THE INDO-China EXCHANGE PROGRAMME
Round Square Exchange Trip to Concord College of Sino-Canada in Shenzhen, China 2016 - 13th to 20th June.
As a part of the Round Square Student exchange initiative 11 students of classes VIII and IX, accompanied by 2 teachers, visited the Round Square member school in China, Shenzhen (Nanshan) Concord College of Sino Canada for a period of 8 days.
The visiting students participated in the regular school activities, lived in the school dormitory, and imbibed the local culture by visiting places of cultural and historical significance. They also enjoyed the warmth of the Chinese hospitality and learnt about the Chinese culture by staying with their host families over the weekend.
Through the week the students attended regular school which began at 7:30 am. Children attended many classes and learnt how to write basic Chinese Calligraphy, attended a physics class, learnt a popular Chinese song called ‘Song Bie’, participated in Mandarin speaking session, an English class and a Taiji learning session.
interacted with the local students and exchanged their cultures with each other. The visiting students experienced the local cuisine and learnt the art of eating with chopsticks.
The group was taken around the city and visited many iconic spots like the Chinese Cultural Village and witnessed the show “Proud Son of Heaven” which depicted the evolution of the Chinese history through a spectacular dance and drama performance. The visit to the OCT Harbor, Luohu Market, Shenzhen Museum.
As part of the adventure and environmental service the group went trekking up a hillock and then descended down to a local beach. The activity involved the thrill of climbing down to the beach through thick foliage and bushes. The delegates mapped their path with the local students and this served as an ice breaking session.
Post lunch the group moved to ‘Jiochangwei’ beach. Here the Indian students were taken aback at the cleanliness maintained on the beach. Though there was very little left to clean up at the beach, they were very keen to start a beach cleanup in Mumbai on their return. The day ended with beach games and great camaraderie between the students. As a part of the cultural exchange both the host and the visiting students show cased their cultures through a series of performances and presentations.
Over the weekend the students and the teachers were hosted by the local parents. This provided great insight into the culture. The hosts outdid themselves by taking the delegates around the city, making them experience the local theme parks, areas of tourist interest, shopping, sampling the local cuisine. The delegates build a great bond with their hosts which was evident with the many gifts that were exchanged and the heavy heart with which they parted ways.
The overall experience was enriching to the visiting delegates as they had a great insight into the new culture and experienced the warmth of the Chinese hospitality that they had only heard about. The experience of the school life was a great revelation for them as they were impressed with the discipline and dedication the Chinese students had towards education.
We left from China with beautiful memories and a promise to see each other again when they visit India.
Special Acknowledgement and Appreciation to the Heads and Principals of Shenzhen Concord College of Sino Canada and Ms. Sunny, the Round Square Rep who helped to coordinate and organize this exchange.
Participating Students (11 Nos): Sakshi Hinduja, Isha Valia, Nayantara Batra, Lameeya Bandukwala, Shanai Munium, Jhanvi Doshi, Smiti Dani, Twisha Shah, Yashowardhan Bajla, Shayan Mistri, Aahan Punjabi
Accompanying Teachers: Manisha Nanda, Chanchal Singh