Students from Wycombe Abbey International school

On 31 January, and 1 and 2 February, the URV’s Centre for Hispanic Studies (CEH) welcomed a group of Chinese secondary-school students from the prestigious Wycombe Abbey International School Changzhou, China. During their visit, the young students had the opportunity to interact with the culture of Tarragona and acquire a basic understanding of Spanish.

Among the activities of the programme, the students had the chance to discover the CRAI (Learning and Research Resource Centre) and Catalunya Campus accompanied by Zhu Rongrong, the coordinator of the Chinese Language and Culture Course, and the students on the “Educational programme for Chinese-speaking students”, who also accompanied them during the guided tour of Tarragona. During their classes, the students had first-hand experience of the methodological differences between language teaching in China and in Spain.

Sandra Ramirez, Gonzalo Fernandez and Eliza Treyson, the teachers responsible for the students of Wycombe Abbey International School, highlighted the importance of cultural and educational exchanges. “These experiences are extremely valuable for students of this age,” commented Sandra Ramirez, “they not only interact with a language in its cultural context, but also open their minds to new cultures and ways of living and thinking.”

With this experience, the Centre for Hispanic Studies reaffirms its commitment to promoting cultural exchange with China, a programme that started more than 20 years ago.