Roshan Julian, RCHK joiner, radiates jubilance

Roshan Julian, born and raised in Hong Kong, has recently joined Renaissance College as a Physical and Health Education teacher. After doing his undergraduate degree in Sheffield Hallam University in the United Kingdom, he moved down south for his teacher training. After being in the UK for four years, he moved back to Hong Kong to be with his family. As an ESF alumnus of Quarry Bay and South Island school, the RCHK Truth interviewed him to learn more about him and his bubbly personality.

What languages do you know? How did you learn those languages?

Being in Hong Kong, you get to know a lot of languages, good words and good phrases. My parents are from Sri Lanka and so I heard Sinhalese at home. I obviously know Cantonese and Mandarin. At school, there was German and French, but I chose to learn English.

What inspired you to pursue teaching PHE?

Growing up, I had some amazing teachers. ESF always hires great teachers and they were always very inspirational. They would always get you involved in sports, and at ESF there were so many opportunities – I really enjoyed that. I’m also a sports coach, so I found that my biggest accomplishments were also to teach and to see people grow. That’s what I loved doing, and I get to teach PHE as something I am passionate about and something I can explore further.

What was your first impression of RCHK?

Friendly, respectful and very busy. Everyone is super friendly, yet everyone has something going on, especially the student paper and all the dragon dance. This is my third week, so I’m still getting to learn more about RCHK, but it’s definitely busy — from primary all the way through secondary — and it’s really nice to be part of this community.

As you’ve just mentioned you’ve only been here for just three weeks, what do you like most about the school so far?

The community. All the students are super friendly and super respectful. You can always have a good conversation with them, and the faculty is really nice as well. Everyone says good morning and they really make you feel welcomed, so the community is huge.

In what ways do you like to encourage creativity in your classroom?

As an IB educator, creativity comes through students’ inquiry-based learning, as well as diversifying lessons. Hopefully that is a creative way for students to explore: for example with basketball, “how do you pass the ball?” — that way students are open to thinking about strategies. That’s the creative part.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

*Chuckles* That’s really hard to say. Just joining RCHK, this community. Hong Kong’s my home, and I love the RCHK community — hopefully, I am going to stay here and grow with the community as we get older.

Do you have any hobbies apart from teaching?

My two main sports are rugby and sailing. I really love the outdoors and I’ve got a small family. I’ve got a five-year-old and another three-year-old, and they both love going outside, cycling, hiking, and eating lots of food. That’s all part of my hobbies here in Hong Kong.

What is the lamest, but funniest joke you have ever heard?

I love a good joke, but I’m really bad at telling jokes. So I just like a good sense of humour. I couldn’t tell you one to save my life.

What were you like as an ESF student?

Definitely sporty. Busy. A little bit cheeky, but being in a school like RCHK and South Island School, there was always something going on, and that was something I really remembered – and it’s one of the big reasons I joined ESF: students have the opportunity to go so many ways. I was part of the musical, the orchestra, and was part of sports teams. I really value those opportunities because it’s made me the person as I am today!

If you could tell every student one thing, what would it be?

Trust the journey. School is one big journey. There is going to be some big hurdles. Ask for help. Inquire and explore. Be part of the community. Join different initiatives and you’ll find that at the end, when you finish your CAS, and when you finish your IB diploma, you’ll be super impressed with what you’ve accomplished and what you can grow and do further in your life.