Friday, 11 March 2011
Feedback from teacher
In terms of personal impact of the trip, among the many lessons I got to observe in the school was a Year 12 Maths lesson. It was a fantastic opportunity to see how the content was delivered and how the students were receptive to the material. The lack of resources available to the teacher did not diminish from the learning of the students in the room and it was fascinating to see how the students accepted that if they did not understand the work in the lesson then it was up to them to ensure that they did in time for the next lesson. It was also reminded me that Maths is the same all over the world and the language barrier became almost non-existent as the language of the classroom became more “mathematical”.
As a department, we have benefited because main school students are now talking about a post-16 Maths trip visiting Italy. Despite our best efforts, students still seem to think that Maths only exists in the classroom and this has been a good opportunity to talk to the students about how different branches of Maths are used in everyday life and how this is the same all over the world. Since our return, all of my classes have asked what has Maths got to do with the project and it has been nice to be able to explain to them about how Maths is used. Unfortunately, we have not found the time in our curriculum to look at the topic of migration in any great detail but it is an area we may look at when we redesign our schemes of work and start to include more investigative tasks.
As an aside, we have just received the results from the January modular exam that our Year 12 students took. All four students who went to Italy achieved a grade A! Either we selected the correct students for the trip or it could be argued that trip encouraged the students to work harder!
As a department, we have benefited because main school students are now talking about a post-16 Maths trip visiting Italy. Despite our best efforts, students still seem to think that Maths only exists in the classroom and this has been a good opportunity to talk to the students about how different branches of Maths are used in everyday life and how this is the same all over the world. Since our return, all of my classes have asked what has Maths got to do with the project and it has been nice to be able to explain to them about how Maths is used. Unfortunately, we have not found the time in our curriculum to look at the topic of migration in any great detail but it is an area we may look at when we redesign our schemes of work and start to include more investigative tasks.
As an aside, we have just received the results from the January modular exam that our Year 12 students took. All four students who went to Italy achieved a grade A! Either we selected the correct students for the trip or it could be argued that trip encouraged the students to work harder!
During our stay in Italy, we saw some nice cities. After Carrara, the next place we visited was Lucca which is a really pretty, medieval city. Some of us were lucky enough to visit Pisa and it's leaning tower which was a great experience to see a world famous building and the great ones that surrounded it.
Another city we had the pleasure of visiting was Viareggio which we happened to hit in carnival season. This meant that we got to see the amazing carnival which is famous for mocking popular people, for example politicians.
Unfortunately, after a packed few days it was time to leave Massa. We found this trip was a well organised programme with a good variety of activities. One of our favourite parts was staying with the italian families, as it was something none of us had done before. We all made some great friends and found it really interesting to meet people from other countries and learn about their ways of life. Being immersed in the italian lifestyle was also a beneficial and enjoyable experience, especially living on masses of italian food. All in all, we all really enjoyed ourselves and felt we had gained something from this experience.
Another city we had the pleasure of visiting was Viareggio which we happened to hit in carnival season. This meant that we got to see the amazing carnival which is famous for mocking popular people, for example politicians.
Unfortunately, after a packed few days it was time to leave Massa. We found this trip was a well organised programme with a good variety of activities. One of our favourite parts was staying with the italian families, as it was something none of us had done before. We all made some great friends and found it really interesting to meet people from other countries and learn about their ways of life. Being immersed in the italian lifestyle was also a beneficial and enjoyable experience, especially living on masses of italian food. All in all, we all really enjoyed ourselves and felt we had gained something from this experience.
Friday, 4 March 2011
WAVES visit to Italy
We arrived at Pisa airport in the afternoon and proceeded to take a taxi to the train station which would take us to our destination of Massa. When we arrived in Massa, our host families came to pick us up one by one and take us to their houses where we would be staying for the next six days. That evening, we settled in with our families and got ready for the next day to come.
The next morning, our host families took us to their school where we were collected and taken to the town of Carrara which is famous for it's marble mountains. We were taken on a tour of a famous marble factory where we witnessed some amazing marble projects. After this, we carried on higher up the mountains and had lunch in a small italian restaurant with the rest of the trip participants. Here, we tried the famous Massa delicacy called 'lardo', being pure fat. We then returned to the school and had a discussion about the subject of immigration, where everyone was able to share their views. After a long day, we returned to our host families where we were able to do what we wished, for example explore the city of Massa.
There's a little taster, there'll be more later...
