Author: Calum Gibb, CISS
As the pandemic and lockdowns limited access to classrooms and the ability of teachers to travel internationally, the team at the CISS sought out alternative solutions to help students continue accessing Chinese language learning and maintain their international connections.
Technology once again helped bridge the gap – in this case a gap spanning thousands of miles – to link teachers from Southwest Jiaotong University in Chengdu, China with participating classrooms throughout Scotland. Delivering lessons devised by CISS and SCILT, teachers in Chengdu connect each week with their partnered classroom to provide an interactive and fun language experience across two levels.
After the conclusion of the first session of the Virtual Exchange Teacher programme in 2020/21, the second session is already underway. There is a clear demand for Chinese provision, with an uptake of over sixty percent, and more than 100 classes signed up for the first term of the 2021/22 session.
Technology has been a huge challenge throughout the pandemic and while there are always going to be difficulties in linking across the world and across time zones, the opportunity and value offered by the Virtual Exchange Teachers programme provides much needed access to Chinese for schools across Scotland. Term 2 will begin after the Easter break so contact the CISS team for more details on how your school can get involved.
