In this blog post, I’ll summarize my academic experiences, school activities, and examples of compassion, sharing, and collaboration during my high school years, along with my reflections on them.

Writing About My Academic Experiences and Reflections

The most frustrating moments for me while studying were when I felt a sense of emptiness—as if I’d spent a lot of time but hadn’t made any progress. Even after studying for three or four hours, if the material didn’t stick and felt like I was seeing it for the first time, I’d often question whether that time had been well spent—and I’d get frustrated. As these experiences repeated, I pondered how I could study efficiently while staying fully immersed every hour, and eventually, I tried creating a schedule to track my progress in small increments.
First, I broke down and recorded every single block of time I actually had available. When I wrote down everything—my commute, self-study time before class, breaks, lunch and dinner breaks, study hall, and even the short moments before bed—I realized there were surprisingly many small pockets of time I hadn’t noticed before. I decided in advance how to use those times, wrote them down on my schedule, and put it into practice by circling each item once I’d completed the planned study session.
For short periods, I allocated time to tasks that only required concentration—like memorizing vocabulary—or, if solving problems right away was difficult, I used the time to review course material. I carried my vocabulary notebook with me at all times, flipping through it whenever I had a spare moment, and prioritized using self-study time for content that needed review or further study. As I put this detailed plan into action, I developed the habit of staying focused every single hour, and as these small achievements piled up, studying became much easier.
Ultimately, I realized that the key to concentration lies in meticulous planning and breaking down tasks within that time frame to fully immerse myself in them. For me, precisely defining what needed to be done and checking my progress was more effective than simply setting long time slots and sitting there aimlessly, as I had done before. Through this experience, I learned to systematize my time management and regain confidence through small successes.

Major Campus Activities and Reflections

Driven solely by my love of books, I applied to the Library Self-Governance Committee. The competition was fierce at the time—many students applied to build their portfolios—but I was accepted because my genuine passion for reading stood out. The first thing I realized after joining the committee was the “value of books.” I came to understand firsthand that books are not merely objects to be read, but precious resources that require care and preservation.
The main duty of the committee was caring for the books. While assisting with check-outs and returns, I inspected the condition of the books and learned that even minor damage, if left unaddressed, could lead to significant deterioration. I learned book care techniques from upperclassmen and, by paying close attention myself, consistently took steps to prevent small tears or stains before they became problems. Through this process, I realized that keeping books in good condition for the long term is not easy, but it is crucial.
The most enjoyable activity on the Student Council was organizing the book report contest. Since this event received significant funding and attention, many students were eager to participate, and we were involved in the process of reading numerous books to select entries for the contest. After reading the books, I discussed them with friends and observed how they could be interpreted from various perspectives, which made me realize anew that the meaning of a book is not singular. This experience had a profound impact on my reading habits.
I also deeply appreciated the importance of cooperation while preparing to promote the contest. Friends who were good at drawing created posters, while those who were good at writing crafted promotional slogans; we divided roles to make the most of each other’s strengths. As we each utilized our abilities to publicize the event’s purpose, format, and award details, more students showed interest. Seeing people gather to borrow books and share their thoughts brought me joy and a sense of fulfillment. It was a valuable experience that taught me the joy of working together toward a common goal.

Writing about examples of consideration, sharing, and cooperation, along with my reflections

What stands out most in my memory is planning a campaign with my friends to encourage more active use of the library. Although our library had a large collection, actual usage was heavily concentrated in just a few genres.

With many students focusing solely on webtoons, comics, and young adult novels, we felt the need to introduce interesting books from other fields, such as the humanities and science.
We determined that offline postings alone had limited reach, so we opted to promote the campaign through social media. To this end, we held monthly meetings to collect books to feature and memorable quotes, and each of us selected books—including non-fiction and titles outside the typical fiction genre—that we had read and felt were worth recommending to our friends. When we posted the selected passages along with brief introductions on social media, the initial response was modest, but as we began to include content that was helpful in daily life and featured evocative expressions, engagement gradually increased.
As the number of likes and followers grew, our activities gained wider recognition, and eventually, we became a success story that other schools began to emulate. The lessons learned from this process are clear: even tasks that seem difficult when undertaken alone become achievable when everyone takes on a role that suits them and works together; and consistent improvement and communication drive change. It was an experience that allowed us to deeply appreciate the value of cooperation as we put our heads together and tackled challenges one step at a time.