Visit From The Embassy Of The People's Republic Of China

On Wednesday 3 March, we welcomed a delegation from the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Singapore to the College. Mr Nick Magnus, Headmaster, received Mr Kang Kai, Education Counsellor, Ms Liang Zi, Second Secretary and Mr Qiao Dan, Third Secretary, and spoke of the College’s philosophy and vision.

This was followed by a tour of the Junior School Mandarin Centre led by the Head of Junior School, Mr Ciaran Harrington and the Head of Mandarin for Junior School, Jenny Zhang. Mr Harrington and Ms Zhang showcased the traditional festive wall designs and the upcoming design for the rooftop garden which will be based on traditional design elements from the Suzhou Garden. The delegates were invited to observe our Year 6 students in First Language and Second Language Mandarin lessons. Mr Kang praised them for their enthusiasm for learning Chinese characters and their proficiency in writing.

Our Junior School Mandarin Ambassadors concluded the visit to the Junior School with a recital of a poem in Mandarin, called Welcome to Dulwich, and presented the delegates with beautifully decorated bookmarks made by the students.

As the delegates could not tour our Early Years classes, Head of DUCKS, Mrs Joanne Woodward, Deputy Head of DUCKS, Mrs Sonia Magnus, and the DUCKS Mandarin team, Ms Emily Zhao (Head), Ms Ciel Cui (Reception), Ms Shuling Zheng (Year 1) and Ms Regina Sun (Year 2) presented a welcome video of the DUCKS Student Council children. The Mandarin leads highlighted the importance of the Dual Language teaching model practised in DUCKS, the active participation of parents in Mandarin learning and the emphasis placed on Chinese cultural activities and festivals throughout the year. Mr Kang spoke of how critical language development is in early years and expressed how impressed he was with the teaching results in DUCKS; he offered the support of the Embassy in Mandarin learning. To round up the delegates’ introduction to DUCKS, Mr Kang was presented with an artwork by the DUCKS Student Council, the artwork was inspired by China, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the Dulwich family and tied in with the College theme this year of ‘Better Together’.

Head of Senior School, Dr. Jeff Aitken and Head of Mandarin for Senior School, Mr Cheng Han Wu, brought the delegates on a tour of the Performing Arts Centre. IB students Carter Cellini, Tara Verma, Elias Flaig and Tong Yan Xuan accompanied the delegates to the Senior School Chinese Department, introducing them to the curriculum and activities they were undertaking. The delegates were invited to observe Senior School Mandarin lessons speaking with the students in fluent Mandarin about their learning experiences. Mr Kang concluded his visit to Senior School with some insightful advice on effective learning.

At the end of the school tour, Mr Magnus presented a thank you card as a token of appreciation to Mr Kang for visiting the school. It was an honour to have the delegates visiting the College and we look forward to collaborating with the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Singapore.  

2021年3月3日，中华人民共和国驻新加坡共和国大使馆教育参赞康凯先生、二等秘书梁梓女士和三等秘书乔丹先生莅临(新加坡)德威英国国际学校。此次访问在校长Nick Magnus先生等校方领导人的热情接待下展开。Nick Magnus先生对（新加坡）德威英国国际学校的办学理念和宗旨向康凯参赞、梁梓秘书和乔丹秘书做了简单的介绍。

随后参赞一行参观了小学部的“中文学习中心”，并在小学校长Ciaran Harrington先生和小学部中文主任张毅等陪同下，饶有趣味地了解了中心的三面“传统节日墙”和具有“苏州园林”元素的设计理念。Ciaran Harrington 先生还为康凯参赞介绍了即将开工的“中国园林”的规划图，当参赞看到设计图中巨大的中国象棋的“棋盘”和“棋子”时，开怀大笑。由于参观时正逢六年级中文课时间，三位来宾受邀进入了一语班、和二语班听课，康凯参赞对同学们学习汉字的热情和写字的熟练程度赞赏有加。课后，小学生代表们向来宾们致欢迎辞，赠送了“阅读周”期间学生们自己制作的精美书签，并朗诵了一首名为“德威之歌”的自创小诗。

在小学部的参观结束后，学前部校长Joanne Woodward女士、副校长Sonia Magnus女士，中文主管赵欣平、学前班中文组长崔璨、一年级中文组长郑淑凌和二年级中文组长孙艺涵作为学前部师生代表，在会议室接待康凯参赞一行人（由于疫情的原因，大使馆的代表团不能进入学前部参观），康凯参赞向师生代表们表示亲切的问候。

分享会在参赞一行人观看学前部学生会的小朋友们特别录制的欢迎视频后，正式开始。学前部的各位中文负责人分别与参赞一行分享学前部的双语教学模式、德威双语办学特色、双语教学发展情况、家校合作、嵌入式中文活动和文化活动等。

在随后的座谈中，康凯参赞再次强调儿童时期语言发展的重要性，抓住语言敏感的关键时期也至关重要，并对学前部的教学成果给予肯定和赞赏。康凯参赞亲切地提出中国驻新加坡大使馆愿意在资源方面为（新加坡）德威英国国际学校的中文学习提供支持和帮助。Joanne Woodward女士还将学生会的小朋友们亲手绘制的艺术作品赠送给中国驻新加坡大使馆。该作品中有代表中国、新加坡、英国和德威教育集团的各种元素，寓意“团结一心，携手共进”。

在学前部的分享会结束后，康凯参赞一行人在中学校长Jeff Aitken博士和中学部中文主任吴承翰等陪同下先参观了音乐教室，美术戏剧教室以及餐厅，接着由IB学生Carter Cellini, Tara Verma, Elias Flaig 和 Tong YanXuan等引路，又参观了中学的中文部门。IB学生们全程以流利的汉语为大使馆的代表团介绍了中文部的课程与活动，并与康凯参赞一行分享了个人在德威学习中文的美好经历。 

由于参观时，正逢八年级和十年级的中文课时间，三位来宾受邀进入了一语班、二语班和外语班听课。各班同学在康凯参赞一行进入教室时，都整齐划一地起立问候，热烈欢迎参赞莅临，参赞一行也用中文与同学们进行了亲切有趣的互动。最后，康凯参赞也与同学们分享了自己如何有效学习的宝贵心得，让师生们获益匪浅。

在此次访问的最后，校长Nick Magnus先生将代表（新加坡）德威英国国际学校的礼品赠送给中国驻新加坡大使馆教育处，其中包括Nick Magnus先生亲笔写的感谢卡，感激康凯参赞、梁梓秘书和乔丹秘书拔冗光临我校，并期待与中国驻新加坡大使馆的进一步合作。