other advanced credits amassed at the end of senior year. For example, those students with particular strengths in the humanities and social sciences often believe colleges expect them to take calculus when they might be much better served by another algebra course or statistics-or another language - instead. No matter which path they take, students who can find ways to reduce stress and use the senior year well arrive at college much better prepared to take full advantage of their first year of college.
Taking Time Off Before or During College
Perhaps the best way of all to get the full benefit of a "time-off" is to postpone entrance to college for a year. For over thirty years, Harvard has recommended this option, indeed proposing it in the letter of admission. Normally a total of about fifty to seventy students defer college until the next year.
The results have been uniformly positive. Harvard’s daily student newspaper, The Crimson reported (
During her year off, the student quoted above toured South America with an ice-skating company and later took a trip to
Some Options for the Interim Year
Members of one recent class participated in the following activities, and more, in the interim year: drama, figure skating, health-care, archeological exploration, kibbutz life, language study, mineralogical research, missionary work, music, non-profit groups, child welfare programs, political campaigns, rebuilding schools, special needs volunteering, sports, steel drumming, storytelling, swing dance, university courses, and writing - to name some chosen at random. They took their interim year in the following locales:
Many students divide their year into several segments of work, travel, or study. Not all can afford to travel or to take part in exotic activities. A number have served in the military or other national service programs. Some remain at home, working, taking part-time courses, interning, and still finding the time to read books they have never had time to fit into their schedules or begin to write the "great American novel." Others have been able to forge closer ties with parents or grandparents from whom they may have drifted away during the hectic pace of the high-school years.