The next morning, our host families took us to their school where we were collected and taken to the town of Carrara which is famous for it's marble mountains. We were taken on a tour of a famous marble factory where we witnessed some amazing marble projects. After this, we carried on higher up the mountains and had lunch in a small italian restaurant with the rest of the trip participants. Here, we tried the famous Massa delicacy called 'lardo', being pure fat. We then returned to the school and had a discussion about the subject of immigration, where everyone was able to share their views. After a long day, we returned to our host families where we were able to do what we wished, for example explore the city of Massa.
There's a little taster, there'll be more later...
Sunday, 27 February 2011
Wednesday, 23 February 2011
*NEWS FLASH* *NEWS FLASH*
On Friday, late afternoon, we shall be on TV - at 5:30 [Bangladesh time, so 11:30 English time (we think)] on BBC WorldWide, talking about our experiences in Bangladesh!
So WATCH IT! :D
It will later be posted on YouTube, so when it is, we'll add a link!
So WATCH IT! :D
It will later be posted on YouTube, so when it is, we'll add a link!
Just a quick update ...
Today we've done LOADS. And as it's really late, then we will just blog quickly about the basics we did (and then expand tomorrow [hopefully]). We started the morning at 8 o clock, and drove to a school which we had yet to visit, it was a mixed school (so far this week we've been to all girls' schools, and all boys' schools) - we looked around the rooms, and their classes have about 90 students in, and sometimes more. We sat in on a "lecture" about modern teaching methods in the U.K, and they are completely different to the methods in Bangladesh due to class size. We watched presentations which the school had prepared for us: this included dancing, power points, singing etc. It was a real insight into their culture. We also went to the national Bangladesh museum, and we looked around and it was fab, we had our own mini tour guides (the students came with us, and spoke all about the artifacts at the museum) - so that was all really fun. Then we rushed back here and then we went to a dinner organised by the Brit sh Council, and we celebrated Dave's birthday with a MASSIVE cake (pictures tomorrow) and then we chatted to all the people we had met during the week, and celebrated being here in Bangladesh.
Tuesday, 22 February 2011
Keep up the good work!
Well done for such detailed and interesting blogging so far - you're giving us some great info to use in lessons. It's really good to see what you have been up to. There are quite a few students waiting to sign up to the website we use, I'm sure your expereinces will inspire them to really get involved.
Hope you are all well, keep enjoying yourselves,
Miss M
Hope you are all well, keep enjoying yourselves,
Miss M
Tuesday 22nd
Today we returned to Viqarunnisa Noon School and College, which was lovely. We also visited the Liberation War Museum, were invited to dinner, had henna done on our hands and managed to fit in some shopping. Everyone is tired but we're still having a wonderful time.
Some men ride on the roof of a bus.
The Connecting Classrooms display at Viqarunnisa Noon School and College.
David carefully considers which scarf will go best with his eyes.
Some men ride on the roof of a bus.
The Connecting Classrooms display at Viqarunnisa Noon School and College.David carefully considers which scarf will go best with his eyes.
Monday, 21 February 2011
Agrani & Government Laboratory Schools
I have received reports from Agrani and Government Laboratory Schools where they have written about your visit to their school with lots of photos. I look forward to reading about the rest of your visit. The weather is awful here today.
Viqarunnisa Noon School and College
On our first visit to Viqarunnisa Noon School and College which is an all-girls’ school, we immediately noticed how much calmer they were than the other girls’ school which was mayhem. The girls were all dressed in their Sahris as today was the celebration of International Mother Language Day.
After we took part in the parade around the town (which has blogged about) we sat down in a massive auditorium to listen to speeches about the celebrations. We were placed in the middle of all the 1,700 female students which was pretty daunting to start off with as we stood out and everyone was staring at us. After a while the girls in front of us started to chat to us and ask us about ourselves, they were really friendly and were translating the Bangla service to us.
We were then approached by a lady who worked for the BBC Worldservice who asked us for an interview. We all lined up in a row while a man was filming us and the lady was getting ready with her mic. She asked us individually what we thought about Bangladesh, about International Mother Language Day and about Connecting Classrooms. Nervously we answered her questions knowing that this would be broadcasted onto the BBC Worldservice later. We are now excited to see ourselves on television!
We are back at the same school tomorrow to sit through some lessons which we are pleased about as we really liked the atmosphere in the school.
After we took part in the parade around the town (which has blogged about) we sat down in a massive auditorium to listen to speeches about the celebrations. We were placed in the middle of all the 1,700 female students which was pretty daunting to start off with as we stood out and everyone was staring at us. After a while the girls in front of us started to chat to us and ask us about ourselves, they were really friendly and were translating the Bangla service to us.
We were then approached by a lady who worked for the BBC Worldservice who asked us for an interview. We all lined up in a row while a man was filming us and the lady was getting ready with her mic. She asked us individually what we thought about Bangladesh, about International Mother Language Day and about Connecting Classrooms. Nervously we answered her questions knowing that this would be broadcasted onto the BBC Worldservice later. We are now excited to see ourselves on television!
