The Star :: Friday May 4, 2007

Song and dance: The Mexican students joining their Malaysian counterparts during the concert.

For two weeks, everybody at Sri Kuala Lumpur School in Subang Jaya was talking about a group of new students. 

The new ones spoke Spanish and did not wear the same uniform as other students, and it was no surprise they were the talk of the school as they were from Mexico.The 11-year old students were participants of the International School-to-School Experience (ISSE), a student exchange program. 

During their three-week stay, the Mexican students from Cenca Primary School in Toluca, Mexico, were accompanied by principal Dona Maria and attended various activities organised by Sri Kuala Lumpur.  
“We have gone to Putrajaya, Malacca, the National Museum, the Palace and the Tian Hou Temple. 
“We have also seen how batik and pewter are made,” said Dona on her last day at the school recently. 

She said the visit was meaningful for her students as they had a first hand experience of Malaysian culture and gained knowledge about the country and its people. “These are the kind of things we can't learn from textbooks,” she said. The group left Malaysia on April 14. 

Sri Kuala Lumpur’s general manager Hanif Othman Merican said the ISSE program allows students to interact with and learn from other children throughout the world. He said the programme provides participants an opportunity to have face-to-face contact to exchange ideas and learn more about each other’s cultures and country. 

“It is an innovative approach for elementary schools that realises the importance of international experience in modern elementary education,” he said. He added that the ten, 11 or 12-year-olds were mature enough to be relatively free from prejudice. “The full power of these young ambassadors should not be underestimated. “Children of this age are not trying to find themselves, instead they know who they are,” he said. 

He said during the program, a team of 11 or 12-year-old children accompanied by a teacher would spend a month in a host country and each child would live with a family who has a child of similar age. 
The selection is done based on the ability to pay travel expenses and a willingness to learn new cultures. The children should also be independent and possess emotional maturity. 
“For some of them, this is their first time being out of a country on their own without their parents. 
“It will be a real test whether they can do it or not,” he said. 

Hanif said the school has been participating in the ISSE programme since 2000. Among the foreign participants were from Upwey South Elementary School, Melbourne Australia (2000), Weeden Heights Primary School, Australia (2002), Nishiuraminami Primary School in Aichi, Japan (2004) and Nativity Elementary School in Ohio, USA (2005). 

The Mexican students shared part of their culture by staging traditional dances much to the delight of the students, teachers and host parents who came for the farewell concert. Despite what they have gained during their three-week stay with their host parents, all of the children admitted that they are looking forward to get home and be with their families. 

“I have missed my family terribly and will share with them my experiences here,” said Diego Alvarex Gonzalez. 

Students from Sri Kuala Lumpur will make a return visit to Cenca Primary School, Toluca in November.