Reactions to the Year Off
Students taking a year off prior to Harvard are doing what students from the
Nevertheless, taking time off can be a daunting prospect for students and their parents. Students often want to follow friends on safer and more familiar paths. Parents worry that their sons and daughters will be sidetracked from college, and may never enroll. Both fear that taking
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哈佛大学入学委员会报告：让下一代喘息还是累垮？
作为大学入学委员会的成员，我们受理过现今的学生及他们父母的申请文件，从这样的经验中，我们观察到两代之间存在许多差异。现在学生所面临的压力，无疑比上一代要大，“大学入学录取通知”即等同于通往成功的机会，这个想法俨然已经成为大多数学生的信念。
由于“名校”是造成此问题的原因之一，因此我们想要尽一切可能，帮助学生善用机会，避免累垮（burn out）现象的出现，因为那将会阻挠学生实现各种潜力的可能性。
当然，驱使学生的综合症状中，大学入学录取只是其中一项。20几岁的“.com”富翁、运动员及流行歌手的高薪、CEO们巨额的报酬等，都刺激着人们疯狂地追寻这种光环，很多时候，学生和他们的父母，都在向这些人不合理的高报酬看齐。
从摇篮期开始
最近报告纷纷显示，人生的追逐与竞赛自早期就开展，而且这种现象有日益夸张的趋势。让婴儿沉浸在古典音乐中，以提高他们精神力量的例子时有所闻，小孩被电脑和教育性的玩具淹没，专家不断灌输父母，他们的孩子若在3、4岁前，尚未跟随特定的策略，就会开始落后并且毫无希望。父母以上百、上千的酬劳聘用顾问，以协助仍在学步期的小孩，准备未来会面临的各个重要面试。顾问们观察孩子的游戏时间，因为游戏的方式，对于未来能否进入所谓“对”（right）的幼儿园、幼稚园、或重点学校，将产生决定性的影响；也唯有如此，日后想要进入"对"的高中、大学、研究所，才能得到更多的保证。
这些顾问将教导孩子在面试时，如何保持目光接触、如何展示领导才能和分享特质。根据统计，某些幼稚园或文法学校的入学竞争，是超乎想像地激烈，其录取率甚至低于哈佛大学。 一旦进入“对”的学校，学生将受到老师与家庭教师不懈地督促，学习与操练是日以继夜、从早至晚，压力是永无止境，对于大部分的父母而言，他们担心他们的孩子会被其他表现更优秀的同学甩下。
体育、音乐、舞蹈、和其它消遣活动，在过去常被视为广受欢迎的休闲方式及放松时间，但现在再也不是如此，因为未来若想争取大学奖学金或专业合约，孩子必须从小就展开训练。专家授课、夏令营、每周练习、比赛排程，这些消耗了孩子大部分的时间，暑假也成为从前才有的事。每天每年的紧凑步调，让孩子几乎没有时间得以纯粹地当个孩子。
中学的快速轨道
到了中学时期，孩子的压力更大。学生开始专精于某一项活动，甚至因此放弃对其他项目的追求，他们以自己选择的领域来定义自己，例如运动员、舞蹈员、音乐家等，他们的目标是让自己的天赋发挥得更加完美。
美国儿童科学会近日公布了一项报告，指出过早专修某项运动，有可能导致生理和心理的伤害。不要忘记在每个成功的老虎伍兹故事之外，还有不计其数的悲伤结果。一些学生花在专业科目上的时间，与学校同样的多，他们几乎每天都要比赛或练习，因为周末有客场比赛，夏天与假期中，也有全国性或国际性的赛程。这些专注于某项专业的运动员、音乐家、或舞蹈演员，甚至会因该专业是某校的强项，而不惜离家千里去就读，即使这所校的学术资源较弱。 然而学生面对的学业要求仍然严格，学生自中学阶段，就必须接受家庭教师的训练，以及准备SAT考试；到了高中，SAT更成为许多学生的生活重心，夜晚和周末都不休息。“对”的SAT家庭教师，一小时的费费高达数百元，暑期补习学校益变得越来越普遍。
追寻“对”的大学
大学申办顾问已非新兴行业，他们建议学生自中学起，就开始组织各式学业和课外活动的经历，以便日后进入好的大学。就最好的情况而言，这些谘询建议可能帮助学生评量他们的天赋、目标，以及作出一些可能改变学生未来生涯的路线修正；然而，从怀疑的角度去看，这样的建议只是单一地操纵学生，让他们进行海外旅游、社区服务或其它活动，以增加大学入学的论文内容和面试能力。 这些服务也许要价数万美元。例如有一顾问最近宣布的服务内容，整套收费约为29000元，而个别指导、激发灵感、或论文温习的课程，则必须另外计费，价格在1500元上下。这些谘询服务将会增加、而不是缓和来自学校、社区、和家庭生活的压力。
