In early May, after two months of online cultural exchange activities together, high school students from China, India, Korea, and Vietnam joined their first Live Classes of the semester over video conferencing. With curiosity, students enjoyed learning more about their peers overseas and built a stronger bond to collaborate on their next group projects for the global community.
During their first Live Classes, students had an opportunity to openly share their interests and pride in life while exchanging questions about their international friends' personal life and culture. For example, a Korean student asked, "I heard that people in India memorise multiplication tables up to 19 levels. Is that true?" Indian students confirmed and added that some Indians memorise multiplication tables even up to 25 because they are not allowed to use calculators in the exam room." A student from Vietnam was curious about Korean traditional clothes. " What do you wear on New Year's Day in Korea? The Korean partner answered, "...in the past, people used to wear Hanbok, but today we wear comfortable clothes".
Feeling the meeting was fleeting to fulfill their curiosity about each other, students expressed the importance of sharing more about themselves. Indian students prepared videos to introduce their country and culture to their partners:
The first friendly and exciting conversations with their partners from the other country exalted students' enthusiasm for upcoming projects they will collaborate on throughout this semester. Ms. Choi from a Global Education Institute at the City office of Education in Korea commented, "After the first Live Classes, students are very inspired to work harder for the next activities [of this semester program]... the teachers are also delighted by their students' experiences. Both students and teachers have become more active and enthusiastic!"