2010 Cultural Exchange

Initial Planning and Application Process

The final dates for the 2010 program have been finalized. The team will leave Australia after Easter and during the April vacation. Departure will be on Wednesday April 7, with a return on Wednesday April 21 in the first week of Term 2.

The success of the program will be built upon careful preparation. Expressions of Interest have already been sought from 2010 Years 11 and 12 students, with a closing date of Monday November 16 for receipt of initial Expressions of Interest from students. During the next week students will be required to undertake a personal evaluation and submit this as part of their application. Students will be interviewed by staff leaders prior to their being accepted as a member of the 2010 Hong Kong-China Cultural Exchange Team shortly after Monday November 23, 2009. A deposit will be required in Term 4, 2009 in order to secure the Group Airfare.

Students will often take part time jobs as part of their personal commitment to raising the funds for their personal involvement. Team members are also expected to attend approximately 5 team meetings during 2009 and 2010. A more detailed Information session for families and team members will be held once the composition of the team has been finalized.

A taste of Hong Kong life

The program intentionally moves at a fast pace and as far as possible integrates with local culture. Hong Kong life is busy. The busiest days involve use of early morning public transport, a noodle breakfast at the school canteen, a school day with a Hong Kong buddy, a yum cha interlude, after-school activities, followed by an evening Cantonese meal and a visit to Hong Kong night markets.

A taste of school life

A highlight of the visit is the school exchange program with Living Spirit College. The school is a Cantonese medium secondary school adjacent to the Fu Shin high-rise estate in Tai Po. Our presence in the school not only builds the bonds of cross-cultural friendship but provides an important avenue for building the English second language confidence of our Chinese hosts.

A taste of service

In 2008 we piloted two days of service and simulation experiences with Crossroads International in the Gold Coast region of Hong Kong. We repeated this experience in 2009. We are planning for a continuation of this experience in 2010.

At Crossroads students gained an insight into how an agency is responding to world poverty through the redistribution of an incredible volume of surplus local production to other aid agencies around the world. The group also benefited from simulation experiences on responding to poverty through the "Blind experience" and attempting to understand HIV/AIDS from the perspective of at-risk populations in the developed and developing world.

A taste of China

Again in 2010 the program is expected to include an escorted 2 to 3 day visit to the Guangdong province of China, adjacent to Hong Kong and the New Territories. In this short visit, students begin to appreciate some of the cultural differences between Hong Kong and the still relatively Westernized areas of South East China in one of Guangdong's Special Economic Zones. In this short visit students are confronted by some of the cultural diversity of China, its rapid industrialization and an insight into the way China views the rest of the world (something of the perspective of the "Middle Kingdom").

After some tentative attempts to communicate with some basic Cantonese greetings, the students begin a new challenge of listening more frequently to putonghua (Mandarin) after crossing the border at Lo Wu. Although Cantonese is a language traditionally from this province, the population of Guangdong, particularly in the industrial growth centres, has a large migrant population from elsewhere in China.

More tastes

The cultural exchange inevitably incorporates a variety of new food tastes. It is so often around the table that much cultural learning takes place. Most meals seem to produce some new insight into table etiquette. By the end of the program some students are keen to continue to develop their new found expertise at using chopsticks.

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