Today was our Learning Ambassadors’ final day of study at Yaumati PS. 

Bercem, Emma, Daisy and Amelie attended Yaumati along with Mrs Macintosh while Mr MacLean visited Creative Secondary School to learn about the way in which maths is studied at secondary level.

As with Mrs Macintosh’ visit to Stung Twin on Tuesday, yesterday, the trip to Creative was a fascinating learning experience with lots of ideas to take away and consider.

The girls’ school day began with a flag raising ceremony. One of the main benefits of this trip has been for our young people to experience a completely different culture, and this event was a good example of something completely outwith the girl’s normal everyday experience.

After the ceremony, we formally presented the Scottish flag and this was proudly displayed by our ambassadors.

The rest of the day saw our pupils continue to study within their new classes. The girls have really developed in confidence over their three days at Yaumati and they have fitted in remarkably well to the school routines.

At the end of the school day, both classes, 6A and 6B, organised a party for the four Preston Street pupils – very thoughtful and kind of our hosts. Our pupils were able to share some Scottish shortbread which was well received by pupils and staff alike.

Our final task was to be interviewed by the school’s in-house TV station – a very professional setup indeed!

Before leaving Yaumati,  we discovered that four Yaumati students have been chosen to participate in a visit to Scotland in October,  where they will study at Preston Street for three days! This is a fantastic opportunity to instantly build on this first visit and we are really excited to welcome them to Edinburgh. 

The Learning Ambassadors have now been away for a whole week (Thursday – Wednesday) and it is a great testament to their maturity and resilience that they have coped so well with all the new experiences and challenges. They spoke this evening (lunchtime in Edinburgh) to Mrs Nimbley and some of their classmates and it was very clear that the four girls are really keen to build on this trip and help Preston Street reap the benefits of this new link.

Tomorrow, we will join back up with our friends from Boroughmuir, James Gillespie’s and Royal High for a well deserved outing to Ocean Park, a famous local theme park. We will then get together with staff and pupils from all the various Scottish and HK schools involved on this trip for a feedback session and farewell dinner. We then fly back to Scotland on Friday afternoon (arriving on Saturday morning).

We will post a final blog tomorrow to round off our account of the trip. However, our return to Scotland is not the end of the story, but rather, the start of a new journeyy – when we will consider how best to implement what we have learned during the trip, and also how to develop our links with Yaumati to ensure this turns into a long and productive link which provides a meaningful and enriching cultural exchange for both schools.