Internationalisation Programme
Our Belief
Since 2018, one of the signature programmes for the entire secondary three cohort is the Overseas Learning Journey (OLJ) that marks the end of the academic year. The school’s Internationalisation Programme forms a part of our provision for a holistic education within the classroom and beyond. As such, we are committed to provide every student with an opportunity to travel overseas with the school at least once in their 4-5 years of education with us.
Objectives of Trips for International Experience (TIE)
- Deepen in our students the 21CC of global awareness and cross-cultural skills and sensitivities;
- Expose students to Asia with a greater focus on ASEAN countries, India and China, and sensitise them to the place of Singapore in the world; and
- Strengthen students’ commitment and rootedness to Singapore.
In 2022, local-based internationalisation programmes were understood as modified programmes that continue to meet internationalisation objectives in lieu of physical overseas school trips which remained curtailed. These programmes help our students stay connected to the region and the world despite travel restrictions.
In the photographs above, the Sec 3 students enjoyed a learning journey to Fort Canning Park/CBD/Botanic Gardens – local sites that have overseas connections.
Back in the classroom, they also experienced a virtual tour in a park in Japan, a museum in Xi’an, China, and a forest in Malaysia. The hands-on activities in the classroom included trying their hands on a butterfly specimen, excavating fossils using tools of the trade – a chisel and brush, practicing barter trade through given scenarios. These were opportunities for the students to explore our connections with the neighbouring nations despite the travel restrictions. Our goal was simple – if we could not bring the students to the world, we would bring the world to them.
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In 2019, a total of 6 OLJ destinations were organised from Malaysia to Thailand, Vietnam and China.
**Our process**
Annually, the school will identify various destinations with emphasis on ASEAN countries for students to select. Each trip is headed by one of the Secondary 3 Form Teachers (FTs) with other FTs acting as chaperones for all the trips organized. This process offers opportunities for all involved to not only build a stronger teacher-student rapport outside a classroom setting but more importantly, allows for greater social mixing with other students across the classes and streams. Each trip’s itinerary will also include an immersion experience with a hosting school helping students learn about the lives of their peers abroad. **The strengths of the OLJ** * Powerful learning experience to help students develop confidence, independence and responsibility through immersion in a different environment. * Develop understanding of another country’s culture, history and development broadening the students’ world view. * Opportunities for interaction with Meridian schoolmates and overseas friends. At the end of each trip, through their reflections and feedback, students have recorded overwhelming support for the programme as they have gained much from the OLJ experience; from learning about themselves and others; about the culture and life of the places and countries they have visited and how much they have learnt about Singapore’s place in the world. The most priceless impact of the OLJ is that the students expressed a greater sense of appreciation for our country. -
2018 Overseas Learning Journey to Ho Chi Minh
Description of Events 37 Secondary Three students visited Ho Chi Minh City on a memorable culture-rich learning experience.
During the 4 day trip, student participants were able to broaden their world view and develop an appreciation for the rich Vietnamese heritage and culture through various activities.
They visited places of interest like War Remnant Museum and Cu Chi Tunnels to understand the Vietnam War.
In addition, they also visited a local school where they interacted with local students and learnt about the different culture of learning.
Students visiting a local school
Interacting with the local students.
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During my overseas trip to Hanoi, Vietnam, I had an enjoyable and refreshing experience, learning and understanding the new culture and heritage. Though I was a little nervous going overseas myself, I have really enjoyed myself in the company of my new friends. Through the tours around the Van Mieu Temple, the 1st university of Vietnam built in the 11th century, and a number of museums, I had a deeper understanding and appreciation for Vietnam’s culture, history and heritage, which is something that may not always be taught in classrooms. We also had an opportunity to watch a water puppet show. It was mesmerising listening to the music and seeing how the puppets were manoeuvred across the water. In this trip, we also went to Ba Vi Village to learn and experience the hardship of agriculture in Vietnam. One of the highlights of this trip was the cultural exchange at Le Quy Don High School. It was very fun and enjoyable when we played numerous games with each other and experience how the lessons are conducted in the school. I was able to forge many unforgettable friendships with some of students I met there and learnt many new interesting things about Vietnam. Last but not least, we were also given the opportunity to shop around Hanoi Old Quarters Street. It was full of hustle and bustle, and there was a large variety of goods at affordable prices. This overseas trip has been truly unforgettable. – Ellasandra, 3E1
During the overseas learning journey to Hanoi, Vietnam, I have learnt many new things and understood the rich history and culture of Vietnam. Throughout the trip, I have many experiences, which I can never experience in Singapore. Through this trip, I was able to make many new friends.
