Building Friendships, Creating a Better World!
As we all know, IQ (intelligence quotient) measures our reasoning ability and EQ (emotional intelligence) measures our ability to manage emotions in interpersonal situations. Similarly, cultural intelligence (CQ) refers to our ability to work with and adapt to people of other cultures. Like EQ (but unlike IQ), CQ can be developed and improved over time with training, experience, and conscious effort.
The ESS shall foster the development of CQ, and global competence for students by connecting Singapore schools and students with schools and students from all over the world. Activities developed by ESS and its strategic partners will lay a strong foundation for a friendship bridge that connects youths all over the world.
When youths from all over the world accept each other’s differences and forge friendships, we believe they will grow up to solve global problems together; make the world more sustainable for each other; promote peace, equality and inclusiveness – and hence build a better future for everyone!
Friendship Bridges We Have Built
Hundreds of students have met each other in person, thousands more have establish friendships through virtual events – including STREAM (Science Technology Robotics Engineering Arts Math) hackathons, friendly collaborations and competitions. The ESS and our partners have the pleasure of witnessing students laughing together, playing together, learning together, solving problems together and becoming globally competent together!
Music & STREAM Exchange
When a group of Chinese students arrived in Singapore for a symphony exchange, they wondered how they could communicate with the Singapore students. When both groups of students started playing music, they realized they spoke a common language – the language of music. All the students were so happy that they played so well together, and needless to say, they started chatting as friends and asking for ways to stay in touch!
STREAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts and Math) activities, hackathons and workshops have revealed that students from different countries can engage in dialogues in which they used technology, and programming languages as the common denominator to start communicating with each other.
It was amazing how technologies and music help to cut across barriers of spoken languages, culture and beliefs!
Cultural & Language Exchange
When Singapore students visited China, and participated in wushu lessons wearing wushu uniforms taught by a wushu master, it was an experience they will never forget. It was something which they thought they could only experience in movies!
Groups of Chinese students embarked on a learning journey to Thailand, and came away learning how to cook Pad Thai, Pineapple rice etc. from a Michelin star restaurant. They visited Thai temples, schools and played golf and had a great time at a waterpark with Thai students.
Multi-cultural and multi-religious Singapore has always been good host to global students as well. Through delicious Chinese, Malay, India, Peranakan food that they tried they get to learn the history and culture of Singapore. They embarked on team building & leadership building games, and visited many attractions that help them understand Singapore.
School Leaders Exchange
You’d imagine that teachers and school owners are a serious bunch of people right? Wrong! They certainly know how to get into the thick of fun when the time is right!
Hundreds of teachers, school leaders and school owners flock to Singapore each year to attend our workshops. They get to visit schools, observe how schools are being administered and how lessons are being delivered in an environment which they may not be familiar with. They get to exchange ideas, experiences and know-how with Singapore teachers and school leaders and get to understand how the Singapore Teaching Practice leads to effective teaching and learning in Singapore schools.
When they travel, you can be sure the teachers want to capture each and every moment, not just in the schools but almost everywhere they stepped foot on in Singapore! We can only say that teachers are an adventurous bunch of people!
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