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« WISS Brimming Over with the 2009 Chinese New Year Celebration | Main | A Conversation about learning for the Future »

WISS Reaching Out to Help Migrant People

By WISS Admin | February 12, 2009

From Shanghai Daily, Feb. 11, 2009

Since October 2008, students, teachers, administrators and parents from the Western International School of Shanghai have been reaching out to their local Xu Jing Town community. Working together, they have been helping to create a program to advance the English skills of local residents of all ages and to support WISS student efforts to better understand the places and people around them. 

The program is lead by Middle School English teacher Mr. John Cucinello, also a Xu Jing resident, and uses classroom, computer room and library resources as well as playgrounds on the WISS Campus, to engage and inspire local residents as they work to improve their English. The owners of the school, the board of directors, as well as the administrative leadership, have embraced the idea and have freely offered the school facilities to support this vital service to the community.  “I want the school to be seen as a partner in the community and not just a specter of progress intruding on people’s lives and offering no benefit to them.  I’m always looking for opportunities to serve.  Our young people have embraced the idea,” said Mr. Cucinello who, having volunteered on school-centered programs for 11 years in The Bronx, New York, as well as with projects in Honduras and the Dominican Republic, is uniquely prepared to help develop a sustainable service ethic at WISS. The idea came to Mr. Cucinello when he was walking among the local community and saw four migrant students studying English outside their home.  The next day he returned to help with one of his bilingual Chinese colleagues Judy Wang and some school supplies.  They spoke with the grandmother and were given permission to work with the children.

Mr. Cucinello is by no means the only one that heard the call to reach out to help; more staff and students joined him to commit significant time and effort to this drive. So far 16 students, from 4^th to 9^th grades, and four staff members have been sharing the responsibility as educators every Tuesday and Saturday. “It is really important that we are consistent”, said Mr. Cucinello.  “We want the people to know that we will be there and that we are not just passing through”, he added. Structured English language classes are being offered in various ways; practicing daily conversations, reading English books, exploring English educational software, playing games. The local residents are being exposed to a very real English language educational environment. WISS parents have also showed their support by driving their children to and from the program, by donating books vouchers used to purchase language textbooks, and by participating in the classes alongside their children. One middle school mom, Mrs. Ursula Blaschke, loves her time teaching English alongside her Grade 6 daughter Johanna. “I’ve been enjoying the benefit of spending time doing something meaningful with my daughter. It’s interesting to get to know another side of Chinese people’s lives. At home we talk about ways to help them.”

The students also find it rewarding to get involved. Pairing up with his classmate Tony Hu, WISS 8^th Grader Koen Kerremans comments, “It’s fun to know you are helping with their English and reading skills”.  And Grade 6 student, Sabina West, loves her time spent with local children. “It’s great to be part of their life,” she affirms. “By improving their English skills, I think they could get a better job in China.” This inspiring initiative also allows students to reflect on their own lives. Another Grade 6 participant, Toh Chuan Ting, commented “it gives me a chance to peek into the local kids’ lives, which drives me to reflect on how fortunate we are to lead a comfortable expat life.” But WISS students are also learning a lot from  their local peers about Chinese life, culture and language. “Our students are recipients as well,” said Mr. Cucinello, “Sometimes the lessons become Mandarin lessons in which our students are on the receiving end and of course there are those moments of simple fellowship that are enduring and build character as well as intercultural bridges. It is what the International Baccalaureate Organization is all about.”   

As an integrated part of the WISS middle school curriculum, community and service allows students an opportunity to serve those in need around them. Helping others unquestionably develops students emotionally and intellectually, honing their planning, communication and leadership skills as responsible members of society. They begin to see the balance and that it can not always be about “I want” but more about “We Need” as a community. The program is fully supported by the Middle School Principal, Mr. Tom Kline. “What these students, parents and teachers do every week astounds me. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

Topics: WISS in the News |

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