My most memorable experience was visiting the Le Quy Don Junior High School for the exchange programme. This is because the students over at the school were very friendly and welcoming. They were very prepared to host us and all of them had big smiles on their faces when they greeted us. They encouraged us to participate in many activities like the tug of war and ice breaker games.
I really enjoyed the activities organised. One of them was the water puppet show that is iconic in Vietnam. It is very interesting to watch the puppeteers perform such an interesting show. We also visited some museums which helped us deepen our understanding of the Vietnam war and the different clans of Vietnam.
Overall, this trip was a very enjoyable trip because I got to visit a country with a rich history and made many precious memories with my friends. – Oh Jun Yue, 3A1
Through this trip, I learnt about the rich history and culture of Vietnam. We visited Hoa Lo Prison, a prison used by the French colonists for political prisoners. We were shown the actual cells prisoners lived in and saw depictions of the grueling lifestyle of every prisoner. We also visited a museum where we were educated on the numerous ethnic groups and their rich culture. I have also learnt that Vietnam is a country ruined by war and we should appreciate what we have in Singapore. All in all, this trip was a marvelous experience and I would not mind going back to Vietnam. - Gervin Tang, 3E1
During the recent oversea learning trip to Hanoi, my friends and I got to learn and have a better understanding of Vietnam’s history and culture. We also visited many places like the water puppet show and a local school where we had a taste of their education system. - Goh Kai Qi, 3A2
I learnt many new things from the trip to Hanoi, Vietnam such as the history and the culture of Vietnam as well as forming new friendships with peers. This trip was also filled with exciting activities such as shopping at Old Quarter Streets and planting rice paddies as a rice farm. I loved going on this trip as it also made me a better person.
On the first day, we went to the busy Hanoi Old Quarter Streets where a variety of shops ranging from bookstores to clothing stores could be found. It was a bit new to me, as I had never walked in busy streets filled with motorcycles. It was my first time and I learnt that we had to be close to one another in order not to get lost. Afterwards, we went to enjoy The Water Puppet Show at Thang Long Theatre, a rather unique theatre with its own restaurant on the ground floor. It was a fantastic performance as we heard the sounds of the haunting theremin accompanying the movements of the puppets. At the end of the day, we checked in to the Kuretakeso Hotel.
The next day, we went to a rice farm where we went through a paddy field lesson hands-on activity. I learnt that rice paper or banh trang, one of Vietnam’s traditional dishes were made by crushing rice grains and collecting it in liquid form. Other than the rice farm, we went to a cow farm, an organic vegetables farm as well as a local farmer’s home. At the countryside, the atmosphere was one of peace and serenity that I enjoyed.
