The following article comes from Elizabeth Threadgold, a teacher at Connah’s Quay High School.
Thomas Edison said: “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”
In the course of my professional career as a secondary school teacher, I have often found that life has a funny way of sending opportunities our way.
When we were approached by the Global School Alliance and asked if we would be able to step in and host a party of Chinese visitors I was interested, but also nervous. Our international journey with GSA only began in January but since then, with the support of staff, and the wider school community, we have already developed links with two partner schools and raised awareness of international links in school. Our Headteacher, James Forber, has a vision to develop our learners into ethical, informed citizens of the world. This sounded like an exciting opportunity, but also a little daunting.
I needn’t have worried. The GSA were with us every step of the way. The visit was scheduled for the last week of our summer term. We would be hosting a party of 23 Chinese students and staff from Hainan Foreign Language School, Beijing. Their partner school in Lymm, Cheshire were unable to host for the full week due to transition events; so we agreed to help out.
After numerous meetings, emails, consultations and lots of planning, we were finally ready to host.
This would be the first time we had opened our doors to a group of international visitors for any length of time; earlier in the term we had hosted French visitors for half a day, but that did not really prepare me for level of preparation that went into organising an inclusive programme for four days.
We wanted to give our visitors a broad experience of daily life in an English-medium Welsh high school. Our visitors were buddied up with learners from the same academic year and they attended ordinary lessons with them for four hours a day for three of the four days. One lesson a day was given to a Welsh themed activity such as Dawns y Gwerin, Welsh Country Dancing, baking Welsh cakes, a chess tournament and an end of term assembly. As the visit took place during the last week of the summer term; Wednesday was reward activities day. Activities included a session doing hair and beauty, football golf and making mini movies. During the year 9 End of Year assembly, two of our visitors performed a traditional Chinese song which was appreciated by all of our learners.
This was, without doubt, an amazing opportunity for our whole school community.
So how would I rate the experience? This was, without doubt, an amazing opportunity for our whole school community. To see some of our learners literally blossom as they proudly looked after their buddies was wonderful. GSA supported us all the way and despite the hard work that went into the week from staff and pupils alike, it was worth every minute. At a time when the world seems a very angry place, and focus seems to be on what divides us, one year 9 female learner pointed out, “They’re just like us really, aren’t they Miss?”. Surely, this lesson alone which demonstrates that friendship and collaboration can find a way despite cultural or language differences is the most important one of all.