我们认为获取名校的入学许可，是导致这些压力的元凶，但作为大学入学委员的我们也认识到，大学只是到达到众多目标的快车道之一。 进入所谓“对”的大学之后，“对”的研究生院以及“对”的工作则成为下一个目标，许多人认为这些成果，将让他们未来更有可能居住在"对"的社区，来扶养他们的下一代一个可能必须跳跃过更高障碍的世代。
荡漾的余波
正在成长的这一代面对着快速的步调，有些人因而陷入痛苦情绪、酗酒、和其它自我破坏的行为。中学和大学的心理谘询服务不断扩展，才足以应付快速增加的需求，我们也常听到，即使是最成功的学生，他们在获得所有奖项和荣誉之后，仍然回头怀疑这一切是否值得。
许多正值30几和40几岁的专业人士——如医师、律师、学者、企业人士等——认为，自己选择了现在的专业，仅是因为别人的期望，也有人说，自己纯粹就是随波逐流的，从未停下来思考过，是否真正热爱这份工作。他们觉得自己错过了青年时期，他们从未活在当下，总在不停追求某一不清晰的未来目标。
早期的补救
我们该如何补救这些问题？很幸运地，年轻世代生活在如此快速的轨道上，他们自己也不断思考各种途径，试图减轻压力和预防累垮现象。透过大学申请的解疑和面试、与现行大学生的谘询和对话、以及会同毕业校友的讨论，许多人已察觉到“喘息”（time out）的价值，它的形式包含很多种，可能是短时间的，也可能持续一年或以上；可能是有计画的，也可能是无特定方式的；可能和事业、学业有关，也可能仅是个人所追求的做法。
基本而言，这是一个退一步反思的时段，当人们自长期的压力和期望中抽离出来，才有机会思考各种个人价值、目标、和观点，获取生活所需经验。
下面是一些高中学生提供的建议：
1、无论在假期中、周末里、或是日常的进餐时间，家庭该偶而采取“喘息”做法，不管用何种方式进行皆可。家庭生活的紧张度，已经因父母压力日增的工作中而高涨。现今的父母、同时也是赶上第一波“快车道”童年的人，现在却经常为了他们能给孩子的时间太少而困扰。
2、把夏天找回来。夏天不需要被密集的活动如暑期学校、旅行计画、或运动阵营给完全消耗掉，这些活动原本是相当美妙的，若能以自己的节奏去进行，将会使人更佳愉快，也会对人更有助益。而暑期工作也许可提供学生认识不同背景、不同年龄、不同经验的人，但这能否提供一个心理暂停期，能否为未来的可能性开一扇窗口，仍然有待商榷。事实上，学生在面对新的学年之前，需要更多的自由时间去反思、创造、和汇集力量。
3、选择一所高中或大学，不要单单根据它们“名牌”或声誉，而要考虑它是否最为适合。一所步幅较缓慢的学校，或一个较特殊的学术重点，从长远来看，对于某些学生可能更为有利。
善用高中的最后一年
高中的最后一年，正意味着特别的挑战和机会。最近美国教育部宣布了一个“高年级委员会”，指出高中的最后一年，是许多人正在失去、且必须寻回的机会。许多人发现高中最后一年，是他们人生中最紧张的一年，更严苛的课程、要求更多责任的课外活动、申请大学和入学考试所带来的额外负担等，都让学生的压力到达空前绝后。
学生在申请大学的巨大的压力中，他们和家人对于这特殊的压力的共同点，就是希望尽快知道申请结果。
早期决定（Early Decision，学生在
尽管有些人认为不要太早申请大学，因为在高中最后一年，可以获得更丰富的大学资讯，但许多通过早期决定方案的学生仍表示，从高中就曾不停止的压力中解放出来，这让他们觉得感恩。他们利用高中最后一年以及夏天的时期，重新发现自己在学术和课余方面的兴趣，他们首次尝试为了自己、而非为了成绩而追求新事物。他们说，这段期间是自童年以来，第一个让自己得以喘息的机会。
为了帮助其高年级生从高中过渡到大学，目前有些学校已稍加减轻课程要求，或以社区服务、研究计画、实习等方式，帮助他们探索未来的职业。此外，大专院校亦可对这些高中生提供协助，让他们知道大学并不单以学生在高中所累积的学分，来判断他们的表现和优劣。
我们发现，无论学生采取的方式为何，越能舒缓压力并且善加使用高中最后一年的人，当他们到达大学时，他们比别人作了更好的准备，也更懂得如何利用大学的第一年。
在进入大学之前休息一年
或许将进入大学的时间延缓一年，是最值得推荐的“喘息”形式。近30年来，哈佛大学不断推荐学生考虑此一选择，我们也在录取信函中，明确地提出这项建议；另外，当所有课程都已额满之后，我们还提供卓着的申请者来年进入哈佛的机会。因此，在正常的情况下，哈佛大学每年约有50到70名学生将入学时间延至下学年。
暂缓入学的提议带来很正面的结果。哈佛学生在学生报“绯红色”中写道，“可贵的经验让延后入学的人，想要建议所有的哈佛学生，都应该考虑这个选择。”实际上，哈佛大约有20%的学生在毕业前某个时间点上，采取“喘息”做法，而哈佛高达97%的整体毕业率，成为全美之冠，或许部分原因正是学生在学习过程中，都休息过一阵子。