On the third day, we went for a cultural exchange at Le Quy Don High School, a friendly and cool school. The students were very friendly as they welcomed us to their school, answered our questions regarding Vietnam as well as bringing us a tour of their beautiful school. After we have bid goodbye after staying at the school for about 2 hours, we went to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, the One Pillar Pagoda, the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology and lastly, the Hoa Loa Prison Museum. To conclude, I will never forget this trip and will definitely recommend it to other students. – Ali Hamzah, 3E1
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5-day 4-night Immersion Programme to Hanoi, Vietnam
This overseas trip to Hanoi in Vietnam is aimed at expanding the world view of students through understanding the tumultuous and complex heritage of Vietnam’s history as well as appreciating its rich culture through understanding the country’s colonial influences from the Chinese, Khmer and French occupation. Students would then better comprehend Singapore’s resilience in her own struggle to independence through understanding the Vietnamese’ strong value of nationalism in their efforts for peace in their country. Also, through a cultural immersion programme with a local school, Le Quy Don Junior High School, the value of humility in learning from others is encouraged. In the 5 days in Hanoi, the places visited included the Temple of Literature, Hanoi’s Old Quarter, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Stilt House. The students visited Dong Trieu Village where they undertook the role of farmers planting rice and catching fishes. The group also visited Trang An Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and made comparison with Singapore Botanic Gardens to understand the significance of this award.
Reflections by students
I chose to spend my holidays differently this year by signing up for the school’s overseas learning journey to Vietnam. Although I was initially apprehensive about going by myself, this trip proved to be much more rewarding than I had expected. For example, the water puppet show provided much insights about how farmers made use of the surrounding conditions, like the flooded rice fields, to present interesting puppet shows to celebrate bountiful harvests. As I visited the National Museum, I had a further glimpse into the rich history of Vietnam. One of the best memories I had was the visit to the Old Quarters in Hanoi. I am amazed at how the roads in the area were closed during weekends to cater to the huge influx of locals roaming around the Hoan Kiem Lake for their family time. The visit to Le Qui Don Junior High School was a valuable learning experience. I was awestruck by their celebrations of Halloween with their performance, fashion show, carnival and even lessons with this festival as the theme of learning. I was especially fascinated with their song and dance segment. It is apparent that much effort had been used in their preparation for the concert. The most amazing experience was actually from Dong Trieu Village, where we learn how to plant rice seedlings into the paddy fields and catch fishes for our dinner! The unforgettable moment was when we visited the Trang An Grottoes at Ninh Binh. The river was so clean that I could see plenty of green vegetation at the bottom. It was such a break from the city that I felt rejuvenated as I cruised along the river on the boat. I would like to thank the school for providing this opportunity for me to attend this overseas trip. The lessons learnt from this were much more than those I have learnt from the classroom. - Naden Jarel Anthony Koh (Class 3E1)
During the recent overseas trip to Vietnam, I have learnt many new things through understanding the history and culture of Vietnam as well as forging new friendships. This trip was filled with many fun activities like catching fishes, watching a water puppet show and more.
On the first day, we got to visit the famous Temple of Literature and watch a water puppet show. The Temple of Literature helped me understand about the influence the Chinese scholar, Confucius, has in Vietnam and how much the Vietnamese value education. As for the water puppet show, I was impressed at how the puppeteers maneuvered the puppets so smoothly in the water.
On the second day, we got to visit two museums and I realized how much the history of Vietnam was influenced by the colonization of the French and the Chinese. The shopping at Old Quarters was therapeutic because there was such a vast array of goods at really affordable prices and I bought many gifts for my family and friends in Singapore.
The visit to Le Quy Don Junior High School on the third day was an eye-opener. The pupils in the school had put up an amazing celebration of Halloween. Besides a concert at the beginning, the school had organized a carnival too where each class put up a game stall or a food stall. Using their entrepreneurial spirit, each class tried to cajole customers to their stalls and purchase their products or to play their games. We had a glimpse into the classroom teaching of an English lesson and we had an enjoyable time learning new vocabulary terms on the theme of Halloween. For me, the humbling part was about planting rice in the flooded paddy fields and catching fishes for our dinner. It was a back-breaking job and I truly appreciate the food the farmers grew.
On the fourth day, I got the chance to scale up a mountain by bus and visit a three-tier pagoda inside a cave. The view at the top of the mountain took my breath away.
Overall, this trip had been an amazing experience for me. Besides learning so much about Vietnam, I had the opportunity to bond with my friends and also made new friends. - Tran Bao Nguyen Andy (Class 1E2)