WEBVTT 00:14.927 --> 00:16.296 Traditionally, the people of Penghu 00:16.296 --> 00:19.130 had a very close relationship with the sea. 00:19.130 --> 00:22.452 But because of the pressure to succeed in school 00:22.458 --> 00:23.716 and their parents' perceptions, 00:23.726 --> 00:25.609 children today are strangers to the sea, 00:25.609 --> 00:27.586 because they think it is very dangerous. 00:28.557 --> 00:30.625 I thought we could design a class 00:30.625 --> 00:32.582 that would train Penghu kids 00:32.582 --> 00:35.112 to feel at home in the water or out on the ocean, 00:35.112 --> 00:37.398 which would restore these traditional Penghu traits. 00:37.540 --> 00:38.375 You know that feeling 00:38.375 --> 00:40.459 when you're comfortable around water, 00:40.459 --> 00:42.784 and don't feel tense when you are in the water. 00:42.958 --> 00:44.793 An important part of our class 00:44.793 --> 00:46.680 is trying to get the students 00:46.682 --> 00:48.044 to gradually reclaim this ability. 00:51.111 --> 00:52.289 Sit steady. 00:52.301 --> 00:55.035 Sit up in it. Sit steady. 00:55.949 --> 00:58.170 Our class takes the Penghu weather into account. 00:58.519 --> 00:59.904 After the start of school in September 00:59.910 --> 01:01.189 we move to a swimming pool. 01:01.189 --> 01:02.778 We put the kayaks in a swimming pool. 01:02.778 --> 01:05.257 We first teach the students to not be afraid 01:05.257 --> 01:07.555 if their kayak rolls over. 01:07.653 --> 01:10.236 They learn to feel that kayaks are a part of their body. 01:12.012 --> 01:13.314 And learn lifesaving techniques. 01:13.314 --> 01:14.298 When you capsize, 01:14.298 --> 01:16.134 you have to know how to get back up. 01:19.983 --> 01:21.102 We later teach 01:21.102 --> 01:22.398 more theoretical topics, 01:22.398 --> 01:24.358 such as the physics of the sea, 01:24.364 --> 01:26.442 and how waves form. 01:26.442 --> 01:28.214 If I run into waves while at sea, 01:28.214 --> 01:29.634 how I should deal with it? 01:29.634 --> 01:31.458 We also teach how to read weather maps. 01:32.565 --> 01:34.966 The last and most difficult task is 01:34.969 --> 01:36.627 going to another island in a kayak. 01:36.920 --> 01:37.977 We have the students 01:37.977 --> 01:40.002 read charts and set a course. 01:40.002 --> 01:41.442 They learn how to use a compass and GPS 01:41.442 --> 01:43.371 to find which way they want to go. 01:43.925 --> 01:45.414 They rely on their own paddling strength 01:45.414 --> 01:46.403 to get to the island. 01:46.687 --> 01:47.996 When you set out from point A, 01:47.996 --> 01:50.615 there is sure to be a south wind, which will blow you to the north. 01:50.848 --> 01:53.132 If you head directly for Yuanbei Island, 01:53.135 --> 01:54.308 the wind will cause you to 01:54.308 --> 01:55.539 gradually drift to the north. 01:55.539 --> 01:57.739 So tomorrow you may have to aim south a bit 01:57.739 --> 01:59.323 when you head for your destination. 02:15.529 --> 02:16.808 When you head out in a moment, 02:16.808 --> 02:17.684 before you leave, 02:17.690 --> 02:19.108 drink some more water. 02:19.108 --> 02:20.122 Drink one mouthful, 02:20.515 --> 02:22.301 and swallow it slowly in three gulps. 02:22.303 --> 02:24.588 That will help your body absorb it better. 02:24.760 --> 02:26.702 Looking after yourself 02:26.702 --> 02:28.156 is whose responsibility? 02:28.329 --> 02:29.958 It is always your responsibility. 02:29.958 --> 02:31.493 If you can't take care of yourself, 02:31.493 --> 02:33.819 you certainly won't be able to take care of your companions. 02:34.056 --> 02:35.238 I'm a bit nervous 02:35.798 --> 02:38.647 because this is my first time paddling. I don't have much experience. 02:39.513 --> 02:41.493 Because I paddled 10 kilometers last year, 02:42.121 --> 02:43.717 I'm sure this won't be a big problem. 02:43.717 --> 02:44.628 I'll just enjoy it. 02:45.247 --> 02:46.355 Everything is okay. 02:46.355 --> 02:46.989 Let's go! 02:46.994 --> 02:48.196 Okay 02:53.590 --> 02:54.851 Each year we hold this class, 02:54.851 --> 02:56.497 we encounter a notable phenomenon. 02:56.497 --> 02:59.873 This is that as soon as the novices begin paddling, 03:00.321 --> 03:02.048 they all discover that 03:02.048 --> 03:04.514 their bow is constantly going toward another direction. 03:04.514 --> 03:05.806 In most of these situations, 03:05.806 --> 03:07.860 the kayak is being affected by the wind and current. 03:07.860 --> 03:09.769 We had learned about the weathercocking effect. 03:09.870 --> 03:11.598 That means when your kayak is moving, 03:11.598 --> 03:13.717 it will be affected by the wind and current, 03:13.717 --> 03:15.671 and the drag on the bow will be much greater 03:15.671 --> 03:16.754 than the drag on the stern. 03:17.098 --> 03:19.576 So the stern will tend to drift. 03:19.770 --> 03:21.371 When that happens, you need to know 03:21.371 --> 03:23.237 how to use certain methods to correct your course. 03:23.488 --> 03:25.813 You can use the rudder and a backward sweep 03:25.813 --> 03:26.946 to adjust your stern, 03:26.946 --> 03:29.700 and try to keep the kayak facing into the waves. 