Have you ever wanted to try a foreign exchange, maybe to Denmark or Argentina? Well, last year, a group of 10 students had the opportunity to participate in an exchange with our sister school in Denmark. These “sister school visits” can be a highlight for many at Saint Stephen’s.
This year, Saint Stephen’s will host groups from Denmark and Argentina, giving students twice as much to look forward to. Then, later in the year, Falcons will have the opportunity to travel themselves to the sister school countries.
Regarding sister school visits, something that people should be excited about is the sharing of different cultures. According to sophomore Sanjay Dastidar, who did the exchange last year, people in Denmark aren’t so focused on school and instead grow their bonds with friends and family.
“The Danish students did not have such a strong focus on academics and prioritized enjoying their time together,” said Dastidar.
Our Argentine visitors will arrive from Colegio Nacional de Monserrat on February 28th, to visit Saint Stephen’s for the first time. The visitors will remain with their host families until March 7th.
Students coming from our sister school in Denmark, called Esbjerg International School, will arrive on campus October 29th and depart on November 5th.
When asked why the sister school exchange program is returning this year, Global Ed Coordinator Mrs. Cotton said it’s such a “positive experience students have to connect with their friends. Most people who go through this [exchange] stay friends and bond after the experience,”.
When asked what he learned about himself from the exchange Dastidar said, “By traveling to another country with other students from my school, I grew a lot closer with classmates that I never would have met if it weren’t for foreign exchange.”
The visitors will have a long list of things to do while on campus. For example, Mrs. Cotton says they will visit each of the school’s divisions, starting with the fledglings. They will read stories to the young fledglings and after that, they will go on a field trip with the middle school.
The Denmark exchange group gets to have a little more fun. They will be here on time to see the upper school Halloween Costume Contest, and they will also get to do a theater project with Mrs. Elisha.
Saint Stephen’s takes place in these global exchanges so that we may move beyond the four walls of our campus.
Saint Stephen’s slogan, “A world class education,” means that we should seize opportunities and widen our perspectives by learning about different cultures and working with different schools around the world.
If you are interested in doing an exchange Mrs.Cotton said to “look around the buildings for sister school visit QR code if you are interested in hosting or exchanging.“
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