International Department News

ARPIL SCHOOL HOLIDAY TRIP

Our international students had a great day out to Devonport during the April School Holiday.  We first walked up Maungauika/North Head Historic Reserve where we enjoyed the stunning view and explored the dark tunnels.  After strolling along Cheltenham Beach looking at Rangitoto Island on the horizon, we made our way to Devonport village for lunch and a movie.  We finished our trip with a pleasant ferry ride to the City.  It was a warm sunny day, and some students might have found walking a bit hard, but our students had a wonderful opportunity to see another beautiful side of Auckland.

UNIQUE ME

At the International Student Assembly in Term 2, our Theme is about ME & US, the unique me and us, the school community, and our society. International student leaders talked about “UNIQUE ME” at the assembly on 7 May 2019. Here they are, the unique Lea, Kate, Dony and Jack.

 By Lea Schoenhuber, International Student Leader

My name is Lea and I am one of the international student leaders this year.

I want to reach out to you today to underline the importance of diversity at Western Springs College. Our school is known for being international, we all come from different parts of the world, have a different culture, are used to different food, speak a different language, etc.

We are all individual and that is so special about our school and our community.

Great about WSC is, that they offer so many different subjects. The school covers all kinds of sports, arts, and cultural subjects.

I, for example, take Calculus, Biology, English, Geography, and Drama. Drama is definitely my favourite subject. I love about acting how you can be someone else and that it forces you to get out of your comfort zone. Acting is also what I would really like to do as a job.

10 months ago, when I came to WSC for the first time I wasn’t really sure how my life would turn out to be. It is hard at first for everyone but from my point of view, we are all in New Zealand to get to know different cultures and to connect with local Kiwis. Everyone is super friendly here and open-minded, so for me, it was not too hard to make friends. But again we are all different. For some people it’s hard and for some, it’s easier.

At the end of the day, we are such a big international community and it is so important that we stick together and get to know each other better.

If you have any more questions or need help or advice, please do not hesitate to ask at any time.

By Kate Ingold, International Student Leader

My name is Kate, I’m 17 years old and I’m year 13 at WSC.

I’m one of the international leaders at Springs. Last year I went on exchange to France and gained so much as a person.  So I want to be able to help people learn from my experiences and help people to make the most of their time living in a foreign country.

The subjects I take this year are French, History, Biology, Chemistry and Maths. I really love all my subjects which keeps me motivated to learn more in them and aim for higher grades.

I hope to go to university probably in Auckland to study nursing. I think I’ll love it because I get to really help people. I think this is one of the reasons that at the moment I’m really loving school. Being year 13 and having a leadership role is super cool. Also getting more freedom within my learning to study exactly what I want and how I want is refreshing.

Because we spend so much time at school, the WSC community is important in my life. Another smaller community I’m actively involved in is obviously the WSC international community. Being a leader this year is really a privilege to be able to help and lead the group and be more involved in international students’ lives than I would have been otherwise.

By Dony Xiaolong Wang, International Student Leader

I am Dony Xiaolong Wang. I am from China. I like to share something with you about ME. I came to Western Springs in July 2017.This year I am at Year 13 and study the subjects of ESOL, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, and Statistics.

I like all my subjects and I may have got stronger interests in Physics. I plan to study engineering in the university. During my free time I like to do some volunteer activities, where I enjoyed a lot and made many new friends.

Since I started at Western Springs, I have been living with local families for homestay which was arranged by school Homestay Manager Rachealle. It helped me a lot, such as learning the local culture, developing English communication skills, being independent and respectful.

I think it is important to respect host parents and all family members at the homestay. When there is any plan, issue or something important for our daily life, host parents would like you to communicate with them. Communications will help develop a positive relationship at homestay.

By Jack Gong, International Student Leader

My name is Jack and I want to share something with you about me.

I currently take the subjects Chemistry, Physics, Statistics and Digital Technology. And I enjoy each of them. However, I find Digital Technology particularly enjoyable because I like to learn about computer programming.

So I think in University, I will study Software Engineering because I am interested in building things that people can use every day.

From my time here, the highlight of Western Springs College is the diversity of ethnicity, hobbies and what we value.

I value responsibility because I think it’s important that you take control of your life. We could also value love for the community and for each other. I think it important that each and every one of us can try to discover our individual self, our likes and dislikes and values. And it is also important to be a critical thinker and open-minded, and able to share our values with others.

AGENT FAMILIARISATION TOUR

We invited eight selected agent partners from Vietnam, Thailand, Japan and China for the familiarisation tour to showcase the great learning environment offered at Western Springs College as well as our amazing city, Auckland.  They were first welcomed by Powhiri by Waiorea students and attended the school tour led by the Principal.  During their stay, they learned about a wide range of courses and the excellent detailed care and support we offer at Western Springs College.  They also had an opportunity to visit Pasadena Intermediate School and Freemans Bay School where they got to know other great schools in our community.

 

Towards the end of the tour, they had a day trip to Rotorua and enjoyed walking in the Redwoods Forest, visiting Whakarewarewa and a Luge ride.  Although their tour was only for five days, it was a fantastic occasion to deepen not only our partnership but also our friendship.