Lu Zhang

Master of Education

Murdoch University

Contents

Introduction About PLC Plan of Visiting Day 1– PLC Market Day 2 – Interview Discussion Conclusion

Introduction

Globalization and International Education

Australian Perspective

Positionality

In the process of globalization, international education has become one of the most active areas. International education is considered to improve education for international understanding and for global citizenship with a range of subject disciplines and activities.

Australia has a significantly multicultural environment,

which is beneficial for international education. Dunstan (2003) states that there is an increasing growth of international education in Australia due to its culturally diverse domestic population.

As an international student and future educator, it is my honor to have the opportunity of visiting an IB school in Perth called Presbyterian Ladies’ College (PLC). In this presentation, information about the school, the process of visiting and personal comments will be present.

BACK

About PLCPLC is: a school for a diverse and exceptional education

that is innovative, vibrant, challenging and fosters personal excellence.

a community of friends, which is secure, inclusive and valuing of the individual.

an enduring legacy of values such as integrity, learning, community and effort.

a culture of learning for life and spiritual enquiry where character and leadership are nurtured to serve and shape the world.http://www.plc.wa.edu.au/357/our-school/our-vision-ethos

BACK

Plan Thursday 13 Nov will be good to come in to see my Year 8

class. The class time is from 11:35-12:35pm. You could stay for lunch if you want to. So we can have a bit time for your questions if you have.

Tuesday 18 November will be good for my Year 7 class. The class time is from 10:25am – 11:25pm.

On Thursday, we will have a "PLC market” in class - students will bring in food and they will do a role play – buy and sell. You could sell what I have prepared so that you can interact with them, just if you want to :)

On Tuesday, I will arrange my students to interview you. They are learning daily routines and they would like to know how Chinese students days are like.

(By Ms. Sarah Wang| Mandarin Teacher | PLC )

BACK

Day 1– PLC Market On November 13th, Ms. Wang organized a ‘PLC Market’ in

Year 8 Mandarin class. Students were required to bring items, such as foods and drinks, to class and use printed RMB ,the Chinese dollars, to sell and buy in Mandarin. It was my honor to be invited by Ms. Wang to sell some Chinese snacks to the students.

During the class, Ms. Wang not only recorded the conversation of individual, but also interacted with the students. For example, she tried to introduce a unique Chinese culture of bargaining in a conversation of buying a bottle of apple juice from a student. After that, the student came to buy Chinese biscuit called Xianbei and tried to bargain with me as well. In this case, students can learn not only the language skills but also the Chinese culture.

Getting ready for PLC Market

Buying juice in Chinese

Getting feedback from Ms. Wang BACK

Day 2 – Interview On November 18th, Ms. Wang arranged the Year 7 stud

ents interview me about daily routines of Chinese students. The students were interested in how Chinese students’ life is like. They were divided into four group, and each group has four students. Students asked me prepared questions one by one. The most frequent questions are what time Chinese students get up, how long they study a day, and what time they go to sleep. At the end, the students got a chance to ask more about my personal information. They were surprised by how stressed and hardworking Chinese students are. In this lesson, the students not only practiced their oral Chinese but also got to know the different lives of Chinese and Australian students.

(Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to take photos in this lesson.)

BACK

Discussion On November 13th, I had a discussion with Ms. Wang after class. Ms.

Wang explained in what ways the IB Mandarin curriculum align with the IB Standards:

First, the IB Mandarin course reflects IB educational philosophy. Language learning, including mother tongue, host country language and other languages, plays an important role in the IB school (IBO, 2014). As one of the most important and popular languages, Mandarin is offered in many IB schools including PLC.

Second, the implementation of IB Mandarin course supports the IB organization. It is significant that teachers of different subjects should corporate with each other in an IB schools. For instance, when Mandarin teacher gives a lesson about different sports in Chinese, he or she needs to corporate with PE teacher to teach the importance of team work instead of memorizing the Chinese words of sports.

Third, teaching and learning the IB Mandarin curriculum aligns with the requirements of the IB Programme. According to the IB Standards, “teaching and learning addresses human commonality, diversity and multiple perspectives” (IBO, 2014: 5). The IB Mandarin lessons at PLC represent real Chinese culture and improve students’ ability of intercultural understanding which is the mission of the IB Programmes.

BACK

Conclusion

To conclude, it is obvious that Australia has significantly multicultural environment, and PLC is an IB World School in Perth. This presentation reflects my experience of two mandarin classes at PLC on November 13th and 18th. The first class is an activity of using Chinese in a market, and the second one is an interview about daily routine of Chinese students. These lessons illustrate that the IB Mandarin course aligns with the IB Standards in terms of philosophy, organization and curriculum.

References

Dunstan, P. (2003). Cultural Diversity for Life: A Case Study From Australia. Journal of Studies in International Education. 7(1), 64-76.

PLC. (2014). http://www.plc.wa.edu.au/357/our-school/our-vision-ethos

IBO. (2014). Programme standards and practices. Wales, United Kingdom.

http://www.plc.wa.edu.au