Oundle Economists and Linguists visit China

Published on isbi School News dated Tuesday 5th of November 2013

When three Oundle School pupils studying Economics, seven studying Chinese and Head of Economics, Mo Tanweer touched down at Shanghai airport with Head of Chinese, Hua Yan, after almost a day of travelling, none of them really knew quite what to expect.

Pupil, Jeremy Manger (15) commented, 'The short coach trip to the school that was to be our home for the next week gave us a glimpse of what lay ahead. We travelled through all the different aspects of Shanghai, through areas of extreme poverty on the outskirts, to the towering skyscrapers of the inner city.'

Over the next week the group participated in a number of activities both in the school and in the city of Shanghai. They visited COMAC, China's main aircraft manufacturer, and toured around the facilities before finishing off the day with a brief lecture and a meal at the Fairmont Hotel, hosted by Oundle parents, Andrew and Catherine Fischer. They also visited Shanghai Volkswagen and received several case studies from Rubicon Partners about what it was like to do business in China, particularly for Western firms operating in a very different market and culture.

The rest of the week was spent at a boarding school in Shanghai (Caoyang No.2 High School), where pupils were engaged in lessons with the Chinese students, with some trips out in the evenings, including a wonderful acrobatics show and a trip on the impressive maglev train. The pupils also completed a homestay with their Chinese buddies, spending a weekend immersed in the cultural and domestic daily life of Chinese people.

Jeremy added, 'At the end of the week we each spent two days at the house of one of the Chinese students, which for most of us was the highlight of our week. At the end of our week in Shanghai, we said our goodbyes and left for Beijing on the high-speed rail. Our week in Beijing was just as packed, with tours to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, the Olympic Stadium and many other interesting places.

The trip was enjoyed thoroughly by all, and was a brilliant opportunity to experience Chinese culture, history and to learn about the future of a country that in one way or another will have a huge impact on our lives.'