international student forum

Vicky Marinelis
Vicky Marinelis

Vicky Marinelis

International Student Program

Coordinator

 

The 2017 International Students’ Forum was held at the State Library on 16 May providing a platform for international and local students from across Victoria, to come and share their ideas on how the International Student Program can be enhanced at the school.

The Forum is an annual Department of Education and Training event and this year it was facilitated by AFS Intercultural Programs (an international, voluntary, non-profit organisation that provides intercultural learning opportunities to help people develop the knowledge, skills and understanding needed to create a more just and peaceful world).

 

This year’s theme - Sharing cultures, developing intercultural understanding, building capability - recognises the importance of valuing diversity and of sharing cultural knowledge and experience within the school and the broader community. 

This theme provided local and international students and their teachers with an opportunity to explore two state-wide priorities from the Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO):

 

Priority 3: Positive Climate for Learning (Empowering students and building school pride) &

Priority 4: Community Engagement in Learning (Global citizenship)

 

The highly interactive program enabled our students to share their experiences, identify opportunities for improvement, and contribute to problem solving and planning activities. The day culminated in the development of a Brunswick Secondary College school action plan documenting recommendations for improvements and changes that could be applied across the State.

A BIG thank you to our wonderful BSC Year 11 student participants for their hard work preparing for the event and valuable contributions on the day - Kyle TRAN, Yiting FENG and William MOTT.

 

Kyle, Yiting and William were great ambassadors for the school, providing their peers with many insights and suggestions on how to enhance the international student experience. These included innovative ways of sharing culture, suggestions on how teachers can be better equipped to support the international student program and what additional practical steps can be put in place to further welcome and engage new international students into our school community.  

I congratulate them on their efforts -  read more about the students' experience at the forum in the next article Sharing Culture.

 

BSC Presentation to Forum

The Forum participants were very interested to hear about BSC's participation in the HSF Mentoring Program - our annual collaboration with multinational law firm Herbert Smith Freehills.

 

Several BSC international students were successful in gaining a place in this program tin  2017 and are enjoying and benefiting from the experience enormously.

in this program, a select group of Year 9 BSC students  are matched with mentors from the firm (young professionals with an international mindset and a global outlook) and meet with them fortnightly. Students, with mentor guidance, explore important issues and their impact on a local and global scale.  The program includes many practical sessions that aim to:

  • Develop self-confidence
  • Promote community involvement
  • Develop goal setting and interpersonal skills
  • Promote team building skills in a fun and relaxed atmosphere
  • Teach useful lifelong skills along the way

International Student School Captain, Kyle Tran, a past program participant himself, successfully presented the program to the student group at the Forum, while Vicky Marinelis (International Student Coordinator) provided a workshop for the teachers.

 

Many thanks to Jennie Easson (Library Coordinator) who coordinates of the HSF Mentoring Program at BSC.  Her guidance and assistance with the Forum presentation, as well as her encouragement and support for international students taking part in the program, is greatly appreciated.

Postscript:

Congratulations to William Mott who is one of only 10 student representatives invited to attend the International Student Forum 2017 Post-Program Briefing at the central offices of the Department of Education.

 

William will now have the opportunity to attend this high level meeting and share feedback with the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Education, as well as the Executive Director of International Education.