Teaching at ACTAsia’s Summer Camp

3 October 2025

This World Teacher’s Day, ACTAsia is proud to spotlight the incredible teachers that made ACTAsia’s Caring for Life Summer Camp possible. 

Fang Luzhen and ACTAsia’s Summer Camp

This August, ACTAsia proudly hosted its inaugural Caring for Life (CFL) Summer Camp in rural Haiyuan County no. 2 Primary School in Ningxia. The camp was an incredible success, with over 100 children taking part in four days of interactive learning, teamwork, and reflection.

As with all of ACTAsia’s Caring for Life education for children programmes, the camp’s success was only possible thanks to the dedication of teachers who bring empathy and responsibility into their classrooms every day. On this World Teachers’ Day, ACTAsia wanted to share how Ms. Fang Luzhen, a science teacher from Zhangzhou Experimental School who joined the camp as part of the Fujian-Ningxia collaborative education project, truly made a difference.

Bringing Caring for Life into the classroom

Ms. Fang explained that she has been deeply influenced by ACTAsia’s Caring for Life education for more than ten years and that she always seeks to weave its values into her science lessons:

“The knowledge we learn in all disciplines is meant to contribute to the healthy growth of life. Therefore, in the teaching process, children’s group collaboration is based on respect, understanding and mutual support. We should always pay attention to the interactive relationship between ourselves and the environment.”

At the Haiyuan summer camp, Ms. Fang guided students to discover that the environment and animals must be able to co-exist harmoniously with people. She believes this awareness not only benefits children’s physical and mental health but also becomes part of their personhood.

Lessons that last a lifetime

Ms. Fang discusses how she has observed children taking the values from Caring for Life lessons home. One parent once shared a story that touched her deeply:

“One of my students once told his mother that he didn’t want to keep a dog anymore. When asked why, he said: ‘Ms. Fang told us that animals, like dogs, have emotions. They need care, clean water and air, and they experience emotions. If I cannot keep a dog happy and joyful, then I would not be a responsible owner.’”

Other students shared with their parents that they no longer wished to buy fur clothing or products, after learning that the fur trade causes immense pain to animals.

For Ms. Fang, these reflections are proof of CFL’s impact. “At the opening ceremony, I saw the light on the children’s faces,” she said. “Moments like that remind me that the purpose of education is to make children healthier, happier and more fulfilled.”

Meeting challenges in underdeveloped areas with CFL

Ms. Fang’s work in educational support projects has given her insight into the challenges students in underdeveloped areas are up against. These include mental health struggles, the impact of online gaming and mobile phones and a disconnect between teachers and students. 

She believes Caring for Life can help close these gaps:

“From a current educational perspective, the teacher-student relationship is a partnership, a relationship of equality. If teachers in less developed areas can deeply understand this, it will be beneficial for students’ learning and their mental health.”

Respecting students, Ms. Fang explains, and guiding them to observe the world with care, is essential. In her view, Caring for Life education is a foundation for healthy growth rather than an educational add-on.

Teachers planting seeds of empathy

Ms. Fang’s story reflects the wider impact of ACTAsia’s Summer Camp.

As Echo Liu, ACTAsia’s China Head of Programmes explains:

“Our Summer Samp activities demonstrate that Caring for Life education extends beyond knowledge transfer. It focuses on cultivating the diverse social-emotional competencies children need to solve problems, enabling them to treat others kindly, prevent bullying and violence, and achieve the learning goal of ‘learning to live together.’”

Through the efforts of teachers like Fang Luzhen and the dedication of ACTAsia staff and volunteers, students in Haiyuan were able to move from observing nature to reflecting on their own behaviour, and move from strangers to a community.

This World Teacher’s Day, ACTAsia celebrates teachers who make this possible. Their guidance ensures that children not only learn about empathy and responsibility but also practice it in their families, their communities and their futures. 

Join us in supporting the next generation of compassionate, empathetic learners. Your contribution helps ACTAsia bring Caring for Life education to children across Asia, fostering a kinder world for people, animals and the environment