HS OELP 2017: Connecting Cultures, Overcoming Challenges, and Making a Positive Difference

Connecting across different cultures, overcoming challenges, trying things you’ve never done before, learning about self, and completing a service project to make a positive difference to the lives of others: the Adventure Week program at AIS continues to offer opportunities for students to grow holistically.

The Outdoor Education and Leadership Program (OELP) is a residential week-long learning experience known as ‘Adventure Week’. In November 2017, AIS high school students returned from their Adventure Week programs. Students selected their trip from a choice of 9 options, around the South-East Asian region (China, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, India, Hong Kong) and as far away as New Zealand and Fiji. Each program had elements of adventure based challenges, connections with the local community, a service project and probably some fun team building or some cultural sightseeing to enjoy. Some students stayed in Hong Kong, but most went overseas.

Cambodia

Fiji

India

New Zealand

Through each program students faced challenges, worked together in teams to problem solve, overcame fears and learned more about living in community. They focused on a service project that often meant helping to construct homes or lay the foundations for new pathways or buildings for the communities we worked alongside. Often the trip also focused on a specific global issue (e.g. animal or environmental conservation). Many trips offered students the opportunity to view amazing sights and visit places of historical and cultural interest.

We work closely with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to help us manage the service projects, and they help to ensure our actions are not tokenistic because we are contributing towards sustainable projects that are part of ongoing activities that the NGO supports all year round. Each overseas program enables students to experience a different culture, and to make connections with the locals that we work closely with and often live among as we spend our time away from the comforts we are used to back in Hong Kong. These connections and these experiences can have a lasting impact on students who engage fully with the purpose of the trip. The feedback that follows, taken from a survey, reassures me that students are not only having fun and developing friendships, but are also maturing in their roles as citizens of the world.

Chengdu

Chiangmai

Hong Kong

Malaysia

Vietnam

Whenever alumni come back to visit the school and see their former teachers and counselors, they always share how much they miss the AIS community and how important their Adventure Week trips were to them. Research shows “students learn best when the learning is punctuated by truly memorable peak moments” (What schools can do to help students engage more in learning by Chip & Dan Heath, an article published online in Education Week, January 10, 2018). In many ways, this is what occurs during Adventure Week: students engage in activities that connect to the real world and make a difference. These experiences challenge them personally and positively impact their attitudes and behaviors.  The experience remains a highlight for them throughout their time at high school and beyond too. These are the types of experiences we value.