International Student News

WHO AM I? - Eva Helena Wenzel

Helena Wenzel came to us from Randersacker, Germany, to spend a month at MGC to perfect her English prior to completing her senior school studies.

Genevieve’s sister, Eloise Cox, lived with Helena and her family in 2012, and then returned to MGC to do VCE leaving in 2014. Genevieve Cox is also going to Germany in 2017 on a Rotary Exchange, sponsored by Rotary Richmond!

She stayed with year 10 Genevieve Cox and their family, who said Helena was a delightful girl to have in their home.  They hope that some of the girls at school had a chance to learn from her.  She is a very smart girl who wants to go into medicine and then into medical research, so improving her spoken English is very important to her.

International Class of 2016 

Wendy Wang

Hi! My name is Heni Wang and my English name is Wendy. I come from a city called Shenyang, which is located at north east of China. I came to Australia in 2013 and this was my first time to study aboard. I have been signed to a Chinese homestay, Tang’s Family, which I think I am really lucky to have the opportunity live with them. My homestay mother, Amy, is kind and friendly to us and I always share my things with her, whether happy or sad. At the beginning of this year, I have been on a holiday trip with my homestay to a small town near Sydney, Foster. I had a wonderful time since Foster is a quiet and peaceful town where I can just relax and forget about VCE and school. During my three years in MGC, I have experienced some electives that I did not have the opportunity to select while I was in China, such as Food Technology, Jewellery Design and Outdoor Education. Trust me these electives are worth to choose and you will enjoy a lot of fun within classes. A small tip for you who are new to Australia, get along with your homestay family who you are spending the most of your time with and be brave to share your things with them. Practice your English as much as possible and make more local friends to get involved in the mainstream society. Finally, Good Luck your time at MGC!

 

Yangqi Xu

HJ Roh

 

Hi! My name is Hyun-Jeong Roh (aka HJ), and I’m from South Korea. Due to my desire to come to this wonderful school, unlike the rest of the international students, I have been privileged to study here at Melbourne Girls’ College since year seven. I take great pleasure making things from scratch; ranging from origami, knitting to painting. Although I have made up my mind to study in a medical field, I truly hope to continue expanding my interest in crafts!

The most memorable moment in my schooling is when I was appointed as a maths vice-captain in the year 2015. It was an absolute honour organising events arm in arm with the maths department. And the best part was when I got to witness our annual maths games day coming to life right before my eyes – it was worth the amount of effort we have put in all year long. I will never be able to forget this breath taking experience, it will be cherished in my heart forever.

Most importantly, I would like to be remembered by the teachers and students at our school as the girl who flashes her warm smile when you stumble across her along the corridors!

 

Skye Qiao  – award for Academic Excellence for Math Methods for U1/2 2015

Donna Zhang

My name is Donna and I come from east part of China. I have lived in Australia for nearly two years and I really enjoy spending my time on study and travelling here. Melbourne is a multicultural city and luckily I am aldo interested in learning varies kinds of cultures. Australia is a country where we never feel lonely and upset.

ISP News

Amy Wang at the Victorian Interschools Snowsports Championships

The 2016 Subaru Victorian Interschools Snowsports Championships was held at Mt Buller from the 22nd - 28th August 2016.

Competitors had the choice of Alpine Giant Slalom, Snowboard Giant Slalom, Boardercross, Skiercross and Moguls and for the first time Ski Slopestyle and Snowboard Slopestyle events for Divisions 1 & were held.

Year 11 international student Amy WANG participated and skied for MGC.  She had a fantastic time, and was very satisfied with her ranking.

 ‘I was at the bottom, but not the last, so I was happy with that and I really enjoyed the competition. I was pretty nervous at the beginning, but as I finished my first run, I realized it was not that scary. I loved it!’

She was also delighted to stay with year 11 Charis Jones and her family:

It was lovely to stay with them!!! They were really, really nice! Charis helped me a lot, such as taking me to inspect the course and helping me hire a helmet. Sonia was patient and looked after me. Also Maja and her daughter were really nice and helpful! The whole trip was wonderful!!!

Student Reminders

SEPTEMBER HOLIDAYS

With the September holidays coming up, we need to remind you that you need to tell me if you are returning to your home countries.

Holiday travel forms can be found on my door in my office, make sure you let us know your travel dates and flight details!

 

PARENT TEACHER INTERVIEWS

Parent teacher interviews are on the 13th September.  If you would like to make an appointment with your teacher and have Amanda, Lluani or your homestay attend, please let us know as soon as possible.  We will be able to translate and send to your parents any feedback that teachers may have.

 

LEAGUE OF HOMESTAY CHAMPIONS

We are coming up to the time of the year when we need to know how many rooms will be available in 2017.  With 25 year 12s graduating in 2016, and 27 new students starting in 2017, we will be doing lots of homestay moves, so make sure you put your hand up if you would like to host one of our handpicked future women leaders in your home!

Homestay Profiles

A homestay family is, for an international student, the foundation for successful studies.  We will be talking to some of our homestay families in upcoming issues, to thank them for all the hard work they do for our international students!

Susan Campbell and Ted Howard and family

ISP:  How long have you been a homestay family?                         

Susan and Ted: We’ve been hosting for 3.5 years.

ISP: How many students have you hosted?                                         

Susan and Ted: 9 or 10 students, including a couple of short stays.

ISP: Do you have any stand out memories in your time hosting?               

Susan and Ted: Sure!  When they all cooked Susie mother’s day brekkie last year!  It’s great seeing a student progress to Uni and come back to visit us.  There are little gifts thoughtfully given to us, and we enjoying eating together and trying new food combinations.

ISP: What are your overall impressions of being a MGC homestay?

Susan and Ted: We like the MGC system for managing homestay girls with the school as the guardian rather than a separate commercial and often uninterested person.

We appreciate the effort Lluani has put into matching girls with our homestay family. She is always ready and willing to help and it has been enjoyable working with her.

We like girls from a variety of countries and MGC can often do this for us. We have learnt through experience that it is best to have all the girls from one school.

We try to encourage the girls to communicate with us and improve their English. However most girls are hesitant to make use of us to improve their communication skills.

We like the way the MGC girls study together downstairs and help each other and our children join in as well. They all like going out together sometimes.

It would be nice if the school arranged more school holiday activities perhaps excursions or campus so that the girls can get to see some of Victoria, our country and culture rather than just Box Hill market and the city.

It is amazing the difference in knowledge and experience regarding house work duties e.g. what is a broom and how does it work?

We love hearing their experiences from their life in China - particularly boarding school life from a young age and how tough their study regime is.

 

Thanks so much to Susan and Ted for sharing their home and their experience as a homestay to MGC international students!

If you are interested in hosting one of our fabulous international students, please contact Lluani Williams via the College number: 9428-8955, or by email: lluani.williams@mgc.vic.edu.au , or you can pop by my office in room 302.  We are always looking for new Melbourne Girls’ College homestay families!