The China Summer Study Abroad Program is going through many changes which will give the program a more technological future-driven direction. These new changes encompass a movement to shorten the program from five weeks to 16 days and focus on China’s urbanization, U.S.-China relations, and the new technological innovations implemented in Chinese society through a program that is not primarily based in language. This means that any Choate student, regardless of which language he or she is studying, can participate in this signature program. The new program will be called “China: The Next Wave.”
The first summer language-immersion program in China took place in 2000. The old program focused on language and cultural immersion, rather than focusing on the manufacturing and urbanization developments in China, which are currently some of the most efficient enterprises in the world.
The new China Study Abroad Program focuses on transporting students between different cities within China and learning about the future of U.S.-China relations as well as Chinese economic systems and cultural and political fields. The program relies on a strong network of connections between local Choate alumni and current Choate parents who hold jobs in finance and diplomacy in China in order to gain access to companies and certain lectures. “They helped us be able to access locations that otherwise would not be available to us,” Ms. Sara Boisvert, Director of Global Programs, said.
These experiences demonstrate the impact of technological and economic jobs in China and how China is increasingly at the global forefront in these areas. Students will visit different companies as well, such as Tencent, the company responsible for WeChat, China’s version of Facebook and messaging; Ctrip, a company which is often referred to as the Expedia of China; and many other large-scale corporations. Students will go to Hong Kong, Beijing, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, and Shanghai. Some of the locations they will visit include the Great Wall of China, the Temple of Heaven, and the Forbidden City. Students will also explore the many advanced technologies used in China, such as high-speed trains and WeChat pay.
“China is transitioning into a cashless society, with Alipay and WeChat pay. Nowadays, they are even starting to use Face ID. The technology there and the progress that continues is amazing. We want the students to be exposed to these advancements in China,” said Dr. Carol Chen-Lin, Co-Director of the program in China. Students on the trip will be given their own WeChat accounts in order to keep in touch with the facilitators of trip and to be able to pay for food and items through WeChat pay to completely immerse themselves in the Chinese experience.
“We realized that students, right now, do multiple activities in one summer, so a five-week program in the middle of the summer meant they couldn’t really do anything else. We tried to condense the program to two and a half weeks, and that meant that students couldn’t totally focus on language in such a short time. Also, now that the program is not Chinese language-based, it caters to a larger population of students,” Dr. Chen-Lin said.
The adults involved in the planning for this trip are Dr. Chen-Lin, Ms. Boisvert, and Dr. Travis Feldman, Director of the I.D. Lab. It took the group some ten months to reimagine the program. Dr. Chen-Lin and Ms. Boisvert put together the budget, and both traveled to Hong Kong, Beijing, and Shanghai to finalize a number of details for this June.
