IVECA Students and Teachers Gain Enthusiasm for Global Collaboration

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!"

#IVECA #LiveClass #21stCenturyEducation #GlobalCitizenshipEducation #VirtualSchooling #interculturalcompetence

Apply today to join IVECA's Summer Camp 2022!

IVECA will be hosting their 3rd annual Global Virtual Summer Camp this summer, on July 22 - August 2, 2022. The Summer Camp will focus on S.T.E.A.M. topics and integrating the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). The course will be led by experts in fields such as public diplomacy and environmental science as a blend of Zoom meetings and project-based collaborative learning. The final projects will be presented to an international audience on a global stage.

Secondary school teachers are encouraged to apply to participate with groups of 5 or 10 students in this unique 21st century learning experience. Apply today!

• More information about the program: https://tinyurl.com/IVECAsummer22

• Application link for teachers/mentors: https://tinyurl.com/applicationIVECA

#IVECA#SummerCamp#GlobalCitizenshipEducation#21stCenturyEducation#21stcenturyskills#SDGs#STEAM

Elementary Students Create Meaningful Connections in First Live Class

Students from India and Korea joined together in their first live class of the semester on the 28th of April. Elementary teachers prepared their young students to introduce themselves to international partners. Furthermore, students were able to ask each other questions to learn more about their new IVECA friends. Students took this opportunity to find similarities between their countries as well as recognize the difference in cultural traditions. This first Live Class experience allowed a face to face connection between schools before students begin their IVECA group projects.

As students joined the live virtual meeting room, each child patiently waited to see their partner's name on the screen. After all, students had only spoken with their partner over written text in IVECA’s virtual platform. When the session began, each student introduced themselves with excitement. They spoke enthusiastically to their IVECA friends while sharing something they enjoy every day. A Korean student introduced himself by sharing his hobbies, “Bug catching, Origami Folding, taking care of my pets: two turtles, a betta fish, and another betta fish I adopted yesterday!” Throughout the session, students found similarities between each other. Many value spending time outside in their communities' natural environment. Additionally, students could connect over their love of animals and share their passion for taking care of their pets.

Thrilled to interact with their partners, students curated questions to create discussion. A Korean student, unfamiliar with Indian customs, asked his partner, “Does your country have a tradition of eating food with your hands?” The Indian partner replied by sharing a tradition he feels proud of, “... yes, eating with our hands is a tradition for us Indians. We eat with our hands for many reasons. . . First reason is when we eat with our hands the brain gets a message that we are eating food then tells the stomach that we are going to eat something so the stomach is ready to digest. The second reason is that all our 5 fingers represent the 5 elements of nature. . . the final reason is that when you eat with your hand you can find out if the food is hot or cold. Because when you eat with a spoon you might not know it is hot and you might put it in your mouth and it’s burning. Thank you for listening!” The student’s tone of speech and facial expression reflected how proud he was of his country’s tradition. The effort of communication students displayed with their international counterparts fostered a meaningful connection between them as providing an opportunity to learn and respect differences in cultures.

These young IVECA participants began to create memories with their new IVECA friends. Their motivation to share about themselves and their lives helped them connect through common interest and appreciate cultural diversity while valuing their own traditions. As the IVECA program continues, students will learn further about what they can contribute to living together in harmony from these intercultural interactions.

#IVECA #LiveClass #ElementarySchools #InterculturalCompetence #21stCenturyEducation #GlobalCitizenshipEducation #globalcitizens