哈佛的学生报纸还提到，进入哈佛之前的一年空档中，有个学生游访了南美洲的滑冰公司，随后则去俄国旅游；另一个被采访的学生则表示，他首先在一个正快速成长的电子商务公司工作，其后他花了6个月，背着背包在欧洲旅行。
一年“喘息”期的多样选择
2004届的哈佛学生利用“喘息”期参与的活动包含：戏曲、花样滑冰、医疗保健、历史矿藏、医疗、农场集居生活、语言研究、矿物学研究、传教士工作、音乐、非盈利组织、孤儿院、总统竞选、重建学校、特殊需求义工、体育、打鼓、讲故事、学生政治、摇摆舞蹈、或写作等。
地点涵盖：伯利兹、巴西、中国、哥斯大黎加、丹麦、厄瓜多尔、法国、德国、瓜地马拉、洪都拉斯、印度、爱尔兰、以色列、义大利、蒙古、尼泊尔、菲律宾、斯堪的那维亚、苏格兰、西班牙、瑞士、台湾、泰国、乌拉圭、美国或津巴布韦。
许多学生将这一年画分成工作、旅行、或研究等数个阶段，当然并非所有人都能负担旅游活动，因此也有些人加入军队、参加国内的服务活动，有些则留在家乡，他们工作、进修、阅读一些从来没有时间可以看完的书籍，甚至开始动笔，写部"伟大的美国小说"，还有人利用这段时间，与家人建立密切的联系，因为他们在高中岁月的忙碌步调中，不觉中已与父母、祖父母越来越远。
学生对空档期的反应
哈佛学生选择延缓一年入学，就如同英国学生也有所谓的“间断年”（gap year），有些国家则有年数不等的兵役制，不管学生为何暂缓学习，也无论他们在这段时间中作了什么，体验过的学生都给予这段时间极高的评价。有些人说，这一年是他们人生的转戾点，更多的人则认为，这一年的价值是无法测量的，许多好处将在未来持续显现。很多学生来到大学后，对于他们的学术计划、课余兴趣、想透过大学所得到的无形价值、以及未来志业的可能性等，都因为一年的空档期，有了全新的观点。他们坚定地认为，若再给他们一次机会，他们还是会这么做。
然而，在学习的途中暂缓一年，可能让许多学生和父母感到担心。学生经常想跟随朋友，走更安全和更熟悉的道路；父母则担心，他们的儿子或女儿将因此而脱离轨道，也许就再也不会进入校园，两者都忧心，这一年可能导致学生落后，或丢失他们的学习技能。不过高中顾问、大学行政人员、和其他协助学生延缓入学的人，都保证这样做的好处将胜过风险。
我们也发现，有些学生获得哈佛或其它大学的录取，是因为他们利用这一年的时间，完成了某项特殊的事情。没人应该为了获取某大学的入学许可，而花费一整年的时间准备，用这时间做些别的事，并不会降低一个人的竞争力。
成功需重新定义
本文的焦点在于如何为现今的世代纾解压力，同时，我们也应该注意到，多数学生将压力应付得很好。这是个卓越的时代，其机会是上一代或其他地区的人不能想像的，例如大学透过各种渠道，吸收了有天赋的学生，让各种经济背景的孩子都有机会；奖助学金则帮助杰出的孩子一圆大学梦，这在过去几乎不可能实现。美国知名大专院校的毕业率都维持在高点，学生亦对他们的大学经验表示满意。
我们必须记得，进入高等教育的人，在现今世界上仍算是幸运的少数，那些享受特权的幸运者，有责任使用他们的天分，为未来的世代提供更多机会。到目前为止，多数大学生都成功地应付他们所面对的强大挑战，但他们也不断提醒我们，新世界的经济与激烈的竞争，将会带给所有人更高的标准，最近的毕业生也劝告现今的高中生和大学生，除了在学业方面之余，在情绪上也要有所准备。
值得注意的是，一个人的非凡成就，并非得自于与他人之比较，而是一种配合自己独有的节奏、是无法被任何标准测量的事物。
因此，问题经常发生在好意的父母受到误导，而设法铸造孩子成为他们所重视的成功形象，孩子们则经常是具有可塑性的，他们总是在自己有能力作决定之前，就参加父母安排的学习和训练。但矛盾因而出现，因为欲真正地通往成功之路，应是做一个完整的自己，并以自己定义的领域与方式去实现。
当孩子承受众多压力，当孩子的生活不断地被严格训练所填充，这可能会延迟孩子找寻自我、以自己的方式实现成功的意涵。我们都有权利去钦佩麦克乔丹或马友友的成就，同时也应在我们自己的领域和路子中，以更适当的方式成就自我：如发现原始人类的骨头，改变人们对古生物学的想法、或做些爵士乐的曲子、或追踪罗马氏族的兴衰......
此外，我们发现，重新定义成功的目标后，父母和学生皆能从中受益。若不断追求他人的目标，“累垮”（burn out）将是不可避免的结果，反之，“喘息”（time out）则有助于发现自己的热情。
事实显示，今天成长的这一代与过去相当不同。一些学生和家庭正处在狂热的步调中，一些人则是也许能够应付压力，却较少享受他们所想要的生活，即使是做得相当好的人，在今日的超竞争风景中，亦是设法要跟上许多越来越不切实际的期望。
关于如何面对挑战，学生自己就有能力为自己提供建议。这是由于自生命的早期，他们就面临许多障碍，这一代普遍较为成熟、老练，并且懂得以最佳的准备，面对21世纪的要求，他们在童年就学会怎么应付胜利和失败，怎么面对大人与同侪所给予的各种要求。我们相信在压力的生活中暂停一会儿，许多人将因此受益。我们也希望，在“累垮”成为这个世代的标志之前，他们能够先采取某种形式的“喘息”。
