The University of Canterbury will host a training programme for high ranking Government officials from Gansu province, China, in September.
Gansu Government officials announced the new pilot training programme during a visit to Christchurch's sister province, Gansu this week by Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker and a delegation including representatives of the University of Canterbury.
Professor Scott Davidson, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of Law at Canterbury University, said he expected 20 Gansu officials would attend the three week course to learn more about public sector management. The course was designed so that much of the programme would involve practical experience in best practice in city management.
"The course is based loosely on the model we have had for the past five years with our other sister city in China, Wuhan, but will be tailored to meet the Gansu Government's needs. If this course is successful, we will look at providing extended programmes, he said.
Mr Parker said the new training programme developed over the past year highlighted the long history of cooperation and exchange between Christchurch and Gansu. Gansu province, located on the famous Silk Road which linked the East with the West, has enjoyed a sister city relationship with Christchurch for more than 20 years.
"Some of Gansu's brightest and best are coming to Christchurch to learn more about the ways to do business. However, they will also be looked on as teachers for in return we hope to learn more about the Gansu province, he said.
"The dream Rewi Alley had when he brought education to the young people of China so many years ago, is being realised by future generations. This new relationship with the University of Canterbury will further strengthen the ties we have with Gansu.
Mr Lu Wucheng, vice governor of Gansu province, said the programme was a practical project of cooperation for his Government with Christchurch.
"I am sure this training project will strengthen the friendship between the two countries, Mr Lu said.
The Christchurch Gansu Friendly Relations Committee is sending Alison Regan to teach for three to six months at the Lanzhou Foreign Languages High School, as part of an on-going programme of educational exchange.
Alison will be the eighth teacher the committee has sent in a programme that our friends in China describe as the best part of our sister relationship. She will leave Thursday, February 22nd for Lanzhou via Hong Kong and Xi'an.
Alison is a well qualified and experienced teacher, having a BA from Canterbury, a Diploma of Teaching, an MA in Classics, and a BD from Otago. She taught English and classics for nearly twenty years before completing a Certificate of English Language Teaching to Adults (CELTA) in 2003 and has been an ESOL tutor ever since.
Alison will be staying in a flat on the school campus in Lanzhou, capital of our sister province of Gansu, an industrial city of three million on the Yellow River.
On 1 September 2006, the Gansu government will launch the inaugural annual five month International Sister City Trainees programme at Lanzhou University for representatives from its 20 sister cities. One person has been invited from each of their sister cities to be part of this programme, although in the case of Christchurch, because of our 22 year relationship, and the importance they place on it, they are allowing us to send two trainees. Natasha Barnett and Lauren Barry have been chosen to be the first trainees in this exciting new annual project. They will travel to Lanzhou in late August, and will be accompanied by Dave Adamson of the Christchurch City Council's international relations team, who will represent the city at the opening ceremony, which will be officiated over by Governor Lu Hao.
This new and exciting programme is aimed at greatly improving Gansu's relationship and dealings with its sister cities, with the intention that these people will return home, better understanding Chinese culture and language, and of course specifically Gansu Province.
Each year the Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations committee sends one or two teachers to the Lanzhou Foreign Language Secondary School in Lanzhou, the capital city of Gansu Province. Lara Prince of Christchurch has been chosen as the teacher for 2006, and she will start teaching at the school in mid August.
The contract is for a period of three months, during which time the chosen teacher/s undertakes classroom teaching five days a week, as well as being involved in various extracurricular activities with the students. When the three month contract is finished the teacher/s have the choice of either returning to Christchurch or negotiating a further contract with the school management, something they often do because they enjoy the experience so much!
This project is gratefully appreciated by the Gansu government because, of course, there is a huge demand all over China for the teaching of English.
The Christchurch Gansu Friendly Relations Committee is sending Robyn Woodham to teach for three to six months at the Lanzhou Foreign Languages High School, as part of an on-going programme of educational exchange. Robyn will be the seventh teacher the committee has sent in a programme that our friends in China describe as the best part of our sister relationship. She will leave Saturday, February 25th for Lanzhou via Beijing.
Robyn is a well qualified and experienced teacher of English as a second language, having completed a BA at Canterbury U, then a Certificate of English language teaching to adults (CELTA) at the Christchurch College of English. She taught English for three years in Japan at Ohda Senior High School, Shimane Prefecture, where her colleagues and students gave her high praise for her skills and dedication. Most recently she has been teaching at Christchurch International College for a year and a half.
Robyn will be staying in a flat on the school campus in Lanzhou, capital of our sister province of Gansu, an industrial city of three million on the Yellow River.
