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By Douglas McCulloch
Hometown Weekly Staff
Westwood High students and staff recently welcomed 12 foreign exchange students from China as a part of a new program at the high school.
The students arrived in Westwood last Sunday, and attended a welcoming party hosted by students and host families at the high school. The students will spend two weeks in Westwood, and will attend a Model UN event in New York City as well.
For Alpha Exchange teacher Tracy Zhao, who oversees the students on a daily basis, she is excited that her students are finally learning in America. She noted that her students are adapting well to their stay in a new country.
“The students understand that there are cultural differences and they are getting used to the new environment faster than I expected,” Zhao said. “The students told me the first day was great and amazing, They love a lot of things here, especially the variety of the classrooms and how the teachers teach.”
The students are also adjusting well to their new living conditions. Each student stays with a host family, and Zhao said that many students have shared how accommodating their host families have been.
Zhao said that her students will learn a lot from their two week stay in Westwood. She explained that the program will help to give her students a firm understanding of how American education functions, which is especially important because many of her students plan to apply to college in America. Students will also learn about American culture and history.
“It’s important for our student to understand the lifestyles, the culture and the social status of this country, especially the diversity of America,” Zhao said.
For Westwood High principal Sean Bevan, he is excited to finally welcome the students to Westwood High. He explained that the school does have experience with foreign exchange programs.
“We have participated in these kinds of exchange programs before, but this is the first time we’ve accepted Chinese students,” Bevan said
He noted that while Westwood High does not have an official foreign exchange program, a number of students have spent time overseas through various outside programs offered through the school, and that Westwood High has in the past hosted students from France and Spain.
According to Bevan, the new exchange program began when the school was approached by Alpha Exchange. The company was looking for a town to host students from the No. 7 Cheng Du High School in Chengdu who were competing in a Model United Nations event in New York City.
“They wanted to get a flavor of what an American high school is like,” Bevan said.
“I think the students will get a taste of what a high-achieving American high school is like.”
As soon as plans were set in motion, Bevan reached out to the Westwood High community in search of host families to provide a place for the students to live for their two-week stay in the United States. He said the families of students who take Mandarin were quick to step up and offer their homes to the students.
“Before we even started promoting this, just in talking with students that take Mandarin, we were able to place six to eight of the students,” Bevan said. “We have had a great deal of support from the community.”
During their stay in Westwood, the students will attend a variety of classes at Westwood High, which Bevan noted was tied to what they were learning back in China.
“We have done our best to schedule them into classes that are consistent with what they were taking at home,” Bevan said.
In addition to taking classes at Westwood High, the Chinese students will also take an abbreviated course studying the American Revolution. They will create presentations that they will give on their final day in Westwood. The students will also take a field trip to Boston study the city’s history in the Revolutionary War, in addition to a trip to New York City.
Bevan noted that he does hope to turn the trip into an annual two-way exchange, but noted that for the time being, he is concentrating on making sure this trip goes off without a hitch.
“Right now we are hopeful that this trip is a success,” Bevan said. “I would love to see it grow into [a two-way program.]”
Douglas McCulloch is an editor at Hometown Weekly. He can be reached at news@hometownweekly.net and followed on Twitter at @doug_mcculloch.
