From Relationships to Career: Grades 9 and 11 Empowered to Choose Right
Grade 9 and 11 students of MGC New Life Christian Academy (MGCNLCA), along with their parents, attended the Choosing Right: Senior and Junior Edition program last March 11 to 12 and 17, respectively, to help guide students in making informed, faith-based decisions for their future.
Organized annually by the Guidance and Testing Center, the program is designed to help students reflect on their future relationships and career choices. It also aims to equip parents with strategies to support their children during this critical stage of adolescence, marked by social, emotional, and moral development.
Conducted in collaboration with Wavemakers, an organization that aims to empower young leaders, the Grade 11 students’ two-day program focused on the importance of character, setting boundaries, and delayed abstinence.
On the second day, their parents joined a session about providing proper parental guidance on sexuality, while students continued their discussion introduced in the previous day’s workshop. The morning concluded with students signing pledge cards, affirming their commitment to uphold purity before marriage. This initiative encouraged students to view love as a God-given and precious gift, reinforcing the sacredness of marriage and the importance of making wise, faith-driven decisions.
In the afternoon, Pastor Jeanette Yu-Chua of Makati Gospel Church facilitated a guided discussion where students and parents answered a series of questions about sexuality and relationships together.
“The activities and messages really helped me reflect on how I’ve grown, especially in the way I make decisions. I realized that setting boundaries is important, not just for others, but also for myself. It made me more aware that my choices should reflect my values and faith,” expressed Olive student Gianna Oreese Villacorta.
A few days later, the one-day event began for the Grade 9 students, with students and parents attending separate sessions where guest speakers shared their personal experiences in making important life decisions.
MGCNLCA alumni Bohden Christian Si and Ethan Zachary Tan of Batch 14, together with Anne Trisha Chua of Batch 12, shared their journey in navigating the challenges of choosing career paths, offering advice for students preparing for their future.
Meanwhile, Dr. Grace Shangkuan-Koo, PhD, a professor of Educational Psychology at the University of the Philippines, provided parents with insights on raising confident, motivated, and resilient children.
The program concluded with a parent-child encounter where parents engaged in meaningful conversations with their children to encourage them to speak openly about their hopes and concerns related to career exploration.
“I’ve realized that motivation isn’t just about a one-time push from us parents. It’s a gentle, sustained process that needs to come from within them. I’m learning to be the one who cheers them on as they find their own identity, and it helped me focus on guiding them with a lot more patience and a lot less pressure,” reflected Damascus parent Aileen Chua.
