Student Exchange
Japanese Sister School Exchange
Sale College’s Japanese Sister School is Oroku Senior High School and is located in sunny Okinawa in the south of Japan. Okinawa is made up of over 60 small islands and has a similar climate to Brisbane.
Many people remember it as the location for the Karate Kid 2 movie. Sale High School, which was to become Sale College, established a Sister School relationship with Oroku Senior High School in 1995.
The first group of Japanese students visited us in March 1996 with their teacher MS Sae Amuro. This was followed by a visit by a group of five students and three staff. Since this first round of visits, the two schools have held exchange visits every second year, in evenly numbered years, with the exception of 2004, following the 9/11attacks in America and 2006.
The Sister School Program relies very much on the involvement and support of students and their families. Exchange programs offer families and school communities a unique opportunity to experience another culture and to broaden their knowledge and understanding of the world around them. They involve the whole family and everyone benefits. In addition there is the opportunity to practice the language that students have acquired at school in a real life situation. This results in improved confidence and skills, and is a powerful motivator in future studies.
The students and families always comment on how well the Japanese student they hosted fitted in at home and how much they have enjoyed the experience.
Sale College students who participate in exchange visits to Japan often overcome their own shyness and reservations to learn more of the Japanese culture and language. Parents and teachers alike often comment on how much students have matured as a result of their visit. Most students plan their involvement in the exchange program one or two years ahead and many find part-time jobs in order to fund this.
Some students who have been involved in the program in the past have commented:
‘Yatta!’ For those who don’t speak Japanese, that means ‘Hooray!’ and it pretty much sums up how we feel at the moment. Our trip is drawing ever closer, and we are counting down the days after scrimping and saving for the past year.
“It was the educational experience of a lifetime. The hosts were great and there were many tears on December 22 when everyone left for home.”
“8 students, 2 teachers, 3 weeks in a foreign country and lots of experiences. The 2004 trip was an eye opening experience in relation to foreign culture, customs and way of life.”
The best parts:
- Okinawa – Staying with a host family and being treated like a rock star at school
- Meeting a sumo in Tokyo
- The ninja museum
- Going to Tokyo Disneyland
- Feeding the local deer
- Karaoke
Japanese Sister School Raises Money for Bushfire Appeal.
In December 2008, eight students from years 10 and 11 at our Macalister Campus, visited Japan with Mr Allan and Ms Verity. The visit lasted three weeks and during this time the group visited Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Okinawa, where our Japanese sister school, Oroku High School, is located.
The students from Sale College and our sister school had a great time together and have some fantastic memories of this time. When the Gippsland bush fires began February there were many concerned emails sent back and forth between the two schools and despite assurances that we were safe, students at our sister school decided that they wanted to do something to help bushfire victims. Here is their story:
Greetings from Your Sister School in Okinawa, Japan!
こんにちは!
Here at Oroku High we have just finished up our school year; graduation was a very special day, held this past March 1st. We are gearing up to start the 2009 year on April 7th.
This past February, news of the bushfires in Victoria made its way over here and became a concern to both students and staff. We started tracking the fires through Google Maps and decided to do a fundraiser for the Australian Red Cross Bushfire Appeal.
We set our goal at 100,000 Yen. After ten days of collecting small change and donations from students and staff, we raised 100,463 Yen (approximately 1,470.00 AUD).
The third year English class (3-9) raised the most – they (along with many other students) still have fond memories of the group that visited this past December! We send our best for this school year. Stay safe!
Oroku High School Staff and Students