03:29.923 --> 03:32.030 Don't let your kayak be parallel with the waves, 03:32.030 --> 03:34.020 because that may put you at risk of capsizing. 03:34.914 --> 03:36.242 I repeat it over and over again in class. 03:36.246 --> 03:37.513 The students won't remember it. 03:37.513 --> 03:38.705 They take the exam and forget it. 03:38.705 --> 03:40.219 But when they are out at sea, 03:40.225 --> 03:41.765 they will actually encounter this situation. 03:43.144 --> 03:44.352 Watch your direction 03:45.888 --> 03:47.985 You're off course. Let's do another circle. 03:49.332 --> 03:51.280 Use your right paddle. 03:54.258 --> 03:56.373 They just can't seem to get back on course. 03:56.373 --> 03:56.996 He says, 03:56.996 --> 03:59.771 "Now I really understand what you were saying in class." 04:00.064 --> 04:01.586 That's because they get a deep impression. 04:01.586 --> 04:03.022 It's because the classroom theory 04:03.022 --> 04:05.805 matches the real situation so well. 04:06.574 --> 04:08.268 I'm sure they won't forget it. 04:20.655 --> 04:22.603 Letting them exploring the outer islands is very important, 04:22.603 --> 04:25.433 because I've found that most of the kids who live on the main island of Penghu 04:25.433 --> 04:28.056 don't know anything at all about Penghu's outer islands. 04:28.056 --> 04:29.365 I have to think of ways 04:29.365 --> 04:30.638 to start a dialog about these places. 04:31.776 --> 04:33.040 Now there are no students here, 04:33.040 --> 04:34.473 and no children. 04:34.473 --> 04:35.776 Nowadays the students, 04:35.776 --> 04:37.113 two or three of them, 04:37.116 --> 04:40.254 have received subsidies from the Ministry of Education 04:40.266 --> 04:42.409 to attend school on the main island. 04:42.646 --> 04:44.839 Do you get your water from 04:44.843 --> 04:46.986 desalinating seawater? 04:46.986 --> 04:47.815 No 04:48.206 --> 04:51.516 We get groundwater from Baisha Island. 04:51.737 --> 04:53.558 There wasn't any power here before 04:53.559 --> 04:56.247 and we had to use kerosene lanterns. 04:56.567 --> 04:59.486 We later changed from kerosene lanterns to candles. 04:59.486 --> 05:01.154 Giving the students opportunities to 05:01.154 --> 05:02.879 meet and interact with local people 05:02.879 --> 05:04.027 helps them understand 05:04.027 --> 05:05.295 the difficulties people face 05:05.301 --> 05:07.132 living on an outer island like this. 05:07.132 --> 05:08.733 This is the real Penghu. 05:08.733 --> 05:11.695 Without this experience, what impression would the students have of Penghu? 05:11.695 --> 05:13.096 The Penghu in a tourist brochure. 05:13.096 --> 05:15.011 But that is not the real Penghu, 05:15.021 --> 05:16.846 it's not the Penghu where ordinary people live. 05:16.846 --> 05:19.200 So when you actually visit these rural outer islands, 05:19.200 --> 05:20.992 only then will you see the real Penghu. 05:29.281 --> 05:30.181 I've seen 05:31.277 --> 05:32.680 students who were afraid of water, 05:32.680 --> 05:34.640 who were afraid of going near the sea, 05:34.640 --> 05:36.860 gradually become not just unafraid 05:36.860 --> 05:38.157 and confident, 05:38.157 --> 05:39.939 but also help others lose their fear. 05:39.939 --> 05:42.638 That's the change that I've seen in the students. 05:42.638 --> 05:43.703 Since I was little, 05:43.703 --> 05:47.702 my family never wanted us to go swimming at the seashore. 05:47.702 --> 05:49.881 So I didn't have much contact with the ocean. 05:49.881 --> 05:51.762 I was very afraid of it in the beginning. 05:51.762 --> 05:51.764 I was very afraid of it in the beginning. when I first went to a swimming pool. 05:51.764 --> 05:54.723 I didn't even dare to breathe when I first went to a swimming pool. 05:55.038 --> 05:58.235 But after being in contact with the sea, 05:58.235 --> 05:59.988 I figure it's like 05:59.988 --> 06:01.611 a good friend. 06:02.298 --> 06:04.052 Like the way it will hold you and support you 06:04.052 --> 06:05.761 when you are in the water. 06:05.998 --> 06:08.142 I feel like it's my good buddy. 06:10.230 --> 06:11.902 I've become braver. 06:11.902 --> 06:12.980 No one can help you, 06:12.983 --> 06:14.250 so you have to depend on yourself 06:14.250 --> 06:16.114 and get by using willpower. 06:17.728 --> 06:20.375 I see great potential in my students. 06:20.375 --> 06:22.222 They discover themselves have this ability. 06:22.222 --> 06:23.839 They can use their own strength 06:23.845 --> 06:25.982 to paddle out to small islands. 06:26.314 --> 06:29.192 They have the ability to judge the weather. 06:29.192 --> 06:31.175 They can use this kind of knowledge 06:31.176 --> 06:33.799 to have real accomplishments. 06:34.281 --> 06:36.291 If you don't try and don't come into contact, 06:36.297 --> 06:38.470 you will never know that you have this kind of potential. 06:38.470 --> 06:39.636 So try boldly, 06:39.642 --> 06:40.809 and bravely put to sea. 06:43.136 --> 06:45.806 When you want to change yourself, and embark on a course of action, 06:45.806 --> 06:48.358 your actions may be able to change the world.