SITTING in a discotheque recently, Bradley Gardner, a British businessman based in Hong Kong, decided he had made the right decision over the way he brought up his children. As he watched his 15-year-old son ask a woman three times his age to dance, the young boy displayed none of the awkwardness of puberty.
His other two sons are equally confident, the result, Mr Gardner believes, of 'New Age parenting', which focuses not only on academic education but life skills gained through exposure to nature, physical activity and social interaction.
Convinced that children should have the opportunity to develop all-round skills, Mr Gardner and partners are developing one of the first 'super-camps' in Asia. Camp Lifetime, which is to be built on 6.5 hectares of land near Gianyar in Bali, is intended to provide children with opportunities their parents never had.
'We felt children should not have to wait until they're in their 30s and 40s to start learning they need to face the problems of the world,' Mr Gardner said. Over a two-week period, children between the ages of nine and 13 from all over Asia will be able to participate in 70 activities and be responsible for organising their own schedules. It will cost US$2,000 (around HK$15,500).
The first camp, set for the summer of 1997, will accommodate 250 children. As well as recreational activities, youngsters will be encouraged to try activities ranging from cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and lifesaving to marine biology.
They will learn about problem-solving, ecological issues and working as a team. The camp has its own farm where children will learn how food is grown and what it means to be self-sufficient.
Another project developer, Chris Gentry, a long-time corporate and Outward Bound trainer, said: 'In this part of the world, we seem to have a huge group of very intelligent kids who won't speak or take risks. The educational system is doing a good job in the formal rearing of these children, but their social skills are not being worked as hard.
