Travel forces interaction to enhance learning
When Sharon Wong Sin-lam's mother suggested an English language summer programme, the then 11-year-old was nervous about a month at Gordonstoun School in Scotland for a language and adventure course.
'I was wondering about the people I would meet,' said Sharon, now a Form Two student at Ying Wa Girls' School. 'It was my first time away from my family for more than a few days.'
Once there, however, she and her two cousins soon settled into the routine of classes in the morning, sightseeing and sports in the afternoons and evenings. Of the 15 students in her group, they were the only Chinese speakers, the rest coming from Germany, Japan, England and the United States. 'I enjoyed the activities so much and met a lot of friends from different countries,' she said. 'So I had to speak English.'
Sharon's experiences echo those of thousands of young Hong Kong people.
Our World English Schools, with courses at Caterham School and Dulwich College in London, offer English and an activity in the mornings and a similar schedule in the afternoon. 'Our experience tells us that students will become bored if they spend too much time in one classroom,' said Maggie Li Mi-ki, Hong Kong representative for Our World English Schools.
English is not the only language on offer. The Hong Kong Institute of Languages, for example, offers French summer programmes in Champagne, Paris, and Nice. The organisation started 20 years ago as a French course provider and now offers English, Putonghua and Cantonese.
'We wanted to give children the opportunity to see that French was a language widely spoken and not merely a subject to be learnt at school,' said Dominique Chasset, the institute's founder. It also offers camps in England and Canada and last summer started a Putonghua camp based at a Qingdao school in the mainland.
Beijing Yew Chung International Summer School has been operating a Putonghua programme in the capital for five summers. The Hong Kong Study Tours Centre, part of Hong Kong Student Travel Ltd, also started offering mainland-based courses for students in 1998 and now has programmes in more than six mainland cities. In summer 2002, the centre sent about 2,000 students to the mainland and 1,000 overseas, according to Rachel Yau Chiu-wah, marketing executive. The Hong Kong economy and lower costs of travelling have further increased the attractions of mainland programmes, she said.
Meanwhile, EF Education's International Language Schools Programme Manager Jo Man Shek-fun expects more than 300 students to enrol in its summer Putonghua programme which moved to Shanghai last year after two years in Beijing. Ms Man said the perception of Shanghai as more cosmopolitan often made it the preferred choice for parents.
But the value of such summer programmes does not rest only in language acquisition. Maria Remedios, managing director of Canadian Universities Preparatory Services, which arranges placement for Hong Kong students wanting to study in Canada and runs an intensive summer programme for secondary school students in Toronto and Montreal in conjunction with College Preparation International of Toronto, said that in addition to language learning, summer courses could help students prepare for boarding school or longer-term overseas study.
'These courses are a good training ground and can help prevent culture shock,' Ms Remedios said. 'They are a great opportunity for both students and parents to see if they will be happy in the foreign setting, and are also fun.'