We are back at the same school tomorrow to sit through some lessons which we are pleased about as we really liked the atmosphere in the school.
International Mother Language Day
Today was an important day to the people of Bangladesh, it was a celebration of their mother language day, and remembered those who died fighting for the cause. On this day we dressed in black and white to mourn with the students of Viqarunnisa Noon School and College.
We learnt the importance of the Bangladesh flag, the green symbolises the land which they have, and the environment around them. The red symbolises the blood which was shed in fighting for their mother tongue, and their love which they have for it.
For us, it was a great honour to be able to participate in their service, we had a parade around the school block, and upon return we laid down flowers in memory of them.
The event itself is a celebration of the Bengali Language and the independence which Bangladesh gained as a result of the protest, it is a national holiday held on the 21st February every year. The history of International Language Day, began when Urdu was the only language allowed to be spoken in both East and West Pakistan. The Bangla people protested about this, and a student strike was organised – however, would not be tolerated by the Pakistan government. Five of the students who campaigned for Bangla to be recognised as one of the state languages of Pakistan were shot and killed by police. These students are seen as martyrs for their cause, which turned out to be the beginning of Bangladesh’s struggle for independence.
Sunday, 20 February 2011
Great to read your news
Thank you so much for the blogs. It makes such a difference to know you all arrived safely and to share the experiences with you as they are happening.
Experiences...
One thing that I think we all expected to see when we were here was poverty...however, seeing it first hand really brings it to life and unfortunately to a reality. Living in a society were we are fortunate enough not to have to worry about extreme poverty is overwhelming when looking at how people live in a society like Dhaka. The social tiers and classes are made to be quite obvious, just from looking at what people are wearing. One thing that will stay in my memories is the first begger child that we saw. A little girl, around the age of 7 or 8, came up to our minibus begging for food. It was one of the most unnerving and shocking experiences of my life (not trying to sound over dramatic!) and the sense of guilt wahes over you. Experiencing this is a major eye-opener and it really does make you rethink about how lucky we are and what we have going for us.
Government Laboratary High School visit
The second school we visited was an all boys' school. These boys were a lot older in general than the girls (around 16 years old). Their English was superb and we were able to have really good conversations about school, football and cricket. The whole of Bangladesh is "partying" at the moment due to the Cricket World Cup taking place in Bangladesh - even though they lost yesterday to their big rivals, India.
After we chatted for a while we were entertained by 3 lads and guitars who were so confident around singing - even that was eye-opening. Eventually we left the cheery school with many photographs being taken. They offered us games of cricket and football which I (David) really wanted to accept however, unfortunately we had to leave then.
Then we went to see the government buildings and as we posed to have our photograph taken we were surronded by many members of the public who stopped and stared at us with cameras - like we were famous. Now we are back at the hotel and have a daunting 7.30 start tomorrow!!
After we chatted for a while we were entertained by 3 lads and guitars who were so confident around singing - even that was eye-opening. Eventually we left the cheery school with many photographs being taken. They offered us games of cricket and football which I (David) really wanted to accept however, unfortunately we had to leave then.
Then we went to see the government buildings and as we posed to have our photograph taken we were surronded by many members of the public who stopped and stared at us with cameras - like we were famous. Now we are back at the hotel and have a daunting 7.30 start tomorrow!!
The visit to the Agrani School and College
Today we took a visit to two schools - Agrani School and College, and the Government Laboratory High School. Both at which we took part in various classes, and got showed around the school.The students at the first school (an all girls school - aged 6 - 17) showed us a presentation that they had made, showing us the 'new Dhaka' which they wanted to create. They said that the present Dhaka has too many problems: there is too much pollution, a shortage of electricity (it has already cut out twice since being here), there isn't a good enough water supply, too much traffic - queueing and too many cars. They also said that there were slums on the outskirts, which they wanted to get rid of, they also wanted a much greener community, as at the moment it isn't exactly the greenest place on earth. These girls, who were fairly young, are already aware of the issues surrounding them, and it was a real insight into their way of life - that they are already aware of these issues.
Have a great trip
Hi everybody,
Just to let you know we are keeping track of you and Y10 will be looking you up during the week! Your blogs are working, we hope you get the chance to add more.
The first set of photo's look great. Have a fabulous trip
Miss Muncaster
Just to let you know we are keeping track of you and Y10 will be looking you up during the week! Your blogs are working, we hope you get the chance to add more.
The first set of photo's look great. Have a fabulous trip
Miss Muncaster
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