For more information about Gansu, the sister city relationship and the exchanges that take place see www.christchurch.org.nz/sistercities/gansu.
The Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations committee is taking an exciting tour to China during July.
The tour for the fourteen members of the group will start in Beijing, where of course they will take in the obligatory visits to the Great Wall and Tiananmen Square. They will also visit the home of the famous New Zealander, Rewi Alley, which has now been turned into a museum dedicated to his life.
From there they fly to Lanzhou, the capital city of Gansu Province. Some members of the group will attend the13th Lanzhou Investment and Trade Fair, while the others will make side tours to places of interest, and in particular an overnight visit to the Labrang Monastery at Xiahe. During their time in Lanzhou they will visit the Lanzhou Foreign Language Secondary School. The Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations committee sends two teachers there each year for a period of three months. The group will meet with the two teachers and have a tour of the school, during which time they will spend time with both students and staff.
After three nights in Lanzhou they head north to visit the Shandan Bailie School in Shandan. This school was founded by Rewi Alley, and has a sister relationship with Darfield High School, with which it has an annual student and teacher exchange. The following day they visit the world famous Mogao Grottoes at Dunhuang. From there they fly to Xi’an, where they will visit the site of the world famous buried warriors. That afternoon they fly to Chongqing to begin the highlight of the tour – a three day cruise down the Yangtze River through the three gorges, including a visit to the site of the controversial dam project.
From there they travel by coach to Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei Province. The following day they have a busy city tour, which will take in the beautiful East Lake, the wonderful provincial museum and the famous Yellow Crane Pagoda, which is sited on a hill overlooking the Yangtze River; very impressive. From there they take a flight to Hong Kong, where they have two interesting and colourful days before returning home.
Four students from Darfield High School will travel to China in September for what will be an exciting opportunity to gain an understanding of the culture and customs of this both ancient and modern country.
The group of students - Glendon Screen, Livia Hardy, Nick Robertson and Tim Blackburn - will be accompanied by a teacher, Lesley Instone and her husband, Geoff. They will be the second group from Darfield High School to visit Shandan Bailie School, our sister school in Lanzhou in the province of Gansu, and will have an opportunity to compare the Chinese education system with ours.
The trip will include a visit to the western end of the Great Wall of China and the huge Buddhas carved in sandstone in Dunhuang, in western Gansu. Students will follow in the steps of Marco Polo through the Gobi Desert. They are very excited about the trip and are preparing themselves by learning Mandarin and finding out as much as they can about China.
Darfield High School and the students are very grateful for the support they have been given to enable them to take part in this once in a lifetime opportunity.
In February Jane Ayres and Paul Burgin, two well-qualified and highly experienced teachers from Christchurch will be going to China to teach at the Foreign Language Secondary School in Lanzhou City. They are part of an on-going programme of educational exchange between Christchurch and Gansu, our sister province in northwestern China. Two sister-school relationships have been established with schools founded by Rewi Alley: one between the CPIT and the Lanzhou Bailie School, the other between Darfield High School and the Shandan Bailie School.
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| Toni Byrne with her students at Lanzhou Foreign Language Secondary School, where she spent six months teaching English in 2004 as part of the Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations Committee programme of educational exchanges. |
Ayers and Burgin are the third group to be sent to Lanzhou by the Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations Committee, which also fosters cultural and economic exchanges between our city and Gansu.
Toni Byrne was one of the 2004 exchange teachers to Lanzhou.
Read the Christchurch City Council Media Release
Your future is to spend three months teaching English in Lanzhou, Gansu Province
All expenses paid, good care, modest salary...
Applications are sought for teachers to spend three months or more in Lanzhou (the capital of Gansu).
The position includes:
Lanzhou is a city of over two million in the interior province of Gansu, far from the Westernised cities on the coast. It is on the Yellow River.
Christchurch has a sister relationship with Gansu Province because Rewi Alley worked there for eight years. As part of this exchange relationship, the Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations Committee has been asked to find two teachers to spend three months in Lanzhou teaching conversational English and English to teachers in the Foreign Language High School, which has recently moved to a new campus with excellent facilities.
The committee will provide air fares and travel insurance. The school will provide a two-bedroom apartment, and there are two dining rooms (one Muslim) on campus that provide free breakfast and other meals at moderate prices. The school’s principal, Ms Wang Deqing, will take a personal interest in assuring that visiting teachers are well cared for. The job starts about March 15.
Send letter of application, including personal details, qualifications and experience to:
Dave Adamson,
International Relations Coordinator,
Christchurch City Council,
P. O. Box 237, Christchurch.
For
further information:
Bill Willmott 385-3559
Jenny Garing 940 8643
Dave Adamson 941-8775
Four students and a teacher from Lanzhou Foreign Languages Middle School, Gansu, pictured with (from L to R) Michael Somerfield, Shirley Boys High; teacher Rae Nicholson, Christchurch Boys High, Felicity Taylor and Laura Ash, Lincoln High and Tal-Petra Guse, Christchurch Girls High, the Rewi Alley Memorial, Springfield, Canterbury, February 2001.
A number of Sister City exchanges and links have been fostered between Christchurch and Gansu Province in the People’s Republic of China, particularly Lanzhou, its capital.
The education sub committee (of the Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations Committee) oversees these links and facilitates exchanges between them. The links include the following:
The links have involved the exchange of such materials as letters, artwork and photographs, and videos of school life.
The exchanges outlined below are active educational exchanges and links between Christchurch and Gansu Province. Opportunities for participating in exchanges are offered on an annual basis to persons who study or teach the Chinese language. This promotes international understanding and contributes to growing educational links with Gansu Province.
Pictured at the Lanzhou Foreign Language Middle School, Gansu, in April 2000 are (from L to R) teacher Terina Yee, Burnside High, with students Daniel Kennett, Lincoln High; Kelly Begg, Burnside High; Hayley Anderson, Christchurch Girls'; and Nicholas Dalton, Shirley Boys High.
In 2000, the Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations Committee began it's annual educational exchange, which brought four high school students and a teacher from Gansu Province to Christchurch for four weeks in February. They were home-hosted by four students here, who were selected from over twenty candidates. The Chinese students experienced what life is like in New Zealand and spent time in a classroom. Amongst other activities, they visited Springfield, the birthplace of Rewi Alley.
In return, the four local high school students, accompanied by a Chinese language teacher, went to Gansu in April for the same period, with a reciprocal home-hosting arrangement. This inaugural exchange was a huge success, so was repeated in 2001.
A group of four students and one teacher from Lanzhou Foreign Language Middle School in Gansu came to Christchurch in February 2001 on a four week exchange. They were home-hosted by the families of the four students and one teacher who took part in the reciprocal visit during April 2001. The Christchurch students were selected from High Schools students who had studied the Chinese language, with the accompanying teacher on the same condition. These exchanges introduce Chinese culture to the Christchurch group and vice versa.
The Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology has a formalised link with the Bailie Oil School in Lanzhou, the capital city of Gansu Province, with which it annually exchanges a graduate of its Chinese language programme with a Lanzhou teacher.
The link between the two educational institutions came about through the efforts of the Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations committee, and the exchanges are now in their fifth year.
This exchange is for twelve months, during which time the Chinese sudent is home-hosted in Christchurch and follows some courses in English. In return, a full-time Mandarin student from The Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology spends a year learning Mandarin and teaching English along with further study at the Bailie Oil School in Lanzhou.
"…to reinforce the educational links between Christchurch and Gansu, providing on-going experience of Chinese culture for future students and teachers and raising the level of knowledge of China in this region. This is a major part of our committee's general mission".
(Source: Christchurch - Gansu Friendly Relations Committee publication)
Every second year, an interpreter from Gansu Foreign Affairs Office has the opportunity to visit Christchurch for a period of six months. The student improves his/her English skills and is involved in as many activities as possible, to broaden their experience and knowledge of the New Zealand way of life.
The interpreter also spends time at the Christchurch City Council and other businesses, to gain an insight into how things are done in comparison to their home country. The interpreter is home hosted by members of the New Zealand/China Friendship Society with a new home host each month.
For further information on these exchanges please contact:
Christchurch-Gansu Friendly Relations Committee
Dave Adamson, International Relations Co-ordinator
C/O PO Box 237, Christchurch
New Zealand
Phone (++64) 3 3711 775
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| A visiting delegation from Gansu Province with Te Whanau O Wharenui cultural group, Wharenui Primary school, Christchurch. |
Rewi Alley attended Wharenui Primary School during 1907-1910. His father was the school’s first principal. Because of these links, the school has a strong Chinese focus. The Rewi Alley Chinese Language School holds classes in the evenings for adults wishing to learn Chinese, and classes at the weekends teach Chinese to schoolchildren from throughout greater Christchurch. All pupils at Wharenui School have one thirty minute period of Chinese language study a week.
A Youth Cultural Centre is being run on Wharenui Primary School grounds where Chinese language, Table tennis, Tai Chi and other activities are being offered to youth.
For further information on the school and its activities visit:
For information on activities of the New Zealand/China Friendship Society visit: www.nzchinasociety